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Anyone injured in Turkey can claim compensation under Turkish law, whether they live here, came on holiday or travelled for medical treatment. The route, the time limits and the person who pays depend on what happened.
As an English-speaking personal injury lawyer in Istanbul, Turkey, our office represents Turkish and foreign clients in claims after traffic accidents, workplace accidents, medical treatment that went wrong, holiday injuries and fatal accidents. Compensation law concerns the redress of harm caused by an unlawful act, an accident or a breach of contract. The legal basis, the scope of the claim and the method of calculation differ with the nature of the event, so each file is assessed on its own facts.
This page explains in plain English what can be claimed, from whom, within which time limits and how a claim is pursued from abroad. It is general information about Turkish law as of October 2026, not legal advice on any individual case.
A compensation lawyer in Turkey calculates and pursues damages claims arising from traffic accidents, workplace accidents, medical treatment and other events that cause bodily injury or death. The work includes the written application to the at-fault party's insurer, applications to the Insurance Arbitration Commission, dealings with the Social Security Institution (SGK), claims against public bodies and, where needed, the lawsuit itself. For a foreign national injured in Turkey, or the family of a foreign national who died in an accident here, our office coordinates the claim from the first application through to the final judgment.
Foreign patients who return home with complications after a hair transplant, dental treatment or cosmetic surgery in Turkey can also bring compensation claims before Turkish courts. Liability, informed consent, time limits and how to pursue a claim from abroad are explained in our guide Medical Malpractice in Turkey: Compensation for Foreign Patients.
Yes. The right to compensation does not depend on nationality or on holding a residence permit. A tourist, a medical tourist, a student or a foreign resident injured in Turkey has the same right as a Turkish citizen to claim pecuniary and non-pecuniary damages, and the same right to claim from the at-fault vehicle's compulsory traffic insurance.
As a rule, a claim arising from an accident in Turkey is governed by Turkish law, because obligations arising from a tort are subject to the law of the country where the tort was committed (Private International Law Act No. 5718, Art. 34). The same article allows another country's law to apply where the relationship is more closely connected with that country, and lets the parties expressly choose the applicable law after the event. In the great majority of accidents involving foreigners in Turkey, Turkish law decides the claim.
Leaving Turkey does not end a claim, but the time limits keep running. Applications to insurers, to the Insurance Arbitration Commission and to the courts are made in Turkey, so people who have returned home usually act through a lawyer in Turkey holding a power of attorney. How this works is explained in the section on claims from abroad further down this page.
Turkish law divides compensation into pecuniary damages (maddi tazminat), which make good financial loss, and non-pecuniary or moral damages (manevi tazminat), which compensate pain and suffering. For bodily injury, the Code of Obligations lists the main financial heads: treatment costs, loss of earnings, losses from reduced or lost working capacity, and losses arising from damage to the person's economic future (Turkish Code of Obligations No. 6098, Art. 54).
Each head is documented and calculated separately; a single lump-sum offer from an insurer or the other party often does not cover them all. The injured person proves the loss and, where liability depends on fault, the fault of the person responsible. Where the exact amount cannot be proved, the judge sets it fairly, having regard to the ordinary course of events and the steps the injured person took (Art. 50).
Costs such as treatment, surgery, medication, physiotherapy, medical devices and travel to treatment may be claimed. Where part of these costs has already been covered by SGK or by health insurance, the claim generally concerns the uncovered part. Invoices, prescriptions and receipts, including those for treatment received in the person's home country, make the expenses easier to prove.
The income lost while the injured person could not work may be claimed on the strength of documents such as an employer's letter, payslips, tax returns or bank statements. For the self-employed, and for people whose income is earned abroad, calculating lost earnings generally requires an expert examination.
Where the accident leaves a permanent disability, the reduction in the person's future capacity to work and earn also falls within the claim. This head is calculated by reference to the disability rate, the person's age, income and probable working life. The calculation is generally carried out by an actuarial expert, and in serious injuries it is usually the largest part of the claim.
Where the injured person needs help with daily life after the accident, the cost of that care can be claimed. In practice, courts accept this head even where a family member provides the care without being paid for it.
The Code also recognises losses arising from damage to a person's economic future (Art. 54). This covers situations such as a visible scar or a lasting impairment that narrows career options, even where the person can still work.
The emergency number in Turkey is 112 for ambulance, police and gendarmerie. Drivers involved in an accident are required to stop, take safety measures, leave the scene unchanged where traffic allows, show their identity, licence, registration and insurance details on request, and report the accident to the authorities without leaving before they arrive (Highway Traffic Act No. 2918, Art. 81). Where there is only property damage, the drivers may record the accident in writing between themselves on an agreed accident report (kaza tespit tutanağı) and leave without waiting for the police.
Leaving the scene of an accident with injury or death without police permission, other than out of necessity, is punishable by one to three years' imprisonment, and the driving licence is withdrawn for two years (Art. 81, as amended in February 2026). Photographs of the scene, the vehicles and the number plates, the names and phone numbers of witnesses, and the hospital's first medical record are the evidence most often relied on later.
The police report or the agreed report records how the accident happened, and the insurer and later the court use it to set each driver's share of fault. It is not final: fault can be disputed, and the court usually obtains an expert report on it. Where the injured person contributed to the accident, the compensation is reduced (Code of Obligations Art. 52), and the compulsory traffic insurance does not pay the part of a claim matching the claimant's own fault (Highway Traffic Act Art. 92(g)).
The operator of a motor vehicle is liable for death and injury caused by its operation without the victim having to prove the driver's fault. The operator escapes liability only by proving force majeure or the gross fault of the victim or a third person, with no fault on its own side and no vehicle defect contributing to the accident (Arts. 85-86). A pedestrian's own fault can still reduce the compensation. In motorcycle accidents, riding without a helmet may be treated as contributory fault for head injuries; how far it reduces the claim depends on the file.
Turkish traffic law makes the operator (işleten) of a motor vehicle liable for death, injury and damage caused while it is operated (Art. 85). The operator is usually the registered owner; in cases such as long-term rental, the renter counts as the operator (Art. 3). The operator answers for the driver's fault as for its own, and where several people are liable to a third party for the same accident, they are liable jointly and severally (Arts. 85, 88).
Every operator is required to hold compulsory third-party motor insurance (zorunlu mali sorumluluk sigortası, usually called trafik sigortası) (Art. 91). In practice the claim is directed first at this insurer, which pays within the policy limits in force on the date of the accident. Loss above those limits remains the responsibility of the operator and the at-fault driver.
A passenger is a third party for the insurance of the vehicle they were travelling in, so their injuries are claimed from that vehicle's insurer, and also from the other vehicle's insurer if the other driver was at fault. A passenger can claim even if the driver is a relative or a friend: the exclusion for the operator's relatives in Art. 92(b) concerns damage to their property, not bodily injury. Taxi, bus and minibus operators answer for their passengers in the same way.
Where the passenger was carried free of charge as a favour (hatır taşıması), the operator's liability follows the general rules of the Code of Obligations instead of the strict liability of the Act (Art. 87). In practice, courts may reduce the compensation in such cases; whether and by how much depends on the file.
Accidents in hire cars raise extra questions: who the operator is, what the rental contract and any kasko insurance cover, and what the rental company can charge after the car is returned. These points are explained in our guide Car Rental Accident in Turkey: Who Pays?.
Before going to court against the insurer within the compulsory insurance limits, the law requires a written application to the insurer (Highway Traffic Act Art. 97, as amended in 2016). If the insurer does not answer in writing within 15 days of the application, or there is a dispute because its answer does not meet the claim, the injured person may sue or apply to the Insurance Arbitration Commission. Courts treat this prior application as a precondition of a lawsuit against the insurer.
Once the documents listed in the general conditions of the compulsory insurance reach the insurer, it is required to pay the amounts within the policy limits within eight working days (Art. 99).
The application normally includes the accident report, the medical reports and, where available, a disability report, proof of income, invoices, identity and bank details, and in death claims the death certificate and documents proving family ties. Stating each head of claim and attaching its evidence helps the file move forward; a vague application often produces a low offer or a request for more documents.
Article 92 lists the claims outside compulsory insurance. They include non-pecuniary (moral) damages, goods carried in the vehicle, the part of a claim matching the claimant's own fault, the part of a loss-of-support claim matching the fault of the deceased, indirect losses such as loss of income, loss of profit, business interruption and loss of rent, and the loss of value of vehicles deregistered or scrapped because of the damage. These items are not necessarily lost: they are claimed from the operator and the driver, or from an optional policy if it covers them.
Compulsory traffic insurance pays for the damage a vehicle causes to other people. Kasko is optional comprehensive insurance that covers damage to the insured's own car under the policy terms, even where the insured was at fault. If the other driver was at fault, the claim goes to that driver's traffic insurer; a car owner with kasko may also claim from their own kasko insurer, which then pursues the at-fault side.
The Insurance Arbitration Commission is a body set up within the Insurance Association of Turkey to resolve disputes between insurers and the people who benefit from insurance contracts, and between beneficiaries and the Güvence Hesabı (Insurance Act No. 5684, Art. 30). For disputes arising from compulsory insurance, such as traffic insurance, the injured person can use arbitration even if the insurer is not a member of the arbitration system.
Access to the Commission requires a prior application to the insurer and proof that the request was wholly or partly rejected; the insurer's failure to answer in writing within fifteen working days is also enough (Art. 30/13). A dispute that has already been brought before a court or a consumer arbitration committee cannot be taken to the Commission (Art. 30/14).
A rapporteur first examines the application, and files that are not resolved go to an arbitrator or a panel of arbitrators, who decide on the documents. The arbitrators are required to decide within four months of their appointment, unless the parties agree in writing to extend this period (Art. 30/15-16). In practice this is often faster than a court case, although the time depends on whether a medical or actuarial report is needed.
Decisions below an amount set in the law are final. Above it, either side may object once, within ten days of notification, to an objection panel of the Commission; above a higher amount, a further appeal to the courts is possible (Art. 30/12). These amounts are updated by the authorities, so the current figures are checked for each file. Where a claimant's request is rejected in whole or in part, the lawyer's fee ordered against them is one fifth of the tariff fee (Art. 30/17).
Treatment given by university, public and private hospitals to traffic accident victims is paid by the Social Security Institution (SGK) under its reimbursement rules, whether or not the victim has social security (Highway Traffic Act Art. 98). The insurers fund this through transfers to SGK. The rule does not depend on nationality, so it also covers foreign tourists and visitors injured in traffic accidents in Turkey.
As a result, a victim's claim usually concentrates on the other losses: earnings, permanent disability, care, moral damages, and treatment costs actually paid out of pocket that SGK did not cover. A travel insurer from abroad that has paid medical bills may itself seek to recover what it paid from those responsible.
Turkish law created a safety-net fund for these situations, the Güvence Hesabı, held within the Insurance Association of Turkey (Insurance Act Art. 14). Up to the compulsory insurance limits, it pays for bodily injury where the insured person cannot be identified, as in a hit-and-run, for bodily injury caused by an uninsured vehicle, and for bodily injury in an accident involving a stolen or seized vehicle where the operator is not liable. Where an insurer has gone bankrupt or lost its licences, it pays both bodily injury and property damage. Property damage caused by an unidentified or uninsured vehicle is, as a rule, outside the fund.
Where the vehicle at fault was registered abroad, the claim is handled through the Turkish Motor Vehicle Bureau (Türkiye Motorlu Taşıt Bürosu), which runs the Green Card system in Turkey, or through the representative of the foreign insurer. Foreign-registered vehicles without insurance valid in Turkey are required to take out compulsory insurance when they enter the country (Highway Traffic Act Art. 91). Disputes with the Güvence Hesabı can also be taken to the Insurance Arbitration Commission (Insurance Act Art. 30).
Where a person's bodily integrity is harmed, the judge may award an appropriate sum as non-pecuniary (moral) damages, taking account of the particular circumstances of the event (Code of Obligations Art. 56). In cases of serious bodily harm or death, the close relatives of the injured or deceased person may also be awarded moral damages in their own right (Art. 56/2).
There is no statutory table. Courts consider the severity and permanence of the injury, the degree of fault, the age of the victim, the economic and social circumstances of the parties and the date of the event. The aim is to ease suffering, not to enrich, so amounts vary widely between files and no figure can be predicted in advance.
Moral damages are outside compulsory traffic insurance (Highway Traffic Act Art. 92(f)). After a traffic accident they are claimed from the operator and the at-fault driver, or from an optional extended liability policy (ihtiyari mali sorumluluk sigortası) only if that policy covers them.
The permanent disability rate (maluliyet oranı) is the factor that most affects compensation for lasting injuries. It is set, once the injury has stabilised, by a medical board report from an authorised hospital or by the Council of Forensic Medicine (Adli Tıp Kurumu), applying the regulation that governs the type of claim.
For work accidents, SGK's health board decides the loss of earning capacity in the occupation under the social security rules. For traffic and other tort claims, the applicable regulation has varied over the years with the date of the accident, and it is itself a frequent point of dispute. A report that is incomplete, overlooks part of the injury or applies the wrong rules can be challenged, and the court can obtain a new or additional report.
Temporary incapacity covers the healing period, during which the person cannot work at all or can work only partly; it is compensated as loss of earnings. Permanent disability is what remains after healing, expressed as a percentage, and it is usually the largest head of a serious injury claim.
The financial heads are usually calculated by an actuarial expert (aktüer bilirkişi) appointed by the court or the arbitration commission. The calculation uses the injured person's age, income, disability rate, life expectancy and working life, together with the fault rates. Losses from reduced working capacity and loss of support are calculated under the Code of Obligations and the principles of liability law; once calculated, the amount cannot be raised or reduced on equity grounds merely because of its size (Art. 55).
Social security payments that cannot be recovered from the liable person, in whole or in part, and payments not made in performance of the debt are not deducted from the compensation (Art. 55). Since July 2026, payments made for these heads before the evidence stage begins are deducted proportionally, according to the date of payment (Art. 55, as amended by Law No. 7589).
Our traffic accident compensation calculator gives a rough first indication for the loss-of-earning-capacity head only; the exact figure is a matter for the expert report.
Compensation is calculated on what the injured person actually earned. A foreign resident or visitor proves income with documents such as an employment contract, payslips, tax returns and bank statements, translated into Turkish and, where required, apostilled. Where income cannot be proved, courts in practice usually calculate on the basis of the Turkish minimum wage, which can be far below earnings abroad.
Where the injured person consented to the harmful act, contributed to the damage arising or increasing, or worsened the position of the liable person, the judge may reduce the compensation or even remove it (Art. 52). In the ordinary case, partial fault reduces the amount; it does not end the claim.
In a death, the Code of Obligations lists in particular funeral costs; where death was not immediate, treatment costs and losses from reduced working capacity before death; and the losses suffered by the people deprived of the deceased's support (Art. 53). Close relatives may also claim moral damages in their own right (Art. 56/2).
The right to claim does not depend on being an heir. What matters is who the deceased actually supported on a regular basis, or would have supported in the ordinary course of events: typically a spouse, children and parents, and sometimes others. Each dependant's share is calculated by an actuarial expert, taking into account the deceased's income, age and probable working life and the ages of the dependants.
The cost of transporting the body to the home country and of the funeral is claimed as funeral costs. These costs are proved with the invoices and the consular paperwork.
Relatives living abroad can bring the claim through a lawyer in Turkey. The file needs documents proving the family relationship and the support, such as civil status records and records of money transfers, apostilled or legalised and translated into Turkish. Where the deceased was the driver at fault, the loss-of-support claim against that vehicle's own compulsory insurer is excluded to the extent of the deceased's fault (Highway Traffic Act Art. 92(j)). Questions about the deceased's estate are covered in Inheritance in Turkey for Foreigners.
Yes. The treatment relationship with a private doctor or clinic is generally assessed under the rules on mandate contracts (vekâlet) in the Code of Obligations, and the doctor is required to carry out the service with loyalty and care, measured against a prudent professional providing similar services (Art. 506). A clinic is liable for the doctors, nurses and technicians it uses; for services that may only be provided under a licence, such as medical services, an agreement excluding that liability is absolutely void (Art. 116).
Not every bad outcome is malpractice. A known complication that was explained in advance and managed correctly is usually not a fault. The questions are whether the treatment met the standard of care, and whether the patient was properly informed of the risks, alternatives and likely results before consenting. Our guide Medical Malpractice in Turkey: Compensation for Foreign Patients sets out these rules in detail.
Before consenting, a patient is entitled to be told, in a way they understand, about the nature of the treatment, its risks, alternatives and likely results (aydınlatılmış onam). Consent obtained without proper information does not make the intervention lawful, even if it was technically performed correctly, and courts generally expect the doctor or clinic to prove that the patient was informed. In purely cosmetic procedures, where there is no medical necessity, this duty is interpreted strictly.
Claims against a private clinic or doctor are civil claims, often treated as consumer disputes heard by the consumer courts after mandatory mediation (Consumer Protection Law No. 6502, Arts. 73, 73/A). Harm caused by a public or university hospital is generally a matter of service fault of the administration: before suing, the patient applies to the administration within one year of learning of the act and at most five years from it, and then brings a full remedy action in the administrative court (Administrative Procedure Act No. 2577, Art. 13).
Patients have the right to obtain copies of their medical records: operation notes, nursing notes, test results, images and the consent forms they signed. Most malpractice cases are decided on an independent expert report, usually from the Council of Forensic Medicine or a panel of university professors, and the quality of the records determines how well the expert can answer the court's questions. Either side can object to a report that is incomplete or contradictory and ask for an additional one.
Turkey is a popular destination for hair transplants, dental veneers and implants, and cosmetic surgery. Claims after these procedures follow the medical malpractice rules above, but some issues come up again and again.
Complaints typically concern poor growth, an unnatural hairline, over-harvesting and scarring of the donor area, infection or necrosis, and procedures carried out largely by technicians rather than the doctor. A hair transplant is a medical procedure to be performed by a doctor in a licensed facility; where it was not, that fact weighs heavily and can also lead to criminal and administrative proceedings. Disappointing density alone is not necessarily malpractice.
Dental claims often involve excessive reduction of healthy teeth for veneers or crowns, failed implants, nerve damage, bite problems and treatment compressed into too few days. Radiographs and photographs from before and after treatment, the clinic's treatment plan and a report from a dentist at home are the key evidence.
Claims arise from infections, asymmetry, poor scarring, anaesthesia problems and, in the most serious cases, permanent injury or death, which also lead to criminal investigations. The information given before surgery and any promises made about the result carry particular weight.
Clinics and intermediary agencies serving international patients need a Ministry of Health authorisation certificate under the 2017 Regulation on International Health Tourism and Tourist Health. An agency's liability depends on its role and on what it undertook; where it sold a package including the operation, the contract, the invoices and who received the payment decide whether it is also a defendant.
There is no special statute for hotel accidents. A hotel owes its guests a contractual duty to provide a safe stay and is liable for the staff it uses in performing the contract (Code of Obligations Art. 116). Outside the contract, an employer is liable for damage its workers cause in the course of their work unless it proves it took due care (Art. 66), and the owner of a building or other structure is liable for damage caused by defects in its construction or maintenance (Art. 69).
Typical holiday injuries include slips on wet floors or unmarked steps, falls from balconies with low or broken railings, swimming pool and water-slide accidents, food poisoning, and injuries on excursions such as boat trips, quad-bike safaris and water sports. Disputes between a guest and a hotel or tour operator are often consumer disputes; below the annual limit, which is TRY 186,000 for 2026, they go to the consumer arbitration committee (Consumer Protection Law Art. 68), and above it to the consumer court after mediation. Consumer rights more generally are covered on our consumer law page.
A package is a contract selling at least two of transport, accommodation and other tourist services together at an inclusive price, for more than 24 hours or including an overnight stay. The package tour organiser is liable for all losses caused by the contract not being performed, or not being performed properly, and the consumer can also claim reasonable compensation for wasted holiday time (Consumer Protection Law Art. 51). Where the organiser has no representative in Turkey, the intermediary is liable like the organiser. A package bought from a tour operator at home may also give rights under that country's law, which is a question of foreign law.
In a slip-and-fall claim, the questions are what caused the fall (a wet floor without a warning sign, poor lighting, a broken step), whether the hotel knew or ought to have known about it, and whether the guest's own conduct contributed. Photographs of the spot, the hotel's incident report, the names of staff and witnesses and the first medical report are decisive, because conditions are often changed soon after an accident.
Boat trip, safari, paragliding and water-sports operators are liable under the same general rules: the contract with the participant, and tort liability for unlawful and faulty damage (Art. 49). The operator is often not the agency or hotel that sold the ticket, so the ticket, the receipt and the payment records are used first to identify who ran the activity.
Falls on broken pavements, into open manholes or uncovered excavations, or caused by missing lighting are generally attributed to the public body responsible for the place, usually the municipality. These claims are not brought in the civil courts but as full remedy actions in the administrative courts, after the prior application to the administration described in the section on claims against the state.
Falls in shops, shopping centres, restaurants and private buildings are claims against the business that runs the place and against the owner of the building where a defect in construction or maintenance caused the fall (Code of Obligations Arts. 49, 69). The owner of a building is liable for such defects without the victim having to prove the owner's fault, and can in turn recover from a contractor or others responsible.
The person who keeps an animal, permanently or temporarily, is liable for the damage it causes unless they prove that they took the care required to prevent the damage (Code of Obligations Art. 67). A bite from an owned dog is therefore a claim against its owner or keeper, and it is the keeper who has to prove due care.
Bites and attacks by stray (ownerless) dogs raise a different question. The Animal Protection Law No. 5199 requires ownerless animals to be taken as quickly as possible to shelters set up or authorised by local authorities, and since a 2024 amendment rehabilitated dogs are kept in shelters until they are adopted (Art. 6). A claim against the municipality for failing to run this public service properly is brought as a full remedy action in the administrative court, after the prior application to the administration.
The hospital record of the bite and of any treatment, photographs of the injury and the place, and witness details are the starting evidence of either kind of claim.
Where a product injures a person or damages property, its manufacturer or importer is required to compensate the damage (Product Safety and Technical Regulations Law No. 7223, Art. 6). The injured person proves the damage and the causal link between the product's non-conformity and the damage; fault does not have to be shown. Several manufacturers or importers responsible for the same damage are jointly liable, contract terms removing or limiting this liability are void, and the amount of pecuniary and moral damages is set under the Code of Obligations.
The claim is time-barred three years after the injured person learns of the damage and the liable person, and in any event ten years after the damage arose (Art. 6/6). The manufacturer or importer escapes liability only by proving, for example, that it did not place the product on the market or that the non-conformity came from interference by a distributor, a third party or the user; the injured person's own fault can reduce or remove the liability (Art. 21).
A work accident (iş kazası) includes accidents at the workplace, while the worker is sent elsewhere on duty, and while travelling to and from work in a vehicle provided by the employer (Social Insurance and General Health Insurance Law No. 5510, Art. 13). The employer is required to notify the police immediately and SGK within three working days after the accident (Art. 13).
The employer is required to take every measure needed for occupational health and safety, and its liability for a worker's death, bodily injury or the violation of personality rights is subject to the rules on contractual liability (Code of Obligations Art. 417). As a result, the claim against the employer is subject to the ten-year general limitation period (Art. 146), not the two-year tort period. Work accident compensation claims are expressly excluded from mandatory mediation before a lawsuit (Labour Courts Law No. 7036, Art. 3/3), and they are heard by the labour courts.
Rights at work more broadly are covered on our employment law page, and the workplace accident compensation calculator gives a first indication of the amounts involved.
An insured worker who cannot work after a work accident receives a temporary incapacity allowance for each day covered by a rest report (Law No. 5510, Art. 18). Where SGK's health board finds a loss of earning capacity in the occupation of at least 10 percent, a permanent incapacity income is paid; for total incapacity it is 70 percent of the insured's monthly earnings, and 100 percent if the worker needs constant care from another person (Art. 19). In a fatal accident, survivors receive income under the same law.
SGK's payments generally do not cover the worker's actual loss in full. Where the employer breached its health and safety duties and is at fault, the difference between the actual loss and SGK's payments may be claimed from the employer as differential damages (fark tazminatı), together with moral damages. The fault rates of the employer, the worker and any third party are set by an expert report.
A worker who was not registered with SGK has the same right to compensation and can prove the employment with witnesses, messages and bank transfers. Where the employer did not register the worker in time, SGK still pays the income and allowances arising from a work accident and then collects its costs from the employer (Art. 23).
Where the accident was caused by the employer's intent or by a breach of health and safety rules, SGK recovers from the employer what it paid and will pay, limited to what the worker or survivors could have claimed from the employer (Art. 21). This recourse action is separate from the worker's own claim and aims to compensate SGK's own loss.
Where damage is caused by an act of a public body, such as treatment in a state hospital, a municipality's failure to maintain a road or to collect stray dogs, or another public service, the claim is usually brought in the administrative courts as a full remedy action (tam yargı davası). Before suing, the person whose rights were harmed applies to the administration within one year of learning of the act, by written notice or otherwise, and in any case within five years of the act (Administrative Procedure Act Art. 13). If the request is rejected in whole or in part, or not answered within thirty days, the lawsuit is filed within the general sixty-day period for the administrative courts (Arts. 7, 13).
The Code of Obligations rules on bodily injury and death apply to claims against the administration as well (Art. 55). Accidents involving vehicles owned or operated by the state are an exception: liability claims under the Highway Traffic Act, including those against public bodies, are heard in the civil courts (Highway Traffic Act Art. 110). Administrative law questions are covered on our administrative law page.
A person who was arrested or detained unlawfully, or who was lawfully detained but then not prosecuted or acquitted, can claim pecuniary and moral damages from the State (Code of Criminal Procedure No. 5271, Art. 141). The claim is made within three months of being notified that the decision has become final, and in any case within one year of finality (Art. 142). Claims based on non-prosecution or acquittal, and certain others, are decided by the Compensation Commission (Tazminat Komisyonu) under Law No. 6384; the remaining claims go to the heavy criminal court of the place where the claimant lives (Art. 142/2).
A foreign national held in a removal centre under an administrative detention decision later found unlawful can seek compensation from the administration through the same procedure: an application to the administration within the Article 13 time limits, followed by a full remedy action. Removal and detention procedures are covered on our immigration law page and in Deportation, Entry Bans and Restriction Codes in Turkey.
An accident or a medical error that causes injury or death is often also a criminal matter: negligent injury (Turkish Penal Code No. 5237, Art. 89) or negligent killing (Art. 85). Negligent injury is, as a rule, investigated only on the victim's complaint, which is made within six months of learning of the act and the person responsible (Arts. 73, 89/5); negligent killing is prosecuted without a complaint.
The criminal case and the compensation claim run separately. The civil judge is not bound by the criminal law rules on responsibility, by an acquittal, or by the criminal judge's assessment of fault and damage (Code of Obligations Art. 74). Expert reports from the criminal file can nevertheless be useful evidence in the compensation case.
A driver involved in an accident with injuries may face judicial control measures, including a ban on leaving Turkey; see Exit Ban in Turkey and Arrested in Turkey as a Foreigner. Criminal procedure is covered on our criminal law page.
Tort claims become time-barred two years after the injured person learns of the damage and the person liable, and in any case ten years after the act (Code of Obligations Art. 72). For motor vehicle accidents, the Highway Traffic Act sets the same two-year period and a ten-year maximum counted from the day of the accident (Art. 109). Where the compensation arises from an act that is also a crime for which the criminal law provides a longer limitation period, that longer period applies (Code of Obligations Art. 72; Highway Traffic Act Art. 109).
Under the Penal Code, prosecution is time-barred after eight years for offences punishable by up to five years' imprisonment, which covers most cases of negligent injury, and after fifteen years for offences punishable by more than five and less than twenty years, such as negligent killing (Penal Code Arts. 66, 85, 89). Whether a longer period applies in a particular accident depends on the facts.
Other claims have their own periods: ten years against an employer after a work accident (Code of Obligations Arts. 146, 417), five years for claims under a treatment contract with a private clinic or doctor (Art. 147/5), three and ten years for defective products (Law No. 7223, Art. 6), and the administrative sequence for public bodies (Administrative Procedure Act Art. 13). In traffic claims, interrupting the limitation period against the liable person also interrupts it against the insurer, and vice versa (Highway Traffic Act Art. 109).
Compensation files turn on documents. The most important are the police or agreed accident report, the first hospital record and all later medical reports, the disability report, proof of income, invoices for every expense, photographs and videos, witness details, and correspondence with the insurer, clinic, hotel or employer. For foreign claimants, documents issued abroad are translated into Turkish and, where required, apostilled.
Messages are often the clearest record of what was promised and when complaints were raised, particularly in medical tourism and holiday claims. Exporting and backing them up early keeps them available for the expert and the court.
Damages actions arising from traffic accidents are generally heard by the civil court of first instance (asliye hukuk mahkemesi), while actions against an insurer may be commercial cases heard by the commercial court of first instance (asliye ticaret mahkemesi). Work accident claims are heard by the labour courts (Law No. 7036, Art. 5), claims against private clinics, hotels and tour operators often by the consumer courts, and claims against public bodies by the administrative courts. Which court has jurisdiction depends on the nature of the claim and on against whom it is brought.
It depends on the claim. Work accident compensation claims are excluded from mandatory mediation (Law No. 7036, Art. 3/3). Claims heard by the consumer courts require mediation first, except disputes within the consumer arbitration committees' limit, which go to the committee (Consumer Protection Law Arts. 68, 73/A). In commercial cases for a sum of money, mediation is also a precondition of the lawsuit (Turkish Commercial Code No. 6102, Art. 5/A); whether a particular claim is commercial depends on the file.
Compensation often cannot be quantified until the medical and actuarial reports are available. Since 31 July 2026, the separate 'unquantified claim' procedure (belirsiz alacak davası) has been abolished (Code of Civil Procedure No. 6100, former Art. 107). Instead, a claimant who sues for part of a divisible claim can increase it once in the same lawsuit, up to the end of the evidence stage, and the limitation period is treated as interrupted from the filing date for the increased part as well (Art. 109/4).
A lawyer in Turkey can file and conduct the whole claim under a power of attorney signed at a Turkish consulate, or before a notary abroad with an apostille and a sworn translation. Hearings are attended by the lawyer, and on request the court can allow a party or their lawyer to join a hearing by video link (Code of Civil Procedure Art. 149). Where the court needs the injured person to be examined by the Council of Forensic Medicine, a visit to Turkey is usually arranged once, on a scheduled date.
A foreign person who sues in a Turkish court is, as a rule, required to provide security set by the court to cover the costs of the proceedings and the other side's possible losses (Private International Law Act Art. 48). The court exempts the claimant on the basis of reciprocity, which in practice often follows from international conventions or bilateral agreements between Turkey and the claimant's country.
People who cannot pay the costs of proceedings without serious hardship may receive legal aid if their claim is not clearly unfounded. For foreigners, legal aid is also subject to reciprocity (Code of Civil Procedure Art. 334).
Yes. Statutory interest (kanuni faiz) is added to compensation. Since 31 July 2026, the statutory rate has been linked to the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey: it is 80 percent of the rediscount rate the Bank applied to short-term credit transactions on 31 December of the previous year, adjusted for the second half of the year if that rate has moved by five points or more by 30 June (Law No. 3095, Art. 1, as amended by Law No. 7589). In commercial matters, the Central Bank's advance rate can be claimed as default interest where it is higher (Art. 2).
The same 2026 amendment added a rule for the largest heads of injury claims. For losses from reduced working capacity and loss of support, interest on the part of the compensation calculated for the period in which the earnings of the victim or the deceased are known runs from the date of the event; on the part calculated for the period in which those earnings are not known, it runs from the date of the judgment (Code of Obligations Art. 55). For claims against an insurer, the starting date also depends on when the insurer fell into default after the application.
Insurers often make an early offer. Under the Highway Traffic Act, agreements that remove or narrow the liability provided by the Act are invalid, and agreements or settlements on compensation amounts that are clearly inadequate or excessive can be annulled within two years of being made (Art. 111). Whether an offer covers all heads, in particular permanent disability and future care, can only be assessed once the medical picture is clear. Amounts already received are taken into account in the final calculation.
Lawyers' fees in Turkey are subject to the national Attorneys' Minimum Fee Tariff, prepared each year by the Union of Turkish Bar Associations on the basis of proposals from local bars; a fee below the tariff cannot be agreed (Attorneys Act No. 1136, Arts. 164, 168). The law also allows a fee to be agreed as a percentage of the value of the claim or of the amount awarded, up to 25 percent (Art. 164). The fee arrangement is discussed transparently and agreed in writing before the file is opened.
Separately, the court orders the losing party to pay the court costs and a lawyer's fee under the tariff to the other side; where each side partly wins, the costs are shared in proportion (Code of Civil Procedure Art. 326). In compensation cases for death and bodily injury, only one twentieth of the proportional court fee is paid on filing, instead of the usual quarter (Fees Law No. 492, Art. 28). Expert fees are advanced during the proceedings and form part of the costs.
A compensation claim may be brought where the harmful act took place, where the damage arose or may arise, or where the injured person is domiciled (Code of Civil Procedure Art. 16), as well as at the defendant's domicile or seat (Art. 6). In motor vehicle accidents it may also be brought where the accident occurred, or where the insurer's branch or the agency that issued the policy is located (Highway Traffic Act Art. 110). Work accident claims may also be brought where the accident or the damage occurred or where the worker is domiciled (Law No. 7036, Art. 6). An accident in Ankara involving a claimant living in Istanbul can therefore be pursued in either city.
A lawyer registered with a Turkish bar can act before the courts in every city. We act as a personal injury lawyer in Istanbul and follow compensation files before the courts in Ankara and elsewhere in Turkey, so someone looking for a compensation lawyer in Ankara after an accident there can also instruct a lawyer in Istanbul. Traffic accident compensation can be estimated with our traffic accident compensation calculator.
| Type of Damages | Legal Basis | Who May Claim |
|---|---|---|
| Pecuniary damages for bodily injury (treatment costs, loss of earnings, loss of working capacity, damage to economic future) | Art. 54 Turkish Code of Obligations | The injured person |
| Non-pecuniary (moral) damages | Art. 56 Turkish Code of Obligations | The injured person; close relatives too, in serious bodily harm or death |
| Funeral costs, including repatriation of the body | Art. 53 Turkish Code of Obligations | Those who bore the costs |
| Damages for loss of support | Art. 53 Turkish Code of Obligations | Those the deceased supported, whether or not they are heirs |
| Differential damages after a workplace accident | Art. 417 Turkish Code of Obligations; Law No. 5510 | Worker or survivors whose loss exceeds SGK's payments |
| Damages for a defective product | Art. 6 Law No. 7223 | Anyone injured by the product or whose property it damaged |
| Type of Claim | Period | Legal Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Tort-based damages (general) | 2 years from learning of the damage and the liable person; 10 years at most from the act | Art. 72 Turkish Code of Obligations |
| Motor vehicle accidents | 2 years from learning of the damage and the liable person; 10 years at most from the accident | Art. 109 Highway Traffic Act |
| Act that is also a crime with a longer limitation period | The longer criminal period (for example 8 years for most negligent injury, 15 years for negligent killing) | Art. 72 Code of Obligations; Art. 109 Highway Traffic Act; Art. 66 Penal Code |
| Claims against the employer after a workplace accident | 10 years | Arts. 146 and 417 Turkish Code of Obligations |
| Claims under a treatment contract with a private clinic or doctor | 5 years | Art. 147/5 Turkish Code of Obligations |
| Defective products | 3 years from learning of the damage and the liable person; 10 years at most from the damage | Art. 6 Law No. 7223 |
| Public bodies (state hospitals, municipalities) | Application within 1 year of learning, 5 years at most; lawsuit within 60 days after a rejection or after 30 days without an answer | Arts. 7 and 13 Administrative Procedure Act |
| Unlawful arrest or detention | 3 months from notification of finality; 1 year at most from finality | Art. 142 Code of Criminal Procedure |
| Criminal complaint for negligent injury | 6 months from learning of the act and the person responsible | Arts. 73 and 89/5 Penal Code |
| Situation | Claimed From | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Traffic accident with an insured vehicle | The vehicle's compulsory traffic insurer; above the limits, the operator and the at-fault driver | Written application to the insurer first (Highway Traffic Act Art. 97) |
| Hospital treatment after a traffic accident | SGK, whether or not the victim has social security | Highway Traffic Act Art. 98; nationality irrelevant |
| Hit-and-run or uninsured vehicle | Güvence Hesabı | Bodily injury (Insurance Act Art. 14) |
| Foreign-registered vehicle | Turkish Motor Vehicle Bureau or the foreign insurer's representative | Green Card system |
| Moral damages after a traffic accident | Operator and at-fault driver; optional liability policy if it covers them | Excluded from compulsory insurance (Art. 92(f)) |
| Private clinic or doctor | Clinic and doctor; in some cases the agency | Often a consumer dispute; mediation first |
| Public or university hospital | The administration | Prior application, then administrative court |
| Workplace accident | SGK benefits; the employer for the remaining loss | No mandatory mediation (Law No. 7036 Art. 3/3) |
| Hotel or package holiday | Hotel; package tour organiser | Consumer Protection Law Art. 51 for packages |
| Dog bite | Keeper of an owned dog; the municipality for stray dogs | Code of Obligations Art. 67; administrative court for strays |
| Defective product | Manufacturer or importer | Law No. 7223 Art. 6 |
| Type of Claim | Court or Body | Place |
|---|---|---|
| Tort claims in general | Civil court of first instance | Place of the act or of the damage, claimant's domicile, or defendant's domicile (Code of Civil Procedure Arts. 6, 16) |
| Traffic accident | Civil court; commercial court where the case is commercial | Also the place of the accident, or of the insurer's branch or the agency that issued the policy (Highway Traffic Act Art. 110) |
| Accident with a state-owned vehicle | Civil courts, not administrative courts | Highway Traffic Act Art. 110 |
| Workplace accident | Labour court | Also the place of the accident or damage, or the worker's domicile (Law No. 7036 Art. 6) |
| Private clinic, hotel or tour operator (consumer claims) | Consumer court, or consumer arbitration committee below the annual limit | Also the consumer's domicile (Consumer Protection Law Arts. 68, 73) |
| Public hospital, municipality or other public service | Administrative court | After the prior application (Administrative Procedure Act Art. 13) |
| Unlawful arrest or detention | Compensation Commission (acquittal and non-prosecution claims) or heavy criminal court | For the court, the claimant's place of residence (Code of Criminal Procedure Art. 142) |
| Dispute with an insurer (alternative to court) | Insurance Arbitration Commission | Insurance Act Art. 30 |
| Type of Claim | Key Evidence | Why It Matters |
|---|---|---|
| Traffic accident | Police or agreed report, photographs, witness details, alcohol test results | Fault rates and the insurer's liability |
| Permanent injury | Medical board or forensic report on the disability rate | Usually the largest head of the claim |
| Loss of earnings | Payslips, employment contract, tax returns, bank statements | Income basis; the minimum wage is used if income is not proved |
| Medical malpractice | Full medical file, consent forms, before and after photographs, messages | The expert report on the standard of care and consent |
| Hotel or holiday injury | Photographs of the spot, hotel incident report, booking and package documents | Cause of the accident and who the contract was with |
| Fatal accident | Death certificate, civil status records, proof of support, funeral and repatriation invoices | Loss of support and funeral costs |
| Workplace accident | SGK notification, employer records, witness statements, inspection reports | Employer fault and differential damages |
As a rule, within two years of learning of the damage and the person liable, and in any event within ten years of the accident (Highway Traffic Act Art. 109; Code of Obligations Art. 72). Where the accident also constitutes an offence, such as negligent injury or negligent killing, and the criminal law prescribes a longer limitation period for it, the longer period also applies to the damages claim.
Yes. Before a lawsuit against the insurer within the compulsory insurance limits, a written application to the insurer is required (Highway Traffic Act Art. 97). If the insurer does not answer in writing within 15 days, or its answer does not meet the claim, a lawsuit may be filed or an application made to the Insurance Arbitration Commission.
It is set by a medical board report from an authorised hospital or by the Council of Forensic Medicine, once the injury has stabilised, under the regulation that applies to the type of claim and the date of the accident. A report that is inconsistent with the facts can be challenged, and the court can obtain a new or additional report.
Where the employer is at fault, a differential damages claim may be brought against the employer for the loss remaining after SGK's payments, together with moral damages. Whether the employer met its occupational health and safety duties is examined to set the fault rates. The claim is subject to a ten-year limitation period and does not require mediation first.
Yes, in cases of serious bodily harm or death. The close relatives of the injured or deceased person may be awarded moral damages in their own right (Code of Obligations Art. 56/2). The amount is set by the judge according to the circumstances; there is no statutory table.
Yes. Partial fault does not extinguish the right to damages, but the judge may reduce the amount (Code of Obligations Art. 52), and compulsory traffic insurance does not pay the part matching the claimant's own fault. The fault rates are usually set from the accident report and an expert examination, and they can be challenged.
Traffic accident claims are generally heard by the civil court of first instance, while claims against an insurer may be commercial cases for the commercial court. Workplace accident claims go to the labour court, many claims against private clinics and hotels to the consumer court, and claims against public bodies to the administrative court. The answer depends on the nature of the claim and on who is sued.
Yes. A foreign national injured in a traffic accident in Turkey has the same right to claim pecuniary and non-pecuniary damages, and the same right to claim from the at-fault driver's compulsory traffic insurance, as a Turkish citizen. Residence status in Turkey is not a condition, and hospital treatment is paid by SGK regardless of nationality (Highway Traffic Act Art. 98).
Fees are subject to the national Attorneys' Minimum Fee Tariff prepared each year by the Union of Turkish Bar Associations, and a fee may also be agreed as a percentage of the claim or award up to 25 percent (Attorneys Act Arts. 164, 168). The arrangement is discussed with the client and agreed in writing before the file is opened.
Yes. Av. Ömer Faruk Doğan holds an IELTS score of 7, pursued graduate legal studies and research in Italy and Poland, and has experience advising foreign individuals and international companies on Turkish compensation matters. He acts as an English-speaking personal injury lawyer in Turkey and can advise in English as well as Turkish.
In Ankara, where the accident occurred, in Istanbul, where you are domiciled, at the defendant's domicile, or where the insurer's branch or the agency that issued the policy is located (Code of Civil Procedure Arts. 6, 16; Highway Traffic Act Art. 110). A compensation lawyer in Istanbul or a compensation lawyer in Ankara can follow the claim.
There is no fixed amount. The claim is made up of separate heads, such as loss of earnings, permanent disability, care costs, moral damages and vehicle damage, and the main financial heads are calculated by an actuarial expert using the disability rate, age, income and fault rates. No amount can be predicted before those reports exist.
Treatment in university, public and private hospitals after a traffic accident is paid by the Social Security Institution (SGK) under its reimbursement rules, whether or not the victim has social security, and this also applies to foreign tourists (Highway Traffic Act Art. 98). Costs actually paid out of pocket and not covered can be claimed as part of the loss.
Bodily injury caused by an uninsured vehicle, or by a vehicle whose insurer cannot be identified, is paid up to the compulsory insurance limits by the Güvence Hesabı, a fund held within the Insurance Association of Turkey (Insurance Act Art. 14). Property damage in these cases is, as a rule, outside the fund.
No. Moral damages are expressly excluded from compulsory traffic insurance (Highway Traffic Act Art. 92(f)). They are claimed from the vehicle's operator and the at-fault driver, or from an optional extended liability policy only if that policy covers them.
A claim is possible where the damage results from a breach of the standard of care, or from a failure to inform the patient of the risks before consent. The claim is directed at the clinic and the doctor, and in some cases the agency that sold the package, and it can be pursued from abroad through a lawyer in Turkey. Disappointing density alone is not necessarily malpractice.
Yes. A power of attorney is signed at a Turkish consulate, or before a notary abroad with an apostille and translation, and the lawyer conducts the case in Turkey. The court may require a single examination by the Council of Forensic Medicine, which is arranged in advance. Foreign claimants may be asked for security for costs unless reciprocity exempts them.
No. A known complication that was explained to the patient in advance and managed correctly is usually not a fault. The decisive question, answered mainly by the expert report, is whether the doctor met the standard of care and properly informed the patient of the risks.
Tort claims are time-barred two years after learning of the damage and the liable person, and ten years at most after the act (Code of Obligations Art. 72); claims under a treatment contract with a private clinic have a five-year period (Art. 147/5). For public hospitals, an application to the administration is required within one year of learning of the act and five years at most (Administrative Procedure Act Art. 13).
A claim is possible where the fall was caused by something the hotel was responsible for, such as a wet floor without a warning, poor lighting or a broken step. The hotel is liable under the accommodation contract and for its staff, and a package tour organiser is liable for the proper performance of the package. Photographs, the hotel's incident report and the first medical report are the key evidence.
For an owned dog, the person who keeps it is liable unless they prove they took the care required to prevent the damage (Code of Obligations Art. 67). For a stray dog, a claim against the municipality for failing to run the stray animal service properly is brought in the administrative court after a prior application to the administration.
Those the deceased supported can claim damages for loss of support, whether or not they are heirs, together with funeral costs, including repatriation of the body (Code of Obligations Art. 53). Close relatives can also claim moral damages in their own right (Art. 56/2). Families living abroad need documents proving the relationship and the support, apostilled and translated.
Yes. The costs of transporting the body home and of the funeral are claimed as funeral costs, proved with the invoices and the consular paperwork.
It is an arbitration body within the Insurance Association of Turkey for disputes with insurers and the Güvence Hesabı (Insurance Act Art. 30). It can be used after the insurer rejects the claim or fails to answer within fifteen working days, and the arbitrators are required to decide within four months of appointment unless the parties agree to extend. In practice it is often faster than a court case.
Yes. An unregistered worker has the same right to compensation and can prove the employment with witnesses, messages and bank transfers. SGK still pays the work accident income and allowances and then collects its costs from the employer (Law No. 5510, Art. 23).
Yes. The employer's liability for a worker's death or injury is subject to contractual liability rules (Code of Obligations Art. 417), so the ten-year general limitation period applies (Art. 146). Traffic accident claims follow the two-year and ten-year periods of the Highway Traffic Act (Art. 109).
Usually not for the hearings, which the lawyer attends; the court can also allow participation by video link on request (Code of Civil Procedure Art. 149). A visit may be needed if the court orders a medical examination by the Council of Forensic Medicine, which is usually arranged once on a scheduled date.
As a rule, a foreign claimant is required to provide security set by the court for the costs of the proceedings (Private International Law Act Art. 48). The court exempts the claimant on the basis of reciprocity, which often follows from conventions or bilateral agreements between Turkey and the claimant's country.
Yes. Statutory interest is added, and since 31 July 2026 the statutory rate has been 80 percent of the Central Bank's rediscount rate (Law No. 3095, Art. 1). For loss of working capacity and loss of support, interest on the part relating to the period with known earnings runs from the date of the event, and on the rest from the date of the judgment (Code of Obligations Art. 55).
It depends on what was signed. Settlements on compensation amounts that are clearly inadequate can be annulled within two years of being made (Highway Traffic Act Art. 111), and agreements narrowing the liability set by the Act are invalid. Whether an offer covers all heads, especially permanent disability, can only be assessed once the medical reports are available.
Yes, where the harm results from a fault in the hospital service. An application to the administration is made within one year of learning of the act and five years at most, and if it is rejected or not answered within thirty days, a full remedy action is filed in the administrative court within sixty days (Administrative Procedure Act Arts. 7, 13).
No. The civil judge is not bound by an acquittal or by the criminal judge's assessment of fault and damage (Code of Obligations Art. 74). The compensation claim is decided on its own evidence, although reports from the criminal file can be used.
Yes. The manufacturer or importer is liable for damage the product causes to a person or property; the injured person proves the damage and its causal link with the product's non-conformity (Law No. 7223, Art. 6). The claim is time-barred three years after learning of the damage and the liable person, and ten years at most after the damage arose.
Yes. A lawyer registered with a Turkish bar can act before the courts in every city, and a compensation claim can often be filed at the claimant's domicile as well as where the accident happened. We act as a personal injury lawyer in Istanbul and follow files in Ankara and other cities across Turkey.
Compensation claims for foreign patients after failed treatment in Turkey: what counts as malpractice, clinic and doctor liability, why waivers are often void, informed consent, damages, time limits, evidence from abroad and the right legal route.
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