This is the English version of a Turkish article. The original, with further detail and linked petition templates, is at Nafaka Ödenmezse Ne Yapılır? İcra ve Tazyik Hapsi.
Two routes run together for unpaid maintenance: enforcement on the judgment, and a complaint to the enforcement criminal court seeking coercive imprisonment. The complaint must be made within three months of learning that the maintenance was not paid, and in any event within one year of the act (İİK art. 347). Coercive imprisonment is not a punishment but a means of compulsion: payment ends the detention immediately.
The court has ordered maintenance but nothing arrives. One month late, then two. Many people wait, assuming nothing can be done, while the arrears build. In fact a maintenance claim is among the most strongly protected in Turkish law. İİK means the Enforcement and Bankruptcy Act No. 2004.
Starting Enforcement
Because maintenance rests on a court judgment, it is pursued by enforcement on a judgment. Proceedings can be started without waiting for the maintenance judgment to become final.
Both the accrued arrears and the future monthly maintenance can be included, which removes the need to start fresh proceedings every month.
The strongest feature of a maintenance claim is its privileged position in salary attachment. The rule that not less than a quarter of a salary may be attached does not limit maintenance claims; a higher proportion may be taken.
Where there are competing attachments, the maintenance claim ranks first.
Coercive Imprisonment
Article 344 of the Enforcement and Bankruptcy Act provides for coercive imprisonment of a debtor who does not comply with a maintenance judgment.
The complaint is made to the enforcement criminal court. Coercive imprisonment is not a penalty but a means of compulsion: the sanction falls away once the debt is paid and the person is released.
That is precisely why it works. The aim is not punishment but payment, and in practice payment often follows the complaint.
A precondition is that the maintenance has been put into enforcement and the payment order served. A complaint cannot be made without first starting enforcement.
The Complaint Period
The most important point in this guide: the complaint must be made within three months of learning of the act, and in any event within one year of it.
The practical consequence is that the period runs separately for each unpaid month. Waiting a year and then complaining about all twelve does not work; the older months fall away on time grounds.
The right response is not to wait. If two consecutive months go unpaid, start the enforcement and the complaint together.
Withdrawing the complaint ends that case, but a fresh right of complaint arises for later months.
| Enforcement | Complaint and coercive imprisonment | |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Collecting the debt | Compelling payment |
| Where | Enforcement office | Enforcement criminal court |
| Time limit | None | 3 months from discovery, 1 year in any event |
| Scope | Past and future maintenance | Only the unpaid months |
| Sanction | Attachment | Coercive imprisonment up to three months |
| If payment is made | Proceedings end | Detention ends immediately |
Coercive imprisonment requires that the maintenance was first put into enforcement and the payment order served.
The Debtor's Defences
- Proof of payment — a transfer receipt, bank record or a signed statement from the creditor.
- Inability to pay — unemployment, illness or loss of income may be raised, but must be concretely proved.
- The maintenance has been removed or reduced — the relevant judgment is filed.
- Defective service — where the payment order was not properly served, the condition for the complaint is not met.
If you are the debtor, the most important advice is this: where you cannot pay, bring an action to reduce or remove the maintenance. Simply not paying increases both the arrears and the risk of the sanction.
Child and Spousal Maintenance
Both are pursued the same way, but the distinction matters.
Child maintenance is for the child and paid by the parent without custody. It ends when the child reaches majority, though the duty to contribute may continue while education continues (TMK art. 328/2).
Spousal maintenance is for the spouse and ends in the cases listed in the statute or by court order (TMK art. 176).
Both can be increased or reduced when circumstances change. Where maintenance has lost value to inflation, an action to increase can be brought; if the judgment or protocol already sets an automatic increase, no separate action is needed.
The complaint period is three months from discovery, running separately for each unpaid month. Waiting for a year's arrears to build and then complaining about all of them does not work — the older months fall away. If two consecutive months go unpaid, start the enforcement and the complaint together.
Frequently Asked Questions
What can I do if maintenance is not paid?
Start enforcement on the judgment and complain to the enforcement criminal court for coercive imprisonment. The two run together.
How long do I have to complain?
Three months from learning of the non-payment, and one year from the act in any event. The period runs separately for each unpaid month.
How long does coercive imprisonment last?
It is compulsion, not punishment: once the debt is paid the sanction falls away and the person is released.
How much of a salary can be attached for maintenance?
The one-quarter limit does not apply to maintenance claims; a higher proportion may be taken, and maintenance ranks first.
I cannot pay. What should I do?
Rather than continuing not to pay, bring an action to reduce or remove the maintenance, supported by concrete evidence of your circumstances.