This is the English version of a Turkish article. The original, with further detail and linked petition templates, is at İstifa Eden İşçi Kıdem Tazminatı Alabilir mi?.
The rule is clear: an employee who resigns does not receive severance pay. The exceptions are the just-cause grounds in İş K. art. 24, and marriage, military service and retirement. What decides the case is not what the letter is called but whether a just cause is stated in it. A letter signed in the words "I am leaving of my own accord" makes any later action considerably harder.
"If I resign I get nothing" is usually true, but not always. The statute lists cases in which severance is earned despite the employee leaving voluntarily.
The Rule
Severance pay is governed by art. 14 of Act No. 1475, still in force. As a rule an employee who leaves of their own accord does not earn it.
Notice pay works on the same logic: whichever side terminates, the one that fails to observe the notice period owes the other. An employee who resigns does not receive notice pay and, if they leave without notice, may have to pay it.
But the statutory exceptions are wider than is generally assumed.
The Exceptions
1. Retirement. An employee who leaves having satisfied the conditions for a retirement pension earns severance pay.
2. Conditions other than age completed. An employee who has completed the insurance period and the required premium days and is only waiting for the age condition earns severance on leaving, provided they document it with a letter from the social security institution. This is the exception used most often in practice.
3. Military service. A male employee leaving for compulsory military service earns severance pay.
4. A female employee's marriage. A female employee who terminates of her own accord within one year of her marriage earns severance pay.
5. Termination by the employee for just cause. Where the grounds in İş K. art. 24 arise — unpaid wages, health grounds, conduct contrary to morality and good faith, the work stopping — the employee may terminate immediately and earns severance pay.
Severance is also paid to the legal heirs on the employee's death.
| Situation | Basis | Severance |
|---|---|---|
| Wages unpaid or persistently paid late | art. 24/II-e | Yes |
| Overtime pay not paid | art. 24/II-e | Yes |
| Social security premiums unpaid or under-declared | art. 24/II-e | Yes |
| Workplace harassment, insult or sexual harassment | art. 24/II-b, c, d | Yes |
| Fundamental change to working conditions | art. 22 with art. 24 | Yes |
| Conditions endangering health or life | art. 24/I | Yes |
| Female employee terminating within a year of marriage | Act 1475 art. 14 | Yes |
| Compulsory military service | Act 1475 art. 14 | Yes |
| Retirement, or completing conditions other than age | Act 1475 art. 14 | Yes |
Where the ground rests on morality and good faith, the right must be exercised within six working days of learning of the event (İş K. art. 26). For continuing breaches such as unpaid wages, that period renews daily.
What the Resignation Letter Should Say
This is the practical heart of the matter. The wording of the letter sets the frame of any later action.
What not to write: "I am leaving of my own accord, with no outstanding rights or claims." That sentence fixes both the type of termination and a release, in the employer's favour.
What to write: your reason for leaving. If you are leaving because your wages were not paid, say so: "I terminate for just cause under İş K. art. 24/II-e because my March, April and May 2026 wages were not paid."
If you are leaving because of marriage or retirement, state the reason and attach the supporting document — the marriage certificate or the social security letter.
Prepare the letter in duplicate and keep the signed copy showing delivery. If the employer will not accept it, send it through a notary.
The Periods That Follow
If payment is not made, the route is clear: for employment claims, mediation is a condition of the action. If no agreement is reached, the action is filed in the labour court with the final mediation record.
The limitation period for severance and notice claims is five years from termination.
There is a further period for just-cause termination: under İş K. art. 26 the right must be exercised within six working days of learning of the event. For continuing breaches such as unpaid wages this is assessed differently, but waiting is still a risk.
A resignation letter containing the words "I have no outstanding rights or claims" becomes the strongest evidence against you in any later action. State your reason for leaving, prepare the letter in duplicate, and keep the signed copy.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can an employee who resigns claim severance?
As a rule no. But retirement, completing the conditions other than age, military service, a female employee's marriage and just-cause termination all preserve it.
How long after marriage can a female employee leave?
Within one year of the date of the marriage, terminating of her own accord.
Can an employee waiting only for the age condition claim?
Yes. Having completed the insurance period and premium days, and documenting it with a social security letter, they earn severance on leaving.
What should the resignation letter say?
Your reason for leaving, with the supporting document attached. Avoid any wording releasing the employer from claims.
Will I owe notice pay if I resign?
If you leave without observing the notice period, yes. On an immediate termination for just cause, no.