Power of Attorney
Power of Attorney (POA in short) is frequently used when you buy a property in Turkey to avoid the necessary but time-consuming travel for title deed transfer processes. When you give someone a POA, you are effectively saying “You may act on my behalf with these powers”. You will be responsible for all actions taken with a POA issued by you.
Therefore, it is advisable to give Power of Attorney only to professional estate agents or registered and certified solicitors. It is also recommended that a POA be issued for a limited time and only for powers required by the attorney. It is strongly advised not to give a general POA that contains full powers.
A Power of Attorney should contain only powers for necessary actions and nothing more. It often includes the power to buy real estate and obtain electricity and water connections on your behalf.
An attorney cannot harm your rights if the POA has only “authority to buy a property and get water-electricity subscriptions”. You should think twice before giving the power of selling property!
Professional guidance is a key point. So, Bodrum White advises “leave the job to the experts” when giving a power of attorney for real estate transactions.
We have our own real estate power of attorney template. It is a special power of attorney for real estate purchases in Turkey. It contains the necessary authorizations for a comfortable process.
You may issue the power of attorney at all notaries in Turkey. It takes two hours and can be witnessed at any notary office in Turkey.
Foreigners who do not speak Turkish will need to use a notarized sworn translator. Turkish notaries have sworn translators who are ready at their notary offices within 15 minutes when called.
Every Turkish embassy and consulate acts also as a notary public abroad by appointment. You do not need the attorney to be present when issuing a POA. You may need the proxy’s ID details, your passport, and, in some cases, your photo.
Turkey is a part of “The Hague Apostille Convention”. If your country is also included in this convention, you can use any local notary to give a POA. Your real estate agent can provide you with a power of attorney form for the required powers.
After you issue this POA at a notary in your country, you need to get an apostille from the competent authorities, such as the district governorate, municipality, etc. The critical point is that some POAs are only valid with photos in Turkey. You better ask your local notary to add your photo to the POA as requested.
Q: What is a power of attorney?
It is a legal document that allows a person (the proxy) to act on behalf of another person (attorney) under a notarial witness. The proxy has the legal authority to sign on behalf of the attorney for decisions. The decisions may relate to the attorney’s property, finances, or medical care.
Q: What are the required documents to issue a power of attorney?
You need your original passport, its translation, your tax number, and two passport photos (for some transactions only).
Q: How can I give a power of attorney in Turkey?
When you go to a notary office with the required documents, officers prepare the POA for you. A certified interpreter of the notary office translates the information on the POA papers. After the signatures, you pay fees and get your receipts.
Q: Why do I need an interpreter to issue a power of attorney in Turkey?
All documents of notary office transactions are Turkish. So, it is an obligation to have a certified interpreter translate the information on the papers before signing.
Q: What is the cost of giving a power of attorney for property purchases?
It depends on what is written on the POA papers. Notary offices have certain prices for word character numbers. So, the price is calculated after the POA is written.
Q: Can I give a power of attorney if I am not in Turkey?
Yes. There are two ways of giving a POA from abroad. These are;
• After you make an appointment, you go to the Turkish Consulate in your country and give a POA. Then, you post it to your proxy in Turkey.
• The second option works only for the countries that have an apostille agreement with Turkey. You go to a notary office in your country to issue a POA. Then, you take your POA to a competent authority (district governorate, municipality, etc.) to get it apostilled. Then, you post the documents to Turkey. The documents are taken to a notary office in Turkey for notarized translations. The important point is that some POAs are only valid with photos in Turkey. You should ask your local notary to add your photo to the POA as requested.
Q: Whom can I give power of attorney to in Turkey?
You can give a POA to any person over the age of 18 in Turkey.
Q: Can children under the age of 18 give power of attorney in Turkey?
Children under the age of 18 can give a POA only when their parents sign.
Q: When is it compulsory to have a picture for the power of attorney?
POAs giving “selling power” must have an attorney’s picture. It is not required for other types of POA.
Q: Can I give a power of attorney to someone to withdraw money from my bank account?
Yes. Bank transactions can be done with POA in Turkey.
Q: A tax number is required to issue a power of attorney. How does this work if I give a power of attorney when I am abroad?
Your passport number is used in place of your tax number when giving a POA from abroad. In such cases, you must add the power to get a tax number to the POA. So, your proxy can get your tax number on your behalf.
Q: How many attorneys can give power of attorney to one proxy?
There is no limit to the number of people who can give POA to the same person.
Q: What kind of transactions and services can be carried out with a power of attorney?
All kinds of legal transactions can be made with a POA. But, you should know about the following exceptions:
* If you want your legal documents to be delivered to or received from the courts, your proxy must be a lawyer.
* If you want to take any action at the immigration office, your attorney must be a lawyer.