Evacuation of the tenant under Turkish Law through Article 315/2 of Law of Obligations due to tenant's default in payment

The article 315 of  Law of Obligations stipulates the terms regarding the evacuation of the real state on reason of default of the tenant, i.e. failing of the monthly payment of the rent by the tenant on time

The law and the Supreme Court (Yargıtay) requires to see the steps below for the fulfilment of the evacuation process:

1. The rent amount should be due and payable.

A notice of payment should be served to the tenant. The notice warns and requests that the tenant to pay the monthly amount within 30 days upon the serving of the notice; that otherwise, they will be evacuated from the immovable through force of the law.

The unpaid rent amount and the month that it belongs to should be stated openly and specifically in the notice served.

The notice should also openly include that the rent agreement will be terminated if the due amount is not paid within the 30 days given.

If the immovable is a residence or a roofed workplace/office, the duration to be given to the tenant should be 30 days. The duration is 60 days for usufructuary leases and 10 days for other kind of lease agreements.

Upon the serving of the notice the amount should be due and payable.

2. The rent should not have been paid within the duration given (i.e. 30 days if its a residence or a

roofed workplace)

Payment after the 30 days will not have a negative influence on the evacuation process as it is not fulfilled in the 30 days given.

Upon the passing of 30 days without any payment, a lawsuit can be filed in the Court of Peace where the defendant (in our case the tenant) resides with the request of evacuation of the tenant from the real estate.

The other way that can be followed to evacuate the tenant can be filing an evacuation order through Execution Offices, through which an evacuation order by the landlord is served to the tenant giving a duration of 30 days for the evacuation and a duration of 7 days for the objection.

This is a general information note to give the reader an overall idea on the evacuation of the tenant from the real estate/immovable by the landlord under Turkish Law through article 315/2 of Law of Obligations due to the reason of default of the tenant. Please note that every case has its own specifications and should be dealt accordingly in its own way. It is always better to contact a lawyer for the best results.

Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters is approved by the Turkish Parliament

Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters is approved by the Turkish Parliament and issued on the Official Gazette of May 20, 2017.

The law briefly says that Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matter that has been signed in Cannes on November 3, 2011 has been approved with the reservations and declarations.

The law shall be in effect as of the date of issue of the Official Gazette (i.e May 20,2017).

See chart of participating jurisdictions here

See Convention here

20 Mayıs 2017 CUMARTESİ	Resmî Gazete	Sayı : 30071
KANUN
VERGİ KONULARINDA KARŞILIKLI İDARİ YARDIMLAŞMA SÖZLEŞMESİNİN ONAYLANMASININ UYGUN BULUNDUĞUNA DAİR KANUN Kanun No. 7018                                                                                                    Kabul Tarihi: 3/5/2017 MADDE 1 – (1) Türkiye Cumhuriyeti adına 3 Kasım 2011 tarihinde Cannes’te imzalanan “Vergi Konularında Karşılıklı İdari Yardımlaşma Sözleşmesi”nin çekince ve beyanlarla birlikte onaylanması uygun bulunmuştur. MADDE 2 – (1) Bu Kanun yayımı tarihinde yürürlüğe girer. MADDE 3 – (1) Bu Kanun hükümlerini Bakanlar Kurulu yürütür. 19/5/2017

Labour Contracts For a Specified Term and Labour Contracts For a Non-specified Term in Turkish Labour Law

In Turkish law, labour contracts can be signed either for a specified term or a non-specified term. Unless otherwise agreed by the parties the labour contracts are deemed to be contracts for a non-specified term. The principal is that the labour contracts are made for a non-specific term.

When the parties set a term of employment in a written labour contract, this contract terminates at the end of the period without parties having to give a notice of termination to each other.  

The contract whether tied to a term or not is significant because of the possible mutual claims connected to it. 

When an early termination is given by the employer in a Labour Contract For a Specified Term, the employee has the right to request the remaining wages that were to be paid monthly till the termination date of the contract. Severance pay and compensation for term of notice are quite controversial when the contract is for a specified term.

The disputes in Turkish Law regarding the subject generally arise when Labour Contracts For a Specified Term are signed one after the other (in chain).  

According to Article 11 of The Labour Law (#4857), "when a labour contract is not tied to a specific term, the contract is a Labour Contract For a Non-specific Term. It is a Labour Contract For a Specific Term when a contract is signed between the employer and the employee depending on the objective conditions like bringing out a specific result or completing a specific duty or in works that can be finished within a specific period. Labour Contracts For a Specific Term cannot be signed one after the other more than once (in chain) unless there is a substantial/solid/sound reason for it. Otherwise, the labour contract shall be deemed to be Labour Contract For a Non-specific Term as of the beginning of the contract. Chain labour contracts signed for a specific term keep their characteristics of being for a specified term depending on substantial/solid/sound reason".

In addition to the Article 11 and in line with the International Agreements, The Supreme Court (Yargıtay)'s interpretation appears as, the essence of the work is significant in a Labour Contract For a Specific Term. Labour contract for a specified term shall only be possible if the characteristics/essence of the work requires it. The characteristics of the work have been defined as the objective conditions like bringing out a specific result or completing a specific duty or in works that can be finished within a specific period.

In cases where the essence/characteristics of the work do not necessarily require a stipulation of period of time in a labour contract, the chain contracts are deemed to be a Labour Contract for a Non-specific Term. 

So, in some Supreme Court resolutions, it is possible to see that signing the second contract i.e signing a new contract only once (not more than once) is sufficient for the contract to be deemed Labour Contract for a non-Specific Term.  

I will be writing soon about the Labour Contracts for a Non-specific Term.

Please do not hesitate to leave your comments if you have any.

The term of notice for termination of Labour Contracts Signed for a Non-specified Term Under Turkish Law

According to the Turkish Labour Law (Article 17), depending on the period of time the employee has worked for the company, the period/term of notice for termination is stipulated as follows (Unless otherwise agreed between the parties):

i) For a work period less than six months, the contract can be terminated in two weeks after the notice of termination.

ii) For a work period more than six months but less than one and a half year, the contract can be terminated in four weeks after the notice of termination,

iii) For a work period more than one and a half year and less than three years, the contract can be terminated in six weeks after the notice of termination.

iv) For a work period more than three years, the contract can be terminated in eight weeks after the notice of termination.

So, let's say, if an employee has been working for more than one and a half year but less than three years, a term of six weeks must be granted before the date of termination.

If there is a written contract signed between the parties, the provisions of the contract will prevail. 

The terms of notice cannot be reduced against the benefit of the employee. 

Termination of a labour contract by the employer due to justified reason under Turkish Law - employee being arrested or taken under custody.

Below is a general note on termination of a labour contract due to employer's justified reason of the employee being arrested or taken under custody.

According to the Turkish Labour Law (Article 17), depending on the period of time the employee has worked for the company, the period/term of notice for termination is stipulated as follows (Unless otherwise agreed between the parties):

i) for a work period less than six months, the contract can be terminated in two weeks after the notice of termination.

ii) for a work period more than six months but less than one and a half year, the contract can be terminated in four weeks after the notice of termination,

iii) for a work period more than one and a half year and less than three years, the contract can be terminated in six weeks after the notice of termination.

iv) for a work period more than three years, the contract can be terminated in eight weeks after the notice of termination.

So, let's say, if an employee has been working for more than one and a half year but less than three years, a term of six weeks must be granted before the date of termination.

If there is a written contract signed between the parties, the provisions of the contract will prevail. Please note that the terms of notice cannot be reduced against the benefit of the employee. 

These terms of notice is related to the Article 25 of the Labour Law which regulates the right of the employer to terminate the labour contract immediately on justified reasons. According to the Paragraph IV of this article, it is a justified reason for the employer to terminate the labour contract if the employee is taken into custody or is under arrest provided that the duration of the absence of the employee surpasses the terms of notice stipulated in Article 17 (e.g. six weeks of absence for an employee who has worked for more than one and a half year and less than three years).

The notice of termination can be done within a reasonable period upon the end of the term of notice provided that the reason for termination is clearly stated in the notice.

In this case, the employee is entitled to a severance pay but not to the compensation for term of notice.

The employee has a right to file a case against the employer at the labour courts within a month starting from the date notice is served to the employee, with the claim that there is no valid reason for the termination of the contract or the reason set forth is not a valid reason. 

Obligation To Contract an In-house Lawyer in Société Anonym in Turkey

According to Turkish Law, a Societe anonym with a minimum share capital of 250,000 TL is obliged to contract a legal consultant.

According to Turkish Law, a societe anonym (which is an Anonim Şirket in Turkish/a joint stock company) should have a minimum share capital of 50,000-TL. The company is not allowed to have a lower share capital throughout its time of activity.

Anonim şirkets that have share capitals five times higher than this minimum amount are obliged to hire inhouse legal consultants as per Article 35 of Law Number 1136, which stipulates the provisions regarding the practice of lawyers/attorneys-at-law in Turkey.

With a simple calculation, it is clear that this regulation covers the Anonim Şirkets with share capitals higher than 250,000-TL. You can check the link of Central Bank of Turkey http://www.tcmb.gov.tr/wps/wcm/connect/tcmb+en/tcmb+en/main+page+site+area/today to see the exchange rates of currency.

Likewise, house-building societies (yapı kooperatifi in Turkish) which have 100 or more than 100 members are obliged to hire legal consultancy services as per the same regulation.

Upon any contrary action, the company shall be fined by Prosecuting Attorney for every month the company avoids hiring legal service; each monthly fine to be the sum of two monthly gross minimum wages. (Monthly gross minimum wage has been set as 1,134 TL for the second six months in Turkey. Please see the Relevant link in Turkish.

Russia to buy fresh fruit, vegetables and dairy products from Turkey

According to the information gathered from the Turkish press, within the context of of the sanctions related to the dispute regarding Ukraine, Russia has lately declared that Russia will stop purchasing meat, fish, fruits, vegatables and dairy products from EU, USA, Canada, Australia and Norway for one year and increase their purchases from Turkey in those areas. It is reported that Russia has contacted Turkish officials for further details about the purchases. 

Upon the developments, Union of Fresh Fruit and Vegertable Exporters in Turkey made a declaration that fresh food companies in Turkey should not be in big expectations about the declaration of Russia, stating that with the data given, there would not be a big gap in the Russian market of vegetables and fruits and the possible gap to occur can be filled in by Turkey very easily and furthermore Russia might meet those needs from other countries as well.

The differences between Societé Anonym and Limited Liable Company briefly in Turkish Law

The differences between Societé Anonym and Limited Liable Company briefly in Turkish Law.

Societé Anonym Anonim Şirket	Limited Liable Company Limited Şirket
Minimum share capital not less than 50,000 TL One share cannot be less than 1 Kuruş (1% of 1 TL)	Minimum share capital not less than 10,000 TL Minimum share value : 25TL
Articles of Association in written form certified by Notary Public For establishment, no permission required from the Ministry (exceptions)	Articles of Association in written form certified by Notary Public For establishment, no permission required from the Ministry (exceptions)
Minimum one shareholder (either entity/judiciary person or real person) Unlimited number of shareholders	Minimum one shareholder (either entity/judiciary person or real person) Maximum number of shareholders: 50
Can be established for any commercial objective/scope unrestricted by law	Can be established for any commercial objective/scope unrestricted by law
Shareholder entitled to a shareholder certificate (which is a negotiable instrument)	Shareholder entitled to a shareholder  certificate (which is not a negotiable instrument)
Shareholder liable to the company and to the extent of the share undertaken Shareholder not liable of public debts. Shareholder not liable of tax, social security or other debts. Only liability is to pay the total amount undertaken	Shareholder liable to the extent of share undertaken, not liable to third parties for company debts. Shareholder liable of public debts. I.e taxes, social security premiums with his entire asset. For public debts that cannot be paid by the company, the shareholder can be held liable in ratio of their shareholding.
Unless otherwise stated by articles of association, shareholder may transfer his shares by a share transfer agreement. If share certificates or temporary share certificates (ilmuhaber) are issued, these can be transferred by endorsement. It is not necessary to transfer these shares through Notary Public. This transaction does not require registration at Trade Registry.	The transfer of the shares requires permission of the General assembly and a share transfer agreement certified by Notary Public. Share transfer is valid upon the registration of the transfer at Trade Registry.
S.A.’s can be open to public	Cannot be open to public
Board of Directors (Yönetim Kurulu) consists of minimum one member that is elected by General assembly among the shareholders or non-shareholders The board member may be either real person or an entity. Quorum for meeting is the majority of the total number of board of directors. Quorum for taking resolutions is the majority of the members present at the meeting.	The managing director (müdür) is elected by general assembly among shareholders or non-shareholders If there’s more than one managing director (müdür), a board of managing directors is formed and this board takes resolutions by majority votes. If there’s more than one managing director, one of them is assigned as the chief of board.
Board of directors is the legal representative of the company	The legal representative is the managing director or the board of managing directors if there’s more than one managing director.
It is an obligation to hold General Assembly every year. Ministry representative attends the General Assembly in s.a. companies depending on the agenda (such as increasing the share capital, merging etc.)	It is an obligation to hold General Assembly every year. The ministry representative does not attend the General Assembly.
To be continued