Airbnb in Turkey: What Foreign Owners Must Know Before They List (2026)

What the law treats as a short-term rental

Law No. 7464 applies to any letting of a residential unit for one hundred days or less in a single agreement, whatever the guest's purpose — a holiday, a medical stay, a work trip or study all count the same way. A letting longer than one hundred days falls outside the Law and remains an ordinary lease — the long-term letting to a tenant that follows its own separate rules. Only a unit registered as residential in the title deed can be licensed; a property whose deed shows office or commercial use cannot obtain the permit unless its status is changed first. The Law also prohibits sub-letting: a guest cannot re-let the unit to third parties, and a tenant who has rented a home to live in cannot turn around and offer it for tourism letting.

The tourism rental permit and how you apply

The permit — formally the Tourism Rental Permit Certificate for the residence — is issued by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, in practice through the Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism, and the application is made on the e-Devlet portal. It must be in hand before the rental relationship begins, not afterwards. Once the permit is granted, a plaque bearing the permit number must be displayed at the entrance of the property, and that permit number has to appear in every advertisement and listing for the unit. The Directorate may inspect the property as part of, or after, the process.

The unanimous-consent hurdle

This is where most applications slow down. The Law requires that the application be accompanied by a decision taken unanimously by all the flat owners in the building where the unit sits. In a housing estate made up of several separate buildings, only the owners in the relevant building need to agree, rather than the whole estate. Even where unanimity is reached, in a building of more than three independent units a single owner may be licensed for no more than twenty-five per cent of the units; and where the same person applies for more than five units in the same building, a workplace opening and operating licence is also required.

The consequence is blunt: one owner who refuses, or who simply cannot be reached, can stop the whole thing. In the applications we handle for owners living outside Turkey, this consent step is the usual bottleneck — not the paperwork at the Ministry, but the signature of a neighbour. A standalone house on its own plot avoids the problem, because there are no co-owners whose consent is needed.

What a foreign owner needs to file

For an individual applicant the core documents are a copy of the passport; a signature declaration where the passport carries no specimen signature; and a current title deed record showing ownership. Where the application is made through a representative rather than in person — the normal position for an owner abroad — a notarised power of attorney authorising the filing is required. If the unit lacks residential condominium title, a building registration certificate showing residential use is needed instead. Any document issued in a foreign language must be accompanied by a sworn translation to the standard the authorities accept.

Because we act as attorney and sworn translator together, the legal filing, the power of attorney and the certified translations are prepared in one place, which is where a non-resident owner would otherwise have to coordinate three separate providers.

The 1 April 2026 Airbnb listing rule

Turkey now requires online platforms to verify permit numbers with the government. On Airbnb this became concrete on 1 April 2026: to host in Turkey you must enter, for each listing, the number of your Tourism Rental Permit Certificate (or the relevant tourism establishment certificate) together with the document holder's name as shown on the certificate, and this information is checked against government records. A listing without a valid, correctly formatted permit number cannot host, and non-compliant listings are removed. In practice this closes the gap that let unlicensed lettings continue quietly after the Law took effect.

Penalties for letting without a permit

The Law sets out an escalating scale. Letting a residence for tourism without a permit draws an administrative fine of 100,000 TL for each unit, with fifteen days granted to obtain the permit. If the activity continues after that period, the fine rises to 500,000 TL and a further fifteen days is given. If letting still continues without a permit, the fine reaches 1,000,000 TL. Separately, anyone who acts as an intermediary for the tourism letting of an unlicensed residence faces 100,000 TL for each contract, and an online platform that fails to remove flagged content within twenty-four hours of the Ministry's warning faces 100,000 TL for each unit. Failing to send information requested by the Ministry within thirty days carries a 50,000 TL fine.

Is your income business income or rental income?

The tax treatment of short-term letting is contested and still moving, and it is worth understanding before you assume a position. In a general ruling dated 24 January 2025 (No. 7877), the Revenue Administration took the view that owners holding a tourism rental permit were carrying on a commercial activity, so that their income was commercial income subject to income tax and value added tax. On that basis the tax authority opened retrospective assessments against many owners who had not registered as commercial taxpayers.

That approach was then stayed. The Third Chamber of the Council of State (Danıştay) suspended the operation of the general ruling during 2025, reasoning that letting a property short-term simply to earn more does not, by itself, make the activity commercial. On this view, unless the letting is run like a hotel, apart-hotel or guesthouse — with an organisation and added services such as breakfast, meals or daily cleaning — the income keeps its character as rental income under Article 70 of the Income Tax Law, and is not subject to value added tax or accommodation tax. The Ministry of Finance objected to the stay before the Council of State's Tax Litigation Chambers Council, and the question has not been finally settled.

The practical point for an owner is that the label is not automatic. What matters is how the activity is actually run and documented, and because the position is under appeal, a foreign owner should take advice on their own facts rather than assume either outcome. This question sits within the wider set of taxes foreign owners pay on Turkish property. Keeping clean records of income, expenses and how the unit is operated protects you whichever way the dispute finally lands.

Guest reporting, the plaque and advertising

A licensed short-term rental brings ongoing duties beyond the permit itself. Guests must be reported under the Identity Notification Law (No. 1774), in the same way accommodation providers report who is staying with them. The permit plaque must remain displayed at the entrance, and every advertisement for the unit must carry a legible copy of the permit certificate along with the details the regulations require, such as capacity, floor and layout.

Running it remotely as a non-resident owner

Almost every step above can be handled from abroad through a properly drafted power of attorney: the permit application, the gathering and notarisation of the owners' consent, registration with the tax office, guest reporting and correspondence with the authorities. The friction for a foreign owner is rarely any single rule; it is coordinating a Turkish-language process, a notary, a translator and a tax registration across a distance. Handling the legal work and the sworn translation through one point of contact is what keeps that manageable.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need a permit if I only rent a few weeks a year? Yes. Any letting of one hundred days or less counts as a tourism rental and needs a permit, regardless of how often you do it.

Can my building stop me from letting on Airbnb? Yes. The permit requires the unanimous consent of all flat owners in the building, so a single refusal — or an owner you cannot reach — blocks it.

I live abroad. Can someone apply on my behalf? Yes, through a notarised power of attorney authorising a representative to make the application and handle the process.

Is a standalone villa easier? In one respect, yes: a house on its own plot has no co-owners, so the unanimous-consent requirement does not arise.

How long does the permit take? The Ministry stage is generally a matter of weeks. In practice the slowest part is assembling the owners' consent, especially for an absentee owner.

What are the fines if I skip the permit? They escalate: 100,000 TL per unit, then 500,000 TL, then 1,000,000 TL if letting continues without a permit, with short cure periods in between.

Do I pay VAT on my Airbnb income? This is disputed. The Revenue Administration's 2025 ruling treated permit-holders' income as commercial and subject to VAT, but the Council of State stayed that ruling. Whether VAT applies depends on how you operate, and the matter is under appeal — take advice on your facts.

Is the income rental income or business income? Under the Council of State's reasoning, plain short-term letting keeps its character as rental income unless you run it like a hotel or guesthouse with added services. The characterisation turns on how you actually operate.

Do I have to report my guests? Yes. Guests must be reported under the Identity Notification Law (No. 1774).

Can I let a flat that I rent rather than own? No. Sub-letting a residence for tourism is prohibited under the Law.

My title deed says "office". Can I still do it? No. Only units registered as residential in the title deed can be licensed, unless the status is changed first.

What changed on 1 April 2026? Airbnb now requires a valid permit number and document-holder name on every Turkish listing, checked against government records, before you can host.

Do I need a Turkish tax registration? Yes, to declare the income. Whether you register as a commercial taxpayer or declare rental income depends on the characterisation discussed above.

Can I let more than one flat in the same building? Only within limits: no more than twenty-five per cent of the units in a building of more than three units, and more than five units in one building triggers a workplace operating licence.