Quest Turkey Property and Lifestyle Magazine

Opening a Current Account

Turkish bank accounts can be opened in your own name providing you have a tax number, which you can obtain from the local tax office. This is a quick a simple process whereby you need to show your passport and details of your Turkish address, which may be owned or rented by you to the local tax office. You will then receive your own personal tax number, which is invaluable for all manner of transactions here. You also need to provide a copy of your passport to the bank as proof of your identity, details of your address and you will have to fill out an application form. You will also be required to pay a tax for opening the account. This can be paid in a variety of currencies although it is easier to pay in local currency. You can open a joint account with a spouse or partner if you prefer all you need to decide with a joint account is whether each party involved needs the consent of the other account holders to withdraw money or not. If you need to open a Turkish bank account whilst you are based in another country you can either do this through a bank with branches in Turkey or by giving a responsible person like your lawyer power of attorney to act on your behalf. Turkish banks provide a wide variety of other accounts and services including Treasury bonds, mutual funds and equities, international stock exchange transactions and so on.

Opening a Savings Account

The process for opening a deposit account is the same as for a current account. The only difference is that interest is paid at the end of the agreed savings term. If you take your money out before this period ends you will not earn any interest. Beware that if you leave your money in a deposit account once the savings term has expired, many Turkish banks will automatically fix a new savings term. This is an aspect of deposit accounts that you need to discuss with your financial advisor on opening the account.

Choosing a Currency

You can hold your bank account in a variety of currencies including GBP, USD, Euro, local currency – the New Turkish Lira (YTL) or the other exchangeable currencies bought and sold by the Central Bank of Turkey. Some foreign nationals prefer to do business in New Turkish Lira so as not to run into any tax evasion complications due to a possible conversion error. You can check out a list of banks operating in Turkey at the Turkish Embassy http://www.turkisheconomy.org.uk/banking.html

Internet and Tele Banking

Once you have opened your account you can ask your financial advisor to enrol you into internet and telephone banking services. This will make life much easier allowing you to make transactions from the comfort of your own home. Most Turkish banks have excellent internet banking services with web paged translated into English. For tele banking you should check that you will be able to speak to an English speaking operator – most international and large Turkish banks offer this service.

Large Monetary Transactions

Current banking legislation states that any monetary transaction over YTL 8,000 (around 3,700 Euros at today’s exchange rate) can only be made through one of the approved banks on the above list or through a branch of the Post Office (PTT). There is a large choice of international banks on the list including Citibank, Deutsche, Fortis, HSBC, ING, Millennium and J.P. Morgan Chase. Following one of these routes enables you to keep official documentation of any large transactions such as property purchases.

Credit Cards

Each individual bank has its own policies on the allocation of credit cards to foreign nationals. The best way to obtain one is to check what the selection criteria is at each bank before you open an account there. If you have a work permit it is easier to get a credit card, although not a sole requirement. Many expats have found branches of HSBC are more than happy to supply credit cards to foreign nationals.