Buying Off-Plan Property in Türkiye: Risks and Checks (2026)

Buying off-plan means paying for a home in Türkiye before it is finished. Prices can be lower, but you carry the risk that the building is late, changed or never completed. This guide explains the title types, the contracts, the protections in Turkish consumer law and the checks to make before you pay, as the rules stand in October 2026.

**Key points**

– No pre-paid housing contract may be signed before the **building permit (yapı ruhsatı)** is issued. – Sign at the **land registry** or by a **notary-drawn sale promise**, never on a private agreement. – You can withdraw within **14 days**, and up to **24 months** against capped compensation. – Delivery must happen by the agreed date and within **48 months** at most.

This is general information, not legal advice. Use an independent Turkish lawyer for any off-plan purchase.

What off-plan means in Türkiye

Turkish law calls it an **ön ödemeli konut satışı**, a pre-paid housing sale. Under the Consumer Protection Law (Law No. 6502) and the Pre-Paid Housing Sales Regulation (Ön Ödemeli Konut Satışları Hakkında Yönetmelik), this is a sale where the buyer pays all or part of the price in advance, in one go or in instalments, and the seller delivers the home later.

The rules protect **consumers**, meaning buyers acting for non-commercial purposes. If you buy through a company or as part of a business, your lawyer should confirm whether they apply to you.

Kat irtifakı, kat mülkiyeti and iskan

The type of title deed tells you how far a project has gone.

– **Kat irtifakı** (construction servitude) is a right attached to a share of the land for a unit that is planned or being built. It is set up on the basis of the approved architectural project and the building permit. Most new projects sell units with this title. – **Kat mülkiyeti** (condominium ownership) covers a finished unit together with its land share and common areas. – The step between the two is the **iskan**, the occupancy permit (yapı kullanma izin belgesi). Once it is issued, the land registry can convert the title, either on application or on its own initiative.

Under Law 6502 as amended by Law No. 7392 in 2022, a unit with kat irtifakı counts as delivered only when it is registered in your name **and** you are given possession. The regulation adds that possession must be in a condition fit to live in. Read our guides to checking a Turkish title deed and to iskan before you sign.

The contract: sale at the tapu or a notarised sale promise

Off-plan homes are sold in one of two ways.

1. **Title transfer at the land registry (tapu).** The developer transfers a kat irtifakı unit to you at the start. This is the stronger position, because the unit is registered in your name. 2. **Sale promise contract (satış vaadi sözleşmesi).** The developer promises to transfer the unit later. Under the Turkish Code of Obligations and the Notaries Law, a property sale promise is valid only if a notary **draws it up** (düzenleme şeklinde). A private contract that a notary has only certified (onaylama) is not enough.

Ask for the sale promise to be **annotated (şerh) on the land register**. Annotation makes your right enforceable against anyone who later acquires the unit, for example if the developer sells it twice. Under article 26 of the Land Registry Law, the annotation lapses if the sale is not completed within five years, so keep track of that date.

Until the contract is made in the required form, Law 6502 bars the seller from taking any payment or having you sign a debt document, so a deposit on a reservation form is a warning sign.

Your legal protections under the consumer rules

According to the Ministry of Trade and the regulation, the main protections are:

– **Building permit first.** No pre-paid sale contract may be signed before the building permit for the plot is issued. – **Pre-contract information.** The seller must give you an information form **at least one day before** you sign. – **What the contract must show.** Parcel and block numbers, floor and location of the unit, its net and gross area, the date of the building permit, guarantee details, the delivery date and method, and information on common charges. – **Guarantee for larger projects.** For projects of **30 or more homes**, the seller must, before starting sales, provide building completion insurance (bina tamamlama sigortası), a bank letter of guarantee, a progress-payment (hakediş) system, a linked loan, or another method approved by the ministry. – **Withdrawal within 14 days.** You can withdraw within 14 days without reason or penalty. The Ministry of Trade says the notice goes through a notary. – **Pulling out later.** Law 6502, article 45, lets you withdraw without reason up to **24 months** from the contract. Apart from taxes and fees, the seller can claim compensation of no more than **2%** of the price in the first three months, **4%** from three to six months, **6%** from six to twelve months and **8%** from twelve to 24 months. If the seller has failed to perform, it cannot claim this compensation. Refunds are due within **180 days**. – **Project changes.** Changes must be notified in writing, and you may withdraw within one month if you do not accept them. – **Delivery deadline.** Law No. 7392 requires delivery by the date in the contract, and in any case within **48 months** of signing. The earlier limit was 36 months.

These rules have been amended several times, so ask your lawyer to check the current text.

Developer and project checks

Before paying anything:

– **Building permit.** Get the permit number and date, and confirm them at the municipality’s zoning department (imar müdürlüğü). Check that the number of floors and units on the permit matches the brochure. – **Land title.** Your lawyer should check the parcel at the land registry: who owns it, whether kat irtifakı has been set up, and any mortgages, seizures or annotations. – **Land-for-flats deals.** Many projects are built under a kat karşılığı agreement, where the landowner gets some units. Make sure the unit you buy belongs to the developer’s share. – **Guarantee.** Ask for the policy or bank letter in writing, and check what it covers and when it can be claimed. – **Track record.** Visit the company’s finished projects and ask owners whether iskan came on time. – **Building inspection.** Most new buildings must be supervised by a licensed building inspection firm (yapı denetim). Note its name. Our land and villa guide explains permits and inspection in more detail.

Payment, guarantees and currency

Pay only by bank transfer to the developer company’s account, tie each instalment to a construction stage, and avoid paying large sums before you hold a title transfer or an annotated notarised promise.

The Ministry of Trade has introduced a secure payment system for property sales, now due from 1 December 2026, where the price is held until the title transfer is approved. Ask your lawyer whether it covers your transaction.

On currency, Turkish foreign exchange rules (Communiqué No. 2008-32/34, article 8) stop residents of Türkiye from pricing property sales between themselves in foreign currency or indexing them to it. Whether your contract can be in US dollars or euros depends on your residence status, so ask your lawyer. Over a long instalment plan, exchange-rate moves can change your real cost.

Off-plan and citizenship by investment

The real estate route to Turkish citizenship is set out in article 20 of the regulation implementing the Turkish Citizenship Law. The threshold is **USD 400,000** or its equivalent, in force since May 2022. Since December 2023, the property must be under **kat mülkiyeti or kat irtifakı**, or land with a building on it, so a unit with kat irtifakı can qualify.

For off-plan units sold by sale promise, lawyers say the promise must be **drawn up by a notary**, the **full price must be paid up front**, and an undertaking not to transfer or cancel for **three years** must be annotated on the land register. Instalment plans generally do not work, and sale promises for different units cannot be added together to reach the threshold. A valuation report must support the value. Rules here change often, so confirm the current position with a lawyer before signing.

Delays and completion

If the developer is late, you may claim compensation for late delivery and, depending on the facts, withdraw from the contract. Where building completion insurance is in place, it covers cases such as the seller’s bankruptcy or failure to finish the home within 12 months after the contracted delivery date.

At handover, check the unit against the contract and plans, ask to see the iskan, and budget for the annual costs of owning property.

Checklist before you sign

1. Hire an independent lawyer, not one from the developer. 2. Confirm the building permit at the municipality. 3. Check the parcel and kat irtifakı at the land registry. 4. Get the information form a day before signing. 5. Sign at the tapu, or by notary-drawn promise, and annotate it. 6. For 30-plus-home projects, get the guarantee in writing. 7. Tie bank-transfer payments to construction stages. 8. Write the delivery date and penalties into the contract. 9. For citizenship, plan full payment and the three-year annotation. 10. At handover, ask for the iskan and the title transfer.

For the rest of the purchase, see our guide to buying property in Türkiye as a foreigner.

Bottom line

Off-plan buyers in Türkiye have real legal protections, but only if the sale is done in the right form. Check the permit and the land, sign properly, keep payments in step with the building, and have a lawyer confirm the current rules.

Frequently asked questions

Q: Is a contract signed at the developer’s sales office valid?

A: No. A pre-paid home must be sold at the land registry or by a notary-drawn sale promise, and no payment may be taken before that.

Q: Can I cancel an off-plan purchase?

A: Yes. Under Law 6502 you can withdraw within 14 days without penalty, and later up to 24 months against compensation capped at 2% to 8% of the price, depending on timing.

Q: What is the latest a developer can deliver?

A: The date in your contract. Since the 2022 amendment by Law 7392, it can never be more than 48 months after signing.

Q: Does a kat irtifakı title qualify for citizenship?

A: Since December 2023 it can, if the other conditions are met, including the USD 400,000 threshold, a supporting valuation report and the three-year annotation.

Planning to buy? Download our free property guide for a step-by-step checklist.

Sources

• Ön Ödemeli Konut Satışları Hakkında Yönetmelik önemli düzenlemeler getiriyor (Ticaret Bakanlığı)
• Law No. 7392 amending Law 6502, Resmî Gazete 1 April 2022 No. 31796 (Alomaliye)
• Amendment to the Pre-Paid Housing Sales Regulation, Resmî Gazete 4 August 2022 No. 31913 (Alomaliye)
• Ön ödemeli konut satışında haklar (Hukukçular Evi)
• Ön ödemeli konut satış sözleşmelerinde sözleşmeden dönme, TKHK m.45 (Hukuki Haber)
• Ön ödemeli konut satış sözleşmesi (İzmir Barosu Dergisi, 2024)
• Bina tamamlama sigortası, teminat türleri (Lexpera)
• Gayrimenkul satış vaadi sözleşmesi: tapuya şerh verilir mi? (Hukukçular Evi)
• Kat irtifakı ve kat mülkiyeti nedir? (Garanti BBVA)
• Tebliğ No. 2018-32/51 amending Communiqué 2008-32/34, article 8 (Cottgroup)
• Türk vatandaşlığının bedeli 400 bin dolara çıktı (Medyascope, May 2022)
• Yabancıya vatandaşlıkta yeni dönem: yönetmelik değişikliği (Türkiye Gazetesi, Dec 2023)
• Yatırım yoluyla Türk vatandaşlığı: 2026 şartları (Öner Hukuk)
• Yatırım yoluyla vatandaşlıkta ön satış sözleşmesi kullanılabilir mi? (FFK Partner Hukuk, 2026)

Photo: Abdiel Mejia / Unsplash License, via Unsplash