Short-term rentals for foreign owners may soon be subject to an additional tax. This topic has been actively discussed by the Turkish media in recent days.

Recall that citizens of other states who have residential real estate in Turkey are not prohibited from renting it out; however, for short-term rentals – that is, not under one-year contracts – there are certain requirements and conditions like obtaining a license or working through a company that has this license (agency). However, few foreign owners complied with this requirement, and it was troublesome to “catch” all violators; so the apartments were safely rented out through AirBnB and similar services, not to mention the options “by word of mouth”. 

However, now the authorities have announced that by the end of the year they will work out the text of a law that will undertake to regulate the rental of housing for short-term rent if the owner is a citizen of another state. Stricter reporting, registration of real estate as an accommodation object (for example, a hotel room) in structures subordinate to the Ministry of Tourism, as well as payment of a certain income tax will be required.

It is unlikely that this will please those renting housing, but work outside the legal field should have been “folded” at some point. And it is better if you manage to do just an additional tax than serious fines, because, as everyone remembers, ignorance of the law excuses not. 

However, owners who bought housing, but do not live there and do not rent it out, may not like another idea of the authorities: the mediation of the state when renting empty apartments to beneficiaries in order to normalize the situation in the rental market. Since the rates for rent in key cities such as Istanbul and Ankara, and on the coasts have risen to sky-high heights. 

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