A timely reminder from the Turkish Tax Office: wherever you live they follow your rental income very closely!
One of the responsibilities of the Ministry of Finance is investigating attempts to hide or declare a lower amount of actual rental income on properties in Turkey.
Wherever you live
However, they recently announced that they are now also concentrating on property owners living abroad.
The Presidency of Income Administration (GİB) will review whether or not foreigners owning property in Turkey and Turkish citizens living abroad correctly declare their rental income.
Since foreigners’ bank accounts are inaccessible, their declarations will be checked on the basis of their files at the title deed offices. Legal action will be taken for those whose declarations are false.
Whoever you are
For foreigners who are resident in Turkey and Turkish citizens living abroad, their declarations concerning rental income will be checked against the details on the title deeds held at the Revenue Offices to establish whether or not their declarations are correct.
Don’t get caught out
False declarations will be subject to legal action. In order to avoid someone living abroad paying tax twice, checks will be made to see if that person has paid the relevant tax in their country of residence.
In cases of a residential property’s rental income being 500 TL or above for each residence, it must be declared. For business premises a declaration has to be made regardless of the amount of the rental income.
Those that have a rental income on a residence lower than that the established annual amount do not need to register as tax payers and make declarations.
What are the penalties?
If the owner of the house has not submitted a declaration on the rental income, there can be no benefit from the 3,000 TL exemption. When it has been established that no declaration has been made, tax due for the previous five years will be collected together with interest.
Those receiving rental income above the established amount but failing to make a declaration are subjected to pay twice the amount of accrued tax. Furthermore, a special irregularity fine is also levied for failure to submit a declaration.
At the end of last year the Ministry renewed the inventory of tenants based on the date received from municipalities, energy suppliers, postal authorities, banks and title deed offices.
Pay tax on what you earn in Turkey
If you are not resident in Turkey then you are considered to be a limited taxpayer and only pay tax on whatever income and rents you have incurred in Turkey.
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