🛡️ SGK Registration for Foreign Workers in Türkiye in 2026: Employer Obligations

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1️⃣ 🛡️ SGK Registration for Foreign Workers in Türkiye in 2026: Employer Obligations​


A work permit does not complete a foreign worker’s insurance arrangements. The employer must also meet the applicable SGK registration, earnings declaration and contribution duties. Equally, SGK registration does not replace work permission. The permit, employment contract and SGK records must agree.

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Organising documents and an online application​

2️⃣ 📊 Practical overview​

ObligationWhat to verify
1️⃣ RegistrationThe route and statutory timing
2️⃣ Declared payConsistency with permit and actual work
3️⃣ Termination and noticeMinistry and SGK procedures are separate

3️⃣ 🏛️ SGK and the insurance category​

The Social Security Institution (Sosyal Güvenlik Kurumu, SGK) administers social and health insurance registration and contributions. Most employees are insured under 4/a. Self-employment and certain business owners fall under 4/b, while 4/c covers qualifying public-sector employment. The legal relationship determines the category; the parties cannot simply choose a label.

Law No. 6735 requires permit/exemption holders and their employers to meet social security obligations under Law No. 5510 on time, subject to applicable international agreements. An agreement to waive compulsory insurance in exchange for higher pay does not remove the duty.

4️⃣ 📅 Registration and the start of work​

The ordinary SGK rule generally requires an employment entry notice before work begins. Specific provisions apply to foreign work permit holders:
  • Domestic application: start work and meet the applicable obligations within one month of the permit’s start date.
  • Overseas application: start and meet the obligations within one month of entry, and in any event within six months of the permit start date.
  • Permit notified after its start date: the Ministry’s guidance treats the relevant SGK notification made within one month of notification to the employer as timely; the SGK rule cited there specifies 30 days for the applicable entry notice.
Arrange registration promptly before actual lawful employment begins; do not treat the special filing period as permission to leave work unrecorded. A permit holder who fails to enter within six months can have the permit cancelled.

5️⃣ 💻 What the employer or accountant must do​

  • 1️⃣ Ensure the workplace is registered with SGK.
  • 2️⃣ Check the valid work authorisation and correct foreign identity number.
  • 3️⃣ Submit the electronic Sigortalı İşe Giriş Bildirgesi employment entry notice.
  • 4️⃣ Use the correct category, normally 4/a, occupation code and actual start date.
  • 5️⃣ Declare monthly working days and gross earnings correctly.
  • 6️⃣ Pay contributions within the statutory period and retain records.
The official e-SGK employer applications portal provides the relevant services.

6️⃣ 💰 Gross earnings and 2026 limits​

Declare the real gross earnings subject to the statutory contribution-base rules. Do not register a worker at the general minimum wage when their real salary or permit salary commitment is higher. The permit’s occupational salary threshold, contract, payroll and SGK declaration must be reconciled.

For 2026, the general gross minimum is TRY 33,030 per month, or TRY 1,101 per day. The ordinary monthly SGK contribution earnings ceiling is TRY 297,270, nine times that minimum. The ceiling limits the contribution base; it does not permit an inaccurate record of the agreed wage.

7️⃣ 🧾 Standard contribution rates for 2026​

  • Employee: SGK 14% plus unemployment insurance 1% = 15%.
  • Employer, before incentives: SGK 21.75% plus unemployment insurance 2% = 23.75%.
At gross earnings of TRY 33,030, employee insurance deductions are TRY 4,954.50. The employer’s contributions without incentives are TRY 7,844.63, giving a total employer cost of TRY 40,874.63 before other costs. These are the published standard calculations; eligible employer incentives can reduce the employer share without reducing the worker’s insured days or rights.

8️⃣ 📊 Monthly duties​

Declare actual days, correct contribution earnings and the appropriate occupation code; submit the applicable withholding-tax and premium/service return; pay both shares; retain payroll and attendance records; document any missing days; and update relevant changes. For employees paid by calendar month, contributions are generally due by the end of the following month. Reduced days require a lawful, documented reason, and foreign workers are subject to specific restrictions for some missing-day codes.

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Discussing documents during a legal consultation​

9️⃣ 🔄 Keep the permit and SGK records aligned​

Check the employer, authorised workplace, occupation, start date, gross salary, days and contract period. Closing the old employer’s SGK record and opening a new one is not enough to move to another employer: the appropriate new work permit is required. Changes in role, workplace or activity may also require a new application or an official update.

1️⃣0️⃣ 📢 Ministry notifications and termination​

Where the statutory reporting duty applies, relevant commencement, termination and circumstances requiring cancellation must be notified to the Ministry within 15 days. This includes relevant exemption work and changes affecting the authorisation. The published 2026 reporting fine is TRY 6,805 per foreign national, doubled for a repeat breach.

When employment ends, submit the SGK exit notice within 10 days and the separate Ministry notification within 15 days where required. Use the correct exit code because it can affect unemployment insurance, compensation and disputes. Closing SGK registration does not replace the work permit cancellation/termination procedure.

1️⃣1️⃣ 🦺 Accidents and occupational disease​

Employers owe foreign workers the same applicable safety measures, training and equipment. Report a workplace accident to law enforcement immediately where required, and to SGK within three working days under the applicable rule. Preserve medical records, the incident account and witnesses. Occupational disease must also be reported within three working days of learning of it through the prescribed procedure. Late reporting can trigger penalties and recovery of amounts paid by SGK.

1️⃣2️⃣ 🏥 Benefits and qualifying conditions​

Depending on the insurance category and qualifying conditions, benefits can include healthcare, temporary incapacity payments, accident and occupational disease protection, sickness and maternity benefits, disability and retirement pensions, survivors’ benefits and unemployment insurance. Some require contribution periods; certain workplace accident protections do not require prior contribution days.

1️⃣3️⃣ 🌍 International social security agreements​

A temporary posting may qualify for an SGK exception under an applicable bilateral agreement if foreign insurance continues, the permitted posting period is respected and the required coverage certificate is supplied. Nationality alone is insufficient. An SGK exception does not automatically exempt the worker from work permit requirements.

1️⃣4️⃣ 🔍 Check your record through e-Devlet​

Use the 4A employment entry/exit and service-record services to check the employer, insurance start, recorded days, contribution earnings and exit date/code. Check after starting and then monthly: an entry notice alone does not prove that each later month is reported correctly.

If the record is missing or wrong, ask for the entry notice, compare the contract/payroll/bank payments with SGK, request correction in writing, contact ALO 170 or the provincial SGK office, and consider the official employee self-notification service. Keep contracts, bank transfers, payslips, messages and attendance evidence.

1️⃣5️⃣ ❌ Common mistakes​

Avoid working before permit validity, missing SGK registration, understating salary or days, using the wrong occupation or workplace, continuing after expiry without lawful renewal, or closing SGK without notifying the Ministry. Private health insurance is not a substitute for compulsory employment insurance, and SGK cannot replace work permission.

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Preparing a passport for travel​

1️⃣6️⃣ ✅ Records and checks​

RecordUse
1️⃣ Employment-entry notificationEvidence of registration starting
2️⃣ Service and contribution recordReview periods and amounts
3️⃣ Employment-exit notificationCheck the date and grounds

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