First 30 days after registering a company in Türkiye: checklist for a foreign founder

Once a Ltd. Şti. is entered in the trade registry, the registry tells the tax office and SGK, but the company is not yet ready to trade. The tax plate, e-signature, electronic notice address, ledger route and bank account still need to be settled, in the right order. This guide gives that order, the deadlines we could confirm and the questions to put to your accountant.

Days 1-10: tax registration and the tax plate

When the trade registry registers a Ltd. Şti., it informs the tax office and the company becomes a taxpayer. The start-of-business notice (işe başlama bildirimi) is due within ten days of the start date, and for registered companies the registry sends it. Check that the notice exists and that the tax number matches your registry extract.

The tax plate (vergi levhası) follows: for a company that starts mid-year it is due within one month of taxpayer registration, and it must be available at the workplace for inspection. A missing plate draws a special irregularity penalty for each finding. In the same month, file the beneficial-owner notice (gerçek faydalanıcı) through the Digital Tax Office.

• Tax number and tax office name
• Start date shown in the notice
• Tax plate obtained and filed
• Beneficial-owner notice submitted

SGK: the workplace file opens by itself

Registration in the trade registry opens the company's SGK workplace file automatically, so no separate workplace declaration (işyeri bildirgesi) is filed at formation. This rests on Article 11(3) of Law No. 5510 as amended by Law No. 7099. E-Sigorta is activated only if the signed e-Sigorta contract and supporting papers were given to the registry.

Partners of a limited company are treated as insured under Article 4(1)(b) of Law No. 5510, reported by the registry within 15 days of registration; this comes from a 2013 guide, so confirm the current position with SGK. Hiring is a separate step: the employer files an entry declaration (sigortalı işe giriş bildirgesi) for each employee.

• No employees: the file stays dormant and, after two years without insured staff, leaves scope; it can be reactivated
• Employees: entry declaration by the employer
• Insured staff at a second location: workplace declaration required

E-signature, e-Devlet and electronic notices

Most online filings need an electronic identity. For e-defter, a legal-entity taxpayer needs a financial seal (mali mühür) or Digital Tax Office or e-Devlet credentials; individuals use a qualified electronic certificate (NES, e-imza). Signing can be delegated by power of attorney to your accountant or an integrator, but legal and penal responsibility stays with the company.

Official notices now arrive electronically. Under Article 7/a of Notification Law No. 7201 every private-law legal entity has an electronic notification address (UETS) created by PTT, and a notice counts as served at the end of the fifth day after it reaches that address. You can look the address up in MERSIS.

• Name the authorised signatory who holds the certificate
• Give your accountant a written power of attorney
• KEP (registered e-mail) from a BTK-authorised provider is a separate two-way channel recognised by TTK Article 18(3)

Ledgers, e-defter and e-fatura

New taxpayers have their ledgers certified before the start date; on paper this is done by a notary. Users of e-defter do not need notary certification for the journal and general ledger, and closing approval is given electronically by GİB by the end of the fourth month after year-end. Closing certification is a separate year-end step. Which route applies is decided together with your accountant.

E-defter is mandatory for e-Fatura taxpayers, companies subject to independent audit and taxpayers required to keep balance-sheet books from 1 January 2025. The e-Fatura obligation depends on criteria in GİB communiqués, such as sales volume and sector, which change often; check gib.gov.tr and do not copy thresholds from old articles. For a new company, the communiqué counts the transition from the start date; your accountant confirms the exact date.

• E-Fatura-registered buyer receives e-Fatura; others receive an e-Arşiv invoice
• Books and documents are kept for five years
• Ledgers that need certification cannot be used uncertified

Bank account and the order of steps

Open the corporate account once the registry gazette, signature circular, tax number and tax plate exist, because banks usually ask for them; see our guide on accounts with a foreign shareholder. Collections and payments above a legal limit must go through banks or payment institutions: 30,000 TL including VAT in the 2026 summary we used, a figure that is revalued.

Do not issue invoices or take payments before the tax number, the start notice and the ledger route are settled, and keep every document in one folder: the bank, the tax office and SGK will each ask for the same papers again. A workable order for the first 30 days:

1. Registry extract, signature circular, tax number
2. Start notice (10 days) and tax plate (one month)
3. E-signature and UETS address checked
4. Ledger certification or e-defter set-up
5. Bank account, then first invoices and hires

Sources

• gib.gov.tr — Revenue Administration: start-of-business notice, Digital Tax Office, e-Fatura and e-Defter criteria
• sgk.gov.tr — Social Security Institution: workplace registration, Law No. 5510
• ticaret.gov.tr — Ministry of Trade: MERSIS and trade registry
• etebligat.gov.tr — PTT electronic notification system (UETS), Notification Law No. 7201 Art. 7/a
• alomaliye.com — consolidated guide for newly started corporate taxpayers (start notice, tax plate, beneficial owner); used because mevzuat.gov.tr blocks automated access
• alomaliye.com — consolidated text on automatic SGK workplace registration (Law No. 5510 Art. 11/3, Law No. 7099, SGK Circular 2018/11)
• alomaliye.com — consolidated e-Defter General Communiqué No. 1 (scope, e-signature, closing approval)
• alomaliye.com — 2024 guide to commercial books: opening and closing certification

Questions