Inheritance Law

Legal assessment of succession in Türkiye: certificates of inheritance, estate identification and protection, division of inherited assets, disputed transfers, reserved shares, wills and rejection of inheritance.

Turkish inheritance law concerns the transfer of a deceased person’s assets, rights and liabilities. A succession dispute requires more than calculating a percentage: the composition of the estate, lifetime transfers, debts, title records and testamentary dispositions must be considered together.

Our work in this practice area includes case-file review, legal consultation, assessment of evidence, settlement discussions and court proceedings. At the initial consultation with the office of Attorney Orhan Önal in İzmir, the heirs, assets and issues requiring timely action are identified.

1. Certificates of inheritance and succession shares

A certificate of inheritance identifies heirs and their shares. Under Article 598 of the Turkish Civil Code, a certificate for statutory heirs may be obtained from the civil court of peace or, where the statutory requirements are met, a notary. Missing civil-status records, foreign elements, parentage disputes or testamentary dispositions can affect the appropriate route. The certificate may be challenged; obtaining it does not conclusively determine ownership of every disputed asset.

2. Identifying and protecting the estate

An estate may include real property, bank assets, receivables, company interests and liabilities. Identification of estate assets, protective measures, an official inventory and official liquidation are different legal mechanisms. The appropriate request depends on what needs to be established or protected.

Assessment should cover debts and enforcement proceedings as well as visible assets. Actions taken by an heir in relation to estate property may affect the options for accepting or rejecting inheritance. Registers and documents should therefore be reviewed before assets are disposed of.

3. Division of inheritance and dissolution of co-ownership

Where there is more than one heir, an inheritance community exists until division. Joint ownership of the estate and ownership in defined shares have different consequences. A division agreement, allocation of particular assets, equalisation payments and sale must be considered in light of the property and the rights of all participants.

If agreement cannot be reached, judicial division or dissolution of co-ownership may be required. Article 18/B of Law No. 6325 provides for mandatory pre-action mediation in disputes concerning division of movable or immovable property and dissolution of co-ownership. This does not make every inheritance claim subject to mandatory mediation. See our article on dissolution of co-ownership (Turkish).

4. Disguised lifetime transfers and title disputes

Muris muvazaası concerns the examination of a deceased person’s true intention behind an apparent real-estate transfer and an alleged intention to defeat inheritance rights. An unequal benefit or a low stated sale price does not, by itself, establish the claim. The legal form of the transaction, actual payment, financial circumstances and surrounding evidence must be assessed.

A claim for cancellation and correction of title requires attention to the chain of transfers, current owner, any good-faith third party and whether relief is sought for a share or for the estate. The parties to the proceedings and any request for an interim measure must be properly identified. Related discussion appears in our inheritance and title disputes article (Turkish).

5. Reserved shares and reduction of gifts or dispositions

A reduction claim (tenkis) may arise where dispositions covered by the Civil Code infringe a protected heir’s reserved share. It differs from a disguised-transfer claim in its legal basis, standing, calculations and time limits. The estate, liabilities, disposable portion and relevant benefits must be identified.

Article 571 contains time limits linked to knowledge and an ultimate limit, with relevant starting events depending on the type of disposition. A deadline applicable to one claim cannot simply be applied to another. The available primary and alternative remedies should be assessed against the actual evidence.

6. Wills and testamentary disputes

Opening a will, interpreting its terms, implementing a testamentary benefit and challenging validity are separate matters. Capacity, formal requirements, defects of consent and unlawfulness raise distinct questions of proof. An infringement of a reserved share may instead require reduction. Grounds and deadlines for invalidity and reduction must be kept separate.

7. Rejection of inheritance and insolvent estates

For an express rejection of inheritance, Article 606 generally provides a three-month period. The starting point depends on matters including heirship, knowledge of death or heirship, and formal notification to an appointed heir. Special rules and a possible additional period for important reasons require individual review. Rejection is declared to the civil court of peace; obtaining a notarial certificate of inheritance is a different act.

Deemed rejection under Article 605(2) concerns an estate where the deceased’s insolvency at death was manifest or officially established. It must not be treated as procedurally identical to express rejection. Appropriating estate property or acting beyond ordinary management may affect the right to reject, making early assessment particularly useful.

8. Jurisdiction, cross-border matters and documents

Certificates, division proceedings, title claims and challenges to wills do not all follow the same jurisdictional rules. The deceased’s last domicile, location of real property, nature of the claim and any foreign element must be considered. For heirs living abroad, powers of attorney, certification and translation of foreign documents should also be planned.

• Death and civil-status records, and any existing inheritance certificate.
• Title records, available transfer documents, agreements and wills.
• Records of known bank assets, receivables, liabilities and enforcement cases.
• Notices, existing proceedings and documents relevant to the date an issue became known.

Case assessment and appointments

Consultations and document reviews are arranged by appointment. The initial review identifies heirship, the requested remedy, relevant assets and any time-sensitive steps. No outcome or duration can be guaranteed without assessing the individual case.

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