Turkey's Labor Act states that before terminating a continuous employment contract made for an indefinite period, the terminating party must serve a notice to the other party. The minimum duration of the notice period depends on the employee's length of service as follows:
These are minimum periods and may be increased by agreement between the parties. The party that fails to observe the notice period must pay compensation equivalent to the wages corresponding to the notice period's duration. The employer may terminate the employment contract by paying the wages corresponding to the term of notice in advance.
Foreign nationals who wish to work in Türkiye are required to obtain a work permit. A work permit for fixed-term employment is granted for 1 year. After this duration, the permit can be extended to 2 years and 3 years thereafter, as long as the employee works for the same employer and in the same profession.
Indefinite-period work permits are also issued to foreign nationals who have stayed uninterruptedly in Türkiye for 8 years or to those who are nationals of countries with which Türkiye has signed an agreement for indefinite work permits. Foreign nationals who wish to work in Türkiye independently can obtain a work permit if they have stayed in Türkiye legally and uninterruptedly for at least 5 years.
To obtain a work permit, foreign employees can apply to the Republic of Türkiye consulates in their country of residence. The consulates forward applications to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Türkiye. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs grants the permit if an application meets the requirements. In workplaces that are subject to the balance-sheet accounting method, for each foreign national for whom a work permit application is submitted, the employer must employ at least 5 Turkish citizens.
Turquoise Cards are granted to qualified foreign nationals whose applications are approved based on factors such as education, professional experience, contributions to science and technology, economic or employment impact in Türkiye, and recommendations from the International Labor Policy Advisory Board. The card is initially issued for a 3-year transitional period. Turquoise Cardholders enjoy the same rights as holders of an indefinite work permit under the Law. The spouse and dependent children of a Turquoise Card holder are issued a document serving as a residence permit, in accordance with applicable legislation.
Employees who have completed a minimum of 1 year of service with their employer, including any probation period, shall be allowed to take paid annual leave. Employees cannot waive their right to paid annual leave. The following paid annual leave requirements do not apply to employees engaged in seasonal or other occupations which, due to their nature, last less than 1 year.
Those working in underground jobs are entitled to 4 extra days of annual leave. Annual leave for those under 18 years of age or above 50 is at least 20 days. In calculating the length of service required to qualify for paid annual leave, the total period during which employees have been employed in 1 or more establishments belonging to the same employer shall be considered.
Turkiye's labor law defines the standard workweek as 45 hours. Employees working more than these hours are eligible for overtime. Unless the employment contract stipulates otherwise, working time is to be divided equally by the number of days worked in a week at the organization.
Provided that the parties have so agreed, working time may be divided differently among the days of the week worked on the condition that the daily working time does not exceed 11 hours. In this case, within a time period of 2 months, the employee's average weekly working time shall not exceed 45 hours.
This average period of 2 months may be increased to 4 months by collective agreement.
Turkiye's labor law provides female employees with 24 weeks of maternity leave: 8 weeks before delivery and 16 weeks after delivery. In case of a pregnancy with multiple children, an extra 2-week period shall be added to the 8 weeks after delivery, during which female employees must not work. However, a female employee whose health condition is deemed suitable, as confirmed by a physician's certificate, may work until 2 weeks before delivery if she wishes. In this case, the time during which the female employee has worked shall be added to her maternity leave after delivery. In case of early birth, the remaining leave is added to post-natal leave.
The periods mentioned above may be extended before and after delivery if deemed necessary because of the female employee's health and the nature of her work. The increased time increments shall be indicated in a physician's report.
Employees are entitled to 66.7% of the average daily earnings of the employee for the duration of the maternity leave, paid by the Social Security Institute of Turkiye.
Effective January 1, 2026, Turkiye's monthly gross minimum wage is TRY 33,030.00. The net monthly minimum wage after taxes and deductions is TRY 28,075.50 per month. The total cost for an employer per employee is:
The minimum wages of underground workers employed in the fields where lignite (soot coal) and hard coal (coal) are removed cannot be less than twice the statutory minimum wage.
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