Hiring in Türkiye: Severance, Notice Periods and Social Security Basics for Foreign Employers

If you are building a team in Türkiye for the first time, the country's labour and social security framework feels generous toward employees compared with many Western jurisdictions. This is by design. Understanding the rules up front prevents both legal disputes and budget surprises. This guide walks through the practical essentials: severance, notice periods, social security contributions, and how to plan for them.

Two laws to know

Two pieces of legislation define most of what you need to know:

Labour Law No. 4857 (İş Kanunu) — governs employment contracts, termination, working hours, leave, and severance.

Social Security Law No. 5510 (Sosyal Sigortalar ve Genel Sağlık Sigortası Kanunu) — governs SSI contributions, pension, healthcare, work injury.

Most disputes arise from interpretation of Law 4857, especially around termination. Familiarity with its core concepts is essential.

Severance pay (Kıdem Tazminatı) — the headline cost

Türkiye does not have an "at-will" employment doctrine. If you terminate an employee who has completed at least one year of service, and the termination is not for serious cause, you owe severance pay.

Calculation: 30 days of gross monthly salary for each year of service. Partial years are pro-rated.

Example: An employee earning 50,000 TRY gross per month with 4 years and 6 months of service is entitled to: 50,000 × 4.5 = 225,000 TRY severance.

Cap: Severance is capped at an upper limit per year of service, set semi-annually (the "tavan" / ceiling). For 2026 H1, the ceiling is approximately 47,000 TRY per year (check current figure with your CPA before calculating). If the employee's salary exceeds this ceiling, the per-year amount is capped at the ceiling — not the actual salary.

Tax treatment: Severance pay is exempt from income tax up to the ceiling per year. Excess above the ceiling is taxable.

Severance is the single most important number to model in your hiring plan. Build a provision in your books each month equal to one-twelfth of the annual exposure.

Notice periods (İhbar Süresi)

When either party terminates a contract (other than for serious cause), notice must be given according to the employee's seniority:

• Less than 6 months service: 2 weeks notice
• 6 months to 1.5 years: 4 weeks
• 1.5 to 3 years: 6 weeks
• More than 3 years: 8 weeks

Payment in lieu of notice (İhbar Tazminatı): If you terminate without giving notice, you must pay the equivalent in cash. This is in addition to severance.

Resignation: The employee must also give notice. If they leave without giving notice, you may legally withhold the equivalent from their final pay — but this often becomes a dispute.

SSI contributions — the monthly burden

For each employed person, you and the employee jointly contribute to SSI:

Employer share: 20.75% of gross wage (rate may vary by industry risk class, this is the standard rate)

Employee share: 14% of gross wage (deducted from the employee's gross)

Combined effective cost: Approximately 34.75% on top of the gross wage. So if you advertise a gross salary of 50,000 TRY, the full cost to your company is approximately 60,375 TRY per month (50,000 + 20.75% employer SSI).

Ceiling: SSI contributions are capped at a "tavan" (currently around 200,000 TRY of gross wages per month, semi-annually updated). Wages above the ceiling are not subject to SSI but ARE subject to income tax.

Income tax withholding

You also withhold employee income tax at source. Türkiye uses a progressive rate (15%, 20%, 27%, 35%, 40%) and a "cumulative" calculation: the rate increases as the employee's year-to-date taxable income grows. This means an employee's net-take-home can decline over the year — a confusing experience for foreign hires.

Stamp tax: Plus 0.759% stamp tax on gross wages (small but adds up).

Hidden costs to budget for

Beyond the headline severance and SSI, several recurring costs catch foreign employers off guard:

Annual leave (Yıllık İzin): 14 days for 1-5 years of service, 20 days for 5-15 years, 26 days for 15+ years. Unused leave must be paid out at termination.

Bayram and religious holidays: Approximately 14-16 paid holidays per year (varies by year).

Maternity and paternity leave: 16 weeks of paid maternity leave (8 before, 8 after birth), funded by SSI not by the employer directly. But there's also "post-natal half-time" entitlements that affect productivity.

Meal allowance and transportation: Not legally required but commonly expected. Often paid as a tax-advantaged benefit.

Job-related training: If your employee resigns shortly after training, you may not recover training costs unless specifically contracted.

Practical advice for first-time foreign employers

1. Use a written employment contract.

Türkiye allows verbal contracts but you'll regret it. Written contract in Turkish (or bilingual TR/EN) specifying salary, role, location, working hours, probation period, confidentiality, and notice terms.

2. Hire your CPA / Mali Müşavir BEFORE hiring your first employee.

Your CPA handles payroll calculations, monthly SSI filing, year-end tax certificates, and termination paperwork. Trying to figure this out in-house your first month is high-risk.

3. Use a probation period (Deneme Süresi).

Up to 2 months allowed by default, up to 4 months with collective agreement. During probation either party can terminate without notice. After probation expires, full termination rules apply.

4. Build a severance provision.

In your monthly financials, recognise a severance liability equal to one-twelfth of the estimated annual exposure. This means at year-end you have funds reserved, not a surprise bill.

5. Be careful with verbal commitments.

Promises of bonuses, salary increases, equity, or remote-work flexibility made verbally can be legally enforceable in Türkiye. Get any promise in writing.

How Birasyo helps

Birasyo's HR and Payroll module is built specifically for Turkish labour law. It calculates severance automatically based on tenure and current ceiling. It manages SSI filing through the monthly Muhtasar declaration. Notice period tracking, annual leave accrual, payroll preparation for your CPA — all integrated. For foreign-owned operations, the parent company gets visibility into total employment costs at any time, in any currency.

Explore Birasyo HR for Türkiye operations →

Summary

Hiring in Türkiye is not difficult but it is procedural. The legal framework protects employees more than in some jurisdictions, especially around termination. Plan for the full employment cost (gross salary plus approximately 21% employer SSI) and build a severance reserve from day one. With these in place, you can scale a Turkish team without budget surprises.