Turkey's postponement of the mandatory Secure Payment System for property sales is now legally confirmed. The amendment published in Official Gazette No. 33387 on 1 October 2026 changes the regulation's date to 1 December 2026 and takes effect on publication. It also authorises the Ministry of Trade to appoint an integrator and leaves pilot scope, excluded sales, fees and operating rules to an inter-agency protocol. Overseas buyers should treat 1 December as the binding date and confirm the live procedure with their bank and Land Registry office before transferring money.
1 December is now in the regulation
The ministry had publicly announced a 1 October timetable in June and a further delay on 28 September. The amendment published on 1 October formally replaces the date in the regulation with 1 December 2026. It entered into force on publication, so this is no longer only a planned amendment.
An integrator and protocol will shape the system
The new text authorises the Ministry of Trade to appoint an integrator. The payment system will operate under a protocol involving the Ministry of Trade, the relevant units of the Ministry of Environment, Urbanisation and Climate Change and that integrator. The protocol will define excluded sales, any pilot, fees, fee-sharing and the relevant commission's procedures.
A pilot is expected before full obligation
The official statement says a pilot will begin after bank infrastructure is ready, but it does not publish a pilot date, participating-bank list, supported currencies or a separate procedure for non-resident buyers. A buyer should not assume that every bank or every international transfer route is already connected.
What foreign buyers should do until 1 December
Keep the purchase price, recipient, title-deed appointment and payment conditions in one written transaction plan. Ask the bank and the relevant Land Registry office whether a pilot or voluntary secure-payment route applies to the specific sale. Use a traceable account, verify daily and international-transfer limits, and do not send funds to unrelated personal accounts merely because the mandatory date moved.
The postponement does not reduce legal checks
The announcement changes the payment-system timetable only. It does not alter title ownership, liens, mortgages, zoning, occupancy permission, valuation, tax, residence or citizenship rules. Deposits and reservation payments also need written refund conditions. An independent lawyer should verify the property and transaction documents before funds are released.
Ministry of Trade — statement announcing the revised 1 December timetable, 28 September 2026 →
Ministry of Trade — previous mandatory start date was set for 1 October 2026, 26 June 2026 →