Are you interested in working in Turkey? Or are you assigned to a position in Turkey by your company? If yes, you should know that the first step for a foreigner to work in Turkey (independently or as an employee), you will need a residence permit and a work permit. Law No. 4817 on Work Permits for Foreigners and its Implementing Regulations constitute the legal basis for work permits for foreigners. Work permits are issued for a minimum period of six months. The application takes at least 1.5 months.

Turkish companies applying for a work permit for foreigners are obliged to employ at least five Turkish citizens for each foreign employee hired. Depending on the case, the 5:1 rule (5 Turkish employees for one foreign worker) can be challenging to implement and generate high costs. However, it is possible to apply for a “mounting visa”. This kind of visa gives the possibility to other personnel to Turkey for a maximum period of 3 months. Foreigners who wish to stay in Turkey for a period of up to 90 days for assembly, maintenance, repair, troubleshooting or training work must obtain an assembly visa from a Turkish consulate in their country of residence or their home country. The stay may not exceed the total duration of three months in a calendar year.

Turkish Consulate Generals issue on request a “working visa – montage and repairman purposes”. No other work permit is required. The Consulate of Turkey provides further information on the application procedure.

If you would like to get a work permit, you can get in touch with ERAI Turkey, and we can deal with the bureaucratic issues on your behalf while you solely focus on your business. If you would like to learn more about how to get a work permit in Turkey, you can read our article about the work permit application process. You can always contact us for all your further questions.