This is the English version of a Turkish article. The original, with further detail and linked petition templates, is at Kira Artışı ve Kiracı Hakları 2026.
Three rules decide most tenancy disputes in Turkey: an increase may not exceed the twelve-month average change in the consumer price index (TBK art. 344); a landlord may seek eviction only on grounds listed in the statute; and once the ten-year extension period has run, termination without giving a reason becomes possible (TBK art. 347). Since 1 September 2023, mediation is a condition of the action in tenancy disputes.
Turkish tenancy law is markedly protective of the tenant, and the protection is structural rather than discretionary: the ceiling on increases is mandatory, and the grounds for eviction are a closed list. This guide sets out the increase cap, the eviction grounds, the ten-year rule, deposits and rent redetermination actions.
Throughout, TBK means the Turkish Code of Obligations No. 6098, which governs residential and roofed commercial tenancies.
What Is the Cap on Rent Increases?
For residential and roofed commercial tenancies, TBK art. 344 allows the parties to agree the rent for the following period freely, but only up to a ceiling: the increase may not exceed the twelve-month average change in the consumer price index (TÜFE), published monthly by the Turkish Statistical Institute.
Between 2022 and 2024 a temporary provision capped residential increases at 25 per cent. That provision has since lapsed, and the general rule — the consumer price index average — applies again.
Four points follow from the rule:
- A figure written into the contract that exceeds the ceiling does not override it. The agreement is invalid as to the excess, and the overpayment can be reclaimed.
- Not applying an increase in one period does not create a cumulative right to catch up later. Each period is assessed on its own.
- The parties may agree an increase below the ceiling; they may never agree one above it.
- The ceiling applies whatever the payment is called. Naming an extra sum a "service charge" or "contribution" does not take it outside the rule if it functions as rent.
Verbal pressure to accept an above-ceiling increase is not uncommon. It has no legal effect: the tenant who pays the excess may reclaim it, and the tenancy continues on its existing terms.
When Can a Tenant Be Evicted?
The grounds on which a landlord may recover possession are a closed list. The proposition that an owner may recover the property at will is simply wrong in Turkish law. The principal grounds are:
- Genuine need of the landlord or a close relative (TBK art. 350). The need of the landlord, their spouse, descendants, ascendants or persons they are legally obliged to support. The need must be shown to be genuine, sincere and pressing.
- Reconstruction or substantial repair (TBK art. 350/2), where the works make continued occupation impossible.
- New owner's need (TBK art. 351). A purchaser must notify the tenant in writing within one month of acquisition and may bring the action six months later.
- Written undertaking to vacate. Valid only if given after the tenancy began. One signed together with the lease at the outset is ineffective.
- Two justified warnings (TBK art. 352/2). Where the tenant has caused two justified warning notices for late payment within a single lease year, the landlord may bring an action within one month of the end of that year.
- Default in payment (TBK art. 315). Where the rent is not paid within the period allowed by a warning notice.
- Expiry of the ten-year extension period (TBK art. 347), on three months' notice before the end of an extension year.
| Ground | Condition / time limit | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Written undertaking to vacate | Enforcement or action within 1 month of the undertaken date | TBK art. 352/1 |
| Two justified warnings | Two warnings in one lease year; action within 1 month of year end | TBK art. 352/2 |
| Tenant acquires a home | Ownership of a dwelling within the same municipality | TBK art. 352/3 |
| Genuine need | Landlord, spouse, descendants, ascendants or dependants | TBK art. 350 |
| Reconstruction or substantial repair | Works making occupation impossible | TBK art. 350 |
| New owner's need | Written notice within 1 month; action after 6 months | TBK art. 351 |
| Default in payment | Non-payment within the period set by warning notice | TBK art. 315 |
| Ten-year extension period | Notice 3 months before the end of an extension year | TBK art. 347 |
Property recovered on the ground of need or reconstruction may not be let to anyone other than the former tenant for three years without just cause (TBK art. 355).
The Ten-Year Extension Rule
TBK art. 347 is the backbone of the tenant's protection. A fixed-term residential tenancy is extended by one year on the same terms unless the tenant gives notice at least fifteen days before the end of the term. The landlord has no corresponding right to end it simply because the term has expired.
That position holds for ten years of extension. Once the ten-year period has run, the landlord may terminate without giving any reason, by written notice at least three months before the end of an extension year — and may do so at the end of each subsequent year.
Statements extracted under pressure — a signed "I am terminating the lease", or an undertaking to vacate signed at the landlord's insistence — can be set aside. Duress is a ground for annulment, though it must be evidenced.
"In residential and roofed commercial tenancies, unless the tenant gives notice at least fifteen days before the expiry of a fixed-term contract, the contract is deemed extended for one year on the same terms."
TBK art. 347
Deposits and Their Return
Under TBK art. 342 the deposit may not exceed three months' rent. Anything above that is recoverable.
- A deposit taken in money must be placed in a time deposit savings account in the tenant's name, not withdrawable without the landlord's consent; negotiable instruments are deposited with a bank.
- The bank may release the deposit only with the consent of both parties, on a finalised enforcement proceeding, or on a final court judgment.
- If the landlord does not notify the bank in writing, within three months of the end of the tenancy, that an action or enforcement proceeding has been commenced, the bank must return the deposit at the tenant's request.
- Ordinary wear and tear may not be deducted. Damage caused by the tenant's fault may be.
The single most common dispute is a deduction claimed for redecoration. Where entry and exit condition reports exist, these disputes largely disappear; where they do not, the parties' accounts simply conflict.
Rent Redetermination Actions
Where the rent has fallen far below — or risen far above — the market, either party may bring an action for the rent to be redetermined. It is heard by the civil court of peace at the location of the property.
- Either the landlord or the tenant may bring it.
- It is available where the tenancy has run for five years or more, or where the rent was fixed in the lease year completing five years.
- The action must be brought, or notice given to the other party, at least thirty days before the start of the new period; otherwise the determination takes effect only from the following period.
- The court assesses comparable rents through a court-appointed expert, taking account of the character and location of the property and market conditions.
- The determined rent does not operate retrospectively, but rent overpaid in the meantime may be reclaimed in a separate action.
What to Do in a Tenancy Dispute
- Keep communication in writing. Messages and e-mails are admissible and frequently decide these cases.
- Pay by bank transfer and keep the receipts. This is the strongest answer to an allegation of default.
- Record the condition of the property on entry and on exit, with dated photographs and a report signed by both parties.
- Mediation is compulsory. Since 1 September 2023, application to a mediator is a condition of the action in tenancy disputes; a claim filed without it is dismissed on procedural grounds. Enforcement proceedings for unpaid rent are not subject to that requirement.
- Jurisdiction. The civil court of peace at the location of the property, and that jurisdiction cannot be varied by agreement.
The purchaser becomes the landlord and is bound by the existing contract. To recover possession for their own need, the purchaser must notify the tenant in writing within one month of acquisition and may bring the action only six months later (TBK art. 351). Miss the one-month notice and this route closes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can my landlord raise the rent by any amount?
No. The increase is capped at the twelve-month average change in the consumer price index, and a higher figure in the contract does not override the cap.
My contract says the increase will be 40 per cent. Is that binding?
Not as to the excess. The agreement is invalid above the statutory ceiling and any overpayment can be reclaimed.
Can I be evicted because the lease term has ended?
No. A residential tenancy extends automatically for one year on the same terms, and the landlord may terminate without reason only after ten years of extension, on three months' notice.
Is an undertaking to vacate valid?
Yes if it was given in writing after the tenancy began. One signed together with the lease at the outset is not effective.
Do I have to go to mediation before suing?
Yes. Since 1 September 2023 mediation is a condition of the action in tenancy disputes. Enforcement proceedings for unpaid rent may still be started directly.