Stamp Duty in Turkey: Documents, Rates and Exemptions

Stamp duty in Turkey—damga vergisi in Turkish—is a tax on specified documents rather than a general tax on every business transaction. A signed agreement, lease, tender decision, payroll document or other paper listed in Schedule (1) to Stamp Tax Law No. 488 may create either proportional or fixed tax. The document's legal substance, stated monetary amount, signature method and use in Turkey matter more than its title.

This guide reflects the legislation and official 2026 tariff checked on 1 October 2026. It is written for foreign-owned Turkish companies, overseas suppliers, investors and finance teams that sign or rely on documents connected with Turkey. A transaction-specific review remains necessary because guarantees, related clauses, amendments, exemptions and execution outside Turkey can change the result.

What is stamp duty in Turkey?

Stamp duty is document-based. Article 1 of Law No. 488 broadly treats a “paper” as a document that is written and signed—or carries a sign replacing a signature—and can be produced to prove or establish a matter. The definition also covers documents created as electronic data using an electronic signature. The taxable categories are in Schedule (1); Schedule (2) and separate statutes contain exemptions.

A commercial transaction and a taxable document are therefore not the same thing. An invoice, accounting entry or transfer of money does not automatically create contract-rate stamp duty. Conversely, a signed document may trigger tax before an invoice is issued or payment is made. The review should take place before execution, when wording and signing mechanics can still be managed lawfully.

Which documents can be taxable?

2026 stamp duty rates and maximum amount

General Communiqué No. 71 confirms the fixed amounts and the maximum tax applicable in 2026. The principal proportional rates most businesses encounter remain in Schedule (1) to Law No. 488.

These are not interchangeable “business rates.” The correct item in Schedule (1) must be matched to the document. Fixed stamp-tax amounts also apply to specified papers and returns, but they should be taken from the 2026 official tariff rather than an old accounting template.

How is proportional stamp duty calculated?

For a taxable contract with a stated or determinable amount, the starting formula is:

Example 1: TRY service agreement

A Turkish company signs a 2026 service agreement containing a fixed fee of TRY 20,000,000. If the agreement falls within the general contract category and no exemption applies, the preliminary calculation is TRY 20,000,000 × 0.948% = TRY 189,600. The result is below the annual ceiling.

Example 2: foreign-currency agreement

If the fee is stated in USD or EUR, the foreign-currency amount must be translated into Turkish lira under Article 12 and the applicable administrative rules. The exchange rate and date should be documented in the tax file; do not reuse the accounting rate selected for group reporting without checking the stamp-tax rule.

VAT and gross-up wording

The contract should state clearly whether the commercial amount is inclusive or exclusive of VAT. Turkish administrative practice generally permits separately stated VAT to remain outside the stamp-tax base, while a single tax-inclusive committed amount can create a different analysis. Variable fees, minimum commitments, escalation formulas, milestone amounts and currency clauses must also be tested for whether they produce a determinable amount.

For a quick preliminary estimate, the site's verified Turkey stamp tax calculator uses the general 0.948% contract rate. It does not replace classification of the actual document, exemption review or the annual ceiling test.

Electronic signatures and digital contract workflows

A digital workflow is not automatically outside stamp duty. Law No. 488 expressly includes documents created as electronic data using an electronic signature. A secure electronic signature under Electronic Signature Law No. 5070 has the legal effect of a handwritten signature, subject to the statutory exceptions in that law.

International platforms may offer click-to-accept, scanned-signature, simple electronic-signature and qualified-signature options. These methods are not identical under Turkish law. Finance and legal teams should retain the signed version, audit trail, signature certificate where applicable, execution timestamp and all incorporated annexes. The tax review should follow the legally operative document, not the PDF stored under a convenient filename.

Agreements signed outside Turkey

A paper executed in another country can enter the Turkish stamp-tax net when it is:

• presented to a Turkish official authority;

• subject to an assignment or endorsement transaction in Turkey; or

• relied upon or otherwise benefited from in Turkey.

“Sign it abroad” is therefore not a complete compliance strategy. A foreign parent may sign a master services agreement overseas, yet its Turkish subsidiary may later rely on it for an invoice, bank process, regulatory submission, litigation, transfer-pricing file or local service. The facts of Turkish use should be mapped before the document is circulated.

Multiple clauses, guarantees and amendments

A single agreement can contain more than one transaction. Under Article 6, independent transactions may be taxed separately. If the transactions are connected and arise from the same principal transaction, the highest-taxed transaction generally governs. A transaction added by a third party—such as a guarantee—can require separate tax analysis.

Penalty clauses, deposits, withdrawal compensation and similar sanctions do not automatically add a second taxable amount when they are merely enforcement terms of the main agreement and are not themselves the subject of a separate contract. The wording still matters. A stand-alone guarantee, surety or indemnity should never be assumed to disappear inside the principal contract.

Amendments are another common failure point. A protocol may increase the contract price, extend the term, replace a party, add a new service or turn an indicative amount into a binding minimum. Review the protocol on its own legal effect and keep the original tax calculation and payment receipt with the amendment file.

Who pays the tax?

The statutory taxpayers are generally the persons signing the paper. For papers between a private person and an official authority, the private person pays. For specified foreign papers, the person presenting, assigning, endorsing or benefiting from the paper in Turkey bears the payment responsibility.

Commercial agreements often allocate the cost to one party. That clause determines the parties' economic arrangement; it does not necessarily restrict the tax authority's statutory collection rights. The contract owner, accounts payable team and accountant should therefore know both the agreed cost allocation and the legal taxpayer position.

Main exemptions businesses should test

An exemption should be traced to Schedule (2), an additional article of Law No. 488 or another specific statute. Useful business categories include:

• Corporate reorganisations: qualifying papers connected with the establishment, capital increase, merger, transfer, demerger and change of type of joint stock, limited and specified capital companies can be exempt under the statutory conditions.

• Qualifying credit papers: papers for obtaining, securing, repaying or transferring qualifying loans from banks, foreign credit institutions and international institutions can fall within the credit exemption; the drawdown itself and non-qualifying financing require separate review.

• Exports and foreign-currency earning activities: qualifying export papers and specified foreign-currency earning activities can benefit under Additional Article 2. Some activities require a valid inward-processing permit or Tax, Duty and Charge Exemption Certificate and are limited by the certificate's term and amount.

• Minimum-wage portion of employment papers: the portion corresponding to the statutory minimum wage is exempt under the applicable payroll rules.

• Sector or project-specific relief: special legislation, international agreements and time-limited measures can exempt narrowly defined documents.

An exemption is not established by writing “stamp duty exempt” in the contract. Confirm the legal basis, qualifying parties, document purpose, certificate requirement, monetary limit and validity date. Keep the exemption evidence with the executed document.

Filing and payment in practice

The payment route depends on whether the taxpayer has continuous stamp-tax liability, the parties and the transaction channel.

1. Identify the document date. Record the date on which the paper became legally operative and the place and method of signature.

2. Classify the paper. Match its legal substance to Schedule (1), then check Schedule (2) and any special exemption.

3. Determine the amount and rate. Document the currency conversion, term, VAT treatment, guarantees and annual cap.

4. Select the payment method. Continuous stamp-tax taxpayers generally report and pay the monthly liability by the 26th day of the following month. Different rules and shorter transaction-based periods can apply where there is no continuous liability, or where a notary or public body is involved.

5. Retain evidence. File the executed document, calculation, exemption support, return receipt, accrual slip and payment receipt together.

6. Recheck later changes. Route every extension, price change, assignment, termination and guarantee through the same control.

The site's Turkish tax filing and payment calendar places the monthly stamp-tax return within the broader VAT, withholding, payroll and year-end compliance cycle.

Pre-signing stamp duty checklist

Common stamp duty mistakes

• applying 0.948% to every document without first checking whether it is taxable;

• treating a contract signed abroad as permanently outside Turkey;

• missing an amendment, renewal, order form or guarantee signed after the main agreement;

• using an old annual ceiling or fixed amount;

• using a management-reporting exchange rate without preserving the statutory conversion basis;

• claiming an export or financing exemption without the required legal conditions and documents;

• assuming the cost-allocation clause eliminates the other signatory's statutory exposure; and

• keeping only the payment receipt without the filed return, accrual slip, calculation and signed paper.

Stamp duty should be part of the contract-approval process, not a month-end surprise. The broader Turkey tax and accounting guide for foreign investors explains how contracts, invoices, accounting records and tax filings should tell the same commercial story.

Official sources

• Legislation Information System — Stamp Tax Law No. 488, Schedules (1) and (2)

• Turkish Revenue Administration — Stamp Tax Law General Communiqué No. 71

• Official Gazette — General Communiqué No. 71 and 2026 tariff

• Turkish Revenue Administration — Current tax calendar

• Turkish Revenue Administration — Communiqué on tax, duty and charge exemptions for exports and foreign-currency earning activities

• Information and Communication Technologies Authority — Electronic Signature Law and application guidance

Reviewed on 1 October 2026. This article provides general information and does not constitute tax or legal advice. The document, parties, amount, execution method, exemption evidence and use in Turkey must be reviewed for each transaction.