Technical article
When Turkey Taxes You: The Six-Month Line
Paul asks one thing: at what point does Turkey count us as living there?
Picture a couple named Paul and Ruth. Both are 66. They want to spend the warm months in Turkey and the rest at home. Paul asks one thing: at what point does Turkey count us as living there?
The line the authority draws
The Turkish Revenue Administration publishes a guide for non-resident taxpayers. The edition I read is Publication No. 554, issued in February 2025 for 2024 income. It says non-residents are people who "do not have their residences in Türkiye" and who "do not reside in Türkiye for a continuous period of more than six months within one calendar year."
So there are two tests in that sentence. One is a home in Turkey. The other is more than six months in a row in one calendar year. The guide does not say how short trips out of the country are counted. That is not on an official page in the sources.
If you are on the non-resident side
The guide says non-residents "shall be taxed only on income and gains which they have obtained in Türkiye." That points to income earned in Turkey, such as rent from a flat there. Income from other countries is outside this guide.
For property, the guide says that "the State where the immovable property is situated has the right of taxation." That is the wording for the tax treaties' property article.
Rent from Turkish property is taxed in steps. The table is for 2024 income, in Turkish lira.
| Taxable rental income (TRY) | Rate |
|---|---|
| Up to 110,000 | 15 percent |
| 110,000 to 230,000 | 20 percent |
| 230,000 to 580,000 | 27 percent |
| 580,000 to 3,000,000 | 35 percent |
| Above 3,000,000 | 40 percent |
The guide says the 2025 steps are set by a later notice (No. 329) and does not list them. The 2025 figures are not given.
If you are on the resident side
This is where I have the least. No official page was found, in English, that sets out how a resident is taxed on income from other countries. The rules for a foreign tax credit, which is the relief people ask about when they pay tax in two places, are also not given. The guide I read says it does not describe one. It does say that for citizens of Turkey living abroad, relief is given "at the countries they are living in" under tax treaties. The tax authority's other pages, and the legal database, did not open for me.
What is left open
- How a resident is taxed on worldwide income.
- The foreign tax credit rules.
- How days are counted if you leave and return.
- What the treaty between Turkey and your home country says.
- The tax steps for 2025 and 2026.
You could…
- Ask the Turkish Revenue Administration, in writing, how it counts days.
- Read the treaty between Turkey and your country.
- Ask an accountant or lawyer who works with Americans abroad (or your own nationality) about the two-country picture.
- Keep a day log of every night you spend in Turkey.
How many nights a year do you picture spending there?
Figures are estimates for planning, based on public data. Date read: 10 October 2026.
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