Tax and Accounting Tasks in the First 90 Days After Forming a Company in Türkiye

For tax purposes, a limited company or joint stock company is treated as having commenced business on the day it is registered with the trade registry. The 90 days in this article are not a legal deadline. They are a practical planning window, because most of the first obligations after registration fall within these three months. The legal deadline of each task is stated separately. The main tasks in this period are: the tax office inspection, activation of the electronic notification system (e-Tebligat) within 15 days following the date of commencement, the beneficial ownership notification (1 month), using the share ledger and the general assembly meeting and minutes book in the Ministry of Trade’s Electronic Commercial Books System (Elektronik Ticari Defter Sistemi, ETDS), setting up e-Ledger (e-Defter) and e-Archive Invoice (e-Arşiv Fatura), the E-TUYS notifications for companies with foreign shareholders, the social security (SGK) notifications for the first employee, and the first VAT and withholding tax returns. Companies whose gross sales revenue reaches or exceeds 3,000,000 TL move to e-Invoice (e-Fatura) from July of the following year. Below we explain these tasks in order, with the provisions they rest on and the deadlines that apply as of 2026.

Quick Timeline: What Needs to Be Done and When

If the last day of a period set in days by law falls on an official holiday, the period ends on the first following business day (VUK m. 18/4). This is why the dates in the tax calendar of the Revenue Administration (Gelir İdaresi Başkanlığı, GİB) sometimes shift to a day after the 26th or 28th.

Registration Day: Commencement Notification and MERSİS

Company formation is carried out through the Central Registry Record System (Merkezi Sicil Kayıt Sistemi, MERSİS) of the Ministry of Trade and is completed by registration at the trade registry office (ticaret sicili müdürlüğü). The Tax Procedure Law (Vergi Usul Kanunu, VUK) treats registration with the trade registry as “commencement of business” (işe başlama) for a merchant (VUK m. 154/2). For companies subject to corporate tax, the trade registry office forwards the application documents to the tax office. The company’s commencement notification is thereby deemed to have been made (VUK m. 153). The registry office makes this notification within 10 days of the date of commencement (VUK m. 168/1). Changes of address, field of activity or managers after formation, however, must be reported to the tax office by the company itself within one month (VUK m. 168/1).

The notification made to the trade registry at formation also replaces the workplace notification (işyeri bildirgesi) that would otherwise have to be submitted to the Social Security Institution (Sosyal Güvenlik Kurumu, SGK). The registry office forwards this information to the SGK within 10 days at the latest (Law No. 5510 Art. 11/3). The address, activity code and authorised signatory details entered into MERSİS must therefore be correct, as every later step depends on them.

Tax Office Inspection and Signage

An inspection (yoklama) is the tax office’s on-site investigation and determination of the taxpayer and of the material facts relating to tax liability (VUK m. 127). In practice, after commencement the tax office uses an inspection to establish whether the business actually operates at the address reported. At this stage it is important in practice that a company officer or employee can be reached at the address and that documents showing the address, such as the lease agreement, are at hand. If a virtual office or shared office is to be used, how the tax office will assess the address should be clarified in advance.

The registered trade name must be displayed legibly at a visible place of the business (TTK m. 39/2). A sign or plate on the door or the building is used for this. The annual tax certificate (vergi levhası), on the other hand, no longer has to be displayed. It is sufficient for capital companies to obtain this certificate each year by the end of May (VUK m. 5). Municipal permits for signs and advertising are outside the scope of this article.

Certification of Books and e-Ledger

The books not related to the business’s accounting moved to electronic form in 2026. Companies whose formation is registered with the trade registry from 1 January 2026 must keep the share ledger and the general assembly meeting and minutes book in the Ministry of Trade’s Electronic Commercial Books System (Elektronik Ticari Defter Sistemi, ETDS) (Communiqué on Keeping Commercial Books Not Related to the Business’s Accounting in Electronic Form, İşletmenin Muhasebesiyle İlgili Olmayan Ticari Defterlerin Elektronik Ortamda Tutulması Hakkında Tebliğ, m. 5/1-a, as amended on 20 September 2025). These books are created in the system and activated simultaneously with the company’s registration (m. 9/1). No opening or closing certification is required for books kept electronically (m. 5/5). No physical opening certification by a notary or the registry is therefore obtained for these two books.

Keeping the board of directors’ resolution book (in a limited company, the board of managers’ resolution book, where one is kept) in ETDS is left to the company’s choice. If this book is kept on paper, its opening certification is carried out at formation by the trade registry office where the company’s head office is located (TTK m. 64/3).

Separate rules apply to the books kept under the Tax Procedure Law. Under the VUK, new businesses have their paper books certified before commencing business (VUK m. 221/3, 223/3). The journal (yevmiye defteri) and the general ledger (defteri kebir), however, no longer fall within this scope. Taxpayers who commence business from 1 January 2025 and keep books on the balance sheet basis (bilanço esası) must keep an e-Ledger from the date of commencement (e-Defter Genel Tebliği Sıra No: 1, sec. 3.2.1-3 and 3.2.6-3). Since limited and joint stock companies keep books on the balance sheet basis, every newly formed capital company falls within this scope. Keeping the inventory book as an e-Ledger is optional (sec. 3.2.6). If the inventory book is kept on paper, its opening certification is also obtained at formation. No opening certification by a notary or the registry is required for commercial books kept electronically (TTK m. 64/3).

For the e-Ledger, the company must apply to the e-Ledger application using its financial seal (mali mühür) or the authorised person’s qualified electronic certificate (nitelikli elektronik sertifika, NES). For taxpayers who are obliged but do not apply, GİB opens the account ex officio. From that date, books kept on paper are deemed not to have been kept at all (sec. 3.2.10). Corporate taxpayers upload the e-Ledger certificate (berat) for each month by the end of the 14th day of the fourth month following the month concerned. The deadline is calculated differently for the last month of the accounting period (sec. 4.3.4). For the monthly workflow of the e-Ledger, see our article How to Keep an e-Ledger; for our bookkeeping service, see the Statutory Books and e-Ledger page.

e-Tebligat, UETS and the KEP Address

A company has three separate electronic communication channels. They are often confused with one another.

• GİB e-Tebligat: Corporate taxpayers are required to use the tax administration’s electronic notification system (VUK m. 107/A; restated by Law No. 7587 with effect from 1 July 2026). The VUK General Communiqué (VUK Genel Tebliği, Sıra No: 596), published and in force since 11 October 2026, provides that those establishing tax liability after the Communiqué’s publication date must join the electronic notification system within 15 days following the date of commencement (m. 7/1-b). For those who were already taxpayers on the publication date, the deadline is the end of the month following publication (m. 7/1-a). The application is made through the Digital Tax Office (Dijital Vergi Dairesi, dijital.gib.gov.tr) or by submitting a form to the tax office. Activation is completed with e-mail and/or SMS verification (m. 7/3-4, 8). An electronic notification is deemed served at the end of the fifth day following the date it reaches the addressee’s system (VUK m. 107/A). The inbox therefore needs to be checked regularly.
• UETS (PTT National Electronic Notification System): Courts, enforcement offices and other authorities serve notifications on private law legal entities electronically (Tebligat Kanunu m. 7/a). The address is created upon an application made to PTT by the relevant authority or association using the company’s MERSİS data (Elektronik Tebligat Yönetmeliği m. 5-7). The company should follow up on whether the address has been delivered to it.
• KEP (registered electronic mail, kayıtlı elektronik posta): Between merchants, notices of default, termination and rescission may also be given by KEP with a secure electronic signature (TTK m. 18/3). A KEP account is mandatory for companies with foreign capital. Companies within the scope of Law No. 4875 must have a KEP account for E-TUYS transactions (DYY Kanunu Uygulama Yönetmeliği m. 9).

e-Invoice and e-Archive Invoice: New Companies in 2026

VUK General Communiqué No. 509, read together with its latest amendment of 31 December 2025, contains no provision that imposes a direct e-Invoice (e-Fatura) obligation on newly formed companies based on the amount of their capital. The rules for a new company are as follows:

• e-Archive Invoice, from the first invoice: Taxpayers not included in the e-Archive Invoice application issue their invoices as e-Archive Invoices from 1 January 2026, regardless of the amount. These invoices are issued via the GİB e-Document portal or through a private integrator. For those keeping books under the simplified method or the business account basis, this date is 1 January 2027 (Communiqué No. 509 sec. IV.2.4.3). Since limited and joint stock companies are subject to the balance sheet basis, a company formed in 2026 cannot issue paper invoices.
• e-Invoice, based on a turnover threshold: For the 2022 and later accounting periods, taxpayers whose gross sales revenue reaches or exceeds 3,000,000 TL move to the e-Invoice application from the beginning of the seventh month of the year following the accounting period concerned (sec. IV.1.4-a/1 and IV.1.5-a). For a new company whose gross sales revenue for 2026 reaches or exceeds 3,000,000 TL, the transition date is 1 July 2027.
• Sector-specific obligations: For certain activities the deadline is tied to commencement. For example, intermediary service providers and those publishing listings on the internet move over within 3 months of commencement (sec. IV.1.5-c). Hotel businesses move over by the beginning of the fourth month following the month in which they start operating (sec. IV.1.5-f).
• Voluntary transition: Companies below the threshold may also join the e-Invoice application voluntarily (sec. IV.1.4-d). A company that is an e-Invoice user issues e-Archive Invoices to buyers who are not e-Invoice users (sec. IV.2.4.1).

The details of the transition process are covered in our e-Invoice, e-Archive and e-Ledger transition guide.

Foreign Capital Notifications and Beneficial Ownership

Companies with foreign shareholders fall within the scope of Foreign Direct Investment Law No. 4875 (Doğrudan Yabancı Yatırımlar Kanunu). At formation, the trade registry office sends a copy of the “Company and Branch Formation Notification Form” (Şirket ve Şube Kuruluş Bildirim Formu) to the Ministry of Industry and Technology (DYY Kanunu Uygulama Yönetmeliği m. 4). The steps the company must take itself are as follows:

1. A KEP account and a NES for the user are obtained (Regulation Art. 9).
2. The application letter, a notarised undertaking for each user and the User Authorisation Form (Kullanıcı Yetkilendirme Formu) are sent to the KEP address of the relevant Directorate General of the Ministry (Art. 10). If the undertaking is executed abroad, consular legalisation or an apostille is required.
3. No later than 1 month after the authorisation is approved, the “Investor”, “Shareholder List” and, if any, “Affiliates” fields are completed in E-TUYS (Art. 5/b-1).
4. In subsequent periods, the Activity Information Form (Faaliyet Bilgi Formu) is completed each year by the end of May. In the event of a capital increase or share transfer, the relevant fields are updated within 1 month (Art. 5/b-2 to 5).

The beneficial ownership (gerçek faydalanıcı) notification is a separate tax obligation. Corporate taxpayers report the natural persons holding more than 25 percent of the company’s shares, or the persons holding ultimate control. As a rule, this notification is made as an attachment to the provisional and annual corporate tax returns (VUK Genel Tebliği Sıra No: 529, m. 5-7). When a new tax liability is established, however, the notification must be made electronically within 1 month following the date on which the liability begins (m. 6/3). In structures where the shareholder is a company abroad, identifying the natural person at the end of the chain may take time. The shareholding chart should therefore be prepared at the formation stage.

Capital Payment and Bank Account

In 2026 the minimum share capital is 250,000 TL for a joint stock company (anonim şirket) and 50,000 TL for a limited company (limited şirket) (TTK m. 332/1 and 580/1; Presidential Decision No. 7887). In a joint stock company, at least 25 percent of the shares subscribed for in cash is paid before registration and the remainder within 24 months following registration (TTK m. 344/1). Cash payments are deposited into a special account opened at a bank in the name of the company being formed, which only the company can use. The bank releases this amount to the company once the registry letter showing that the company has acquired legal personality is presented (TTK m. 345/1).

In a limited company, the requirement to pay 25 percent before registration does not apply (TTK m. 585/1, sentence added by Law No. 7099). Since the joint stock company provisions apply by analogy to capital payment, the subscribed capital is paid within 24 months following registration. Where the foreign shareholder transfers the capital from abroad, stating clearly on the bank receipt that the payment is made against the capital commitment makes the accounting entry and later notifications easier. For the formation process with foreign shareholders, see our Company Formation with Foreign Shareholders page.

First Employee: SGK Workplace Registration and Employment Start Notification

Since the notification made to the trade registry at formation is deemed to have been made to the SGK, the company does not need to submit a separate workplace notification (Law No. 5510 Art. 11/3). The registry forwards this notification to the SGK within 10 days at the latest. Employees, as a rule, are reported with an insured employment start notification (sigortalı işe giriş bildirgesi) before they start work (Art. 8/1). There is an exception for workplaces submitting a workplace notification to the Institution for the first time. Employees who start within one month of the date on which the first insured person starts work may be reported until this one-month period expires (Art. 8/1-b). Foreign national employees first need a work permit. This topic is covered in our article on work permits for foreign shareholders and company directors. We calculated the wage, premium and tax cost of the first hire in our article on the cost of hiring your first employee.

First Returns: VAT and Withholding Tax

The company files a monthly VAT (KDV) return from the month in which it commences business. The return is filed even if there are no sales or purchases. Article 41 of the KDV Kanunu states the filing deadline as the 24th day of the following month. However, in GİB’s 2026 tax calendar the last day for monthly VAT filing and payment is the 28th of the following month. For example, the last day for the September 2026 period is 28 October 2026. For the October 2026 period, the last day is 30 November 2026, because 28 November falls on a Saturday.

If there are wage payments or payments subject to withholding, such as rent or fees for self-employed services, the withholding tax and social security premium return (muhtasar ve prim hizmet beyannamesi) is filed by the 26th of the following month. In the calendar, the last day for the October 2026 period is 26 November 2026. Provisional corporate tax (kurum geçici vergisi) is filed for three-month periods. For example, the last day for the 2026 third period is 17 November 2026. For return preparation, see the Preparation of Tax Returns page.

Example: A Limited Company with a Foreign Shareholder Registered on 2 November 2026

Assumptions: A limited company with capital of 200,000 TL, whose shareholder is a company resident in Germany, is registered in Istanbul on Monday, 2 November 2026. The first employee starts work on 1 December 2026. The company uses the calendar year as its accounting period.

1. 2 November 2026: Commencement takes place upon registration (VUK m. 154/2). The share ledger and the general assembly meeting and minutes book are opened in ETDS simultaneously with registration; no opening certification is obtained for them. If the board of managers’ resolution book is to be kept on paper, its opening certification is obtained at the registry. The e-Ledger is kept from the date of commencement.
2. By 12 November 2026: The registry office notifies the tax office of the commencement. The period is 10 days and the starting day is not counted (VUK m. 18/1, 168/1). The tax office inspection follows.
3. By 17 November 2026: e-Tebligat activation is carried out. Since the company establishes its tax liability after the Communiqué’s publication, the period is 15 days following the date of commencement (Communiqué No. 596 m. 7/1-b).
4. By 2 December 2026: The beneficial ownership notification is made. The period is 1 month (Communiqué No. 529 m. 6/3).
5. Before 1 December 2026: The SGK employment start notification for the first employee is submitted (5510 m. 8).
6. 28 December 2026: Last day for the VAT return and for the withholding tax and social security premium return for the November 2026 period. Since 26 December, the normal last day for the withholding tax return, falls on a Saturday, the GİB calendar shows 28 December for both returns.
7. 26 and 28 January 2027: The withholding tax and social security premium return for the December 2026 period (including the first payroll) is filed by 26 January, and the VAT return by 28 January.
8. 31 January 2027: 90 days from registration expire. This is not a legal deadline but the end of this article’s planning window. The aim is that by this date the E-TUYS authorisation has been completed and the shareholder information has been entered within 1 month after authorisation.
9. March 2027: The e-Ledger certificate for November 2026 is uploaded by the end of the 14th day of the fourth month following that month.
10. By 2 November 2028: The remaining cash capital is paid (TTK m. 344 by reference from m. 585).

In addition, if the company’s two-month gross sales revenue in 2026 reaches or exceeds 3,000,000 TL, the e-Invoice transition date will be 1 July 2027. If revenue stays below this amount, the company continues to issue its invoices as e-Archive Invoices.

For questions specific to your company, you can write to us via our contact page.

Last legislation check: 9 November 2026 · Period covered: companies whose formation is registered on or after 1 January 2026, 2026 tax calendar