About Turkish Severance Pay (Kıdem Tazminatı)
Kıdem tazminatı (severance pay) is a statutory payment in Turkey owed to employees who have worked for an employer for at least one year and leave under qualifying circumstances. The amount is calculated as one month's gross salary per year of service, subject to a legal ceiling that is updated annually.
The 2024 kıdem tazminatı ceiling is 35,058.58 TL per year of service. If an employee's monthly gross salary exceeds this ceiling, the ceiling amount is used for the calculation instead of the actual salary. The ceiling is updated each year on 1 January based on changes to civil servant salaries.
Severance pay is taxable only via a 0.759% stamp tax (damga vergisi). It is exempt from income tax and SGK contributions, making it a highly tax-efficient form of compensation. Kıdem tazminatı is payable when an employee is dismissed by the employer (except for justified cause under Article 25/II of the Labor Law), when they resign for a valid reason (military service, marriage for women, retirement), or upon death.
Employees who resign voluntarily without a valid reason or are dismissed for justified cause (theft, fraud, violence) are not entitled to kıdem tazminatı.
Frequently Asked Questions
An employee is entitled to severance pay after completing at least one year of service, when: (1) dismissed by the employer without justified cause, (2) resigning due to military service, (3) a woman resigning within one year of marriage, (4) retiring (meeting premium days/age requirements), or (5) death of the employee (paid to heirs). Voluntary resignation without a qualifying reason does not entitle the employee to severance pay.
The kıdem tazminatı ceiling for the second half of 2024 (July–December) is 35,058.58 TL per year of service. If your monthly gross salary is higher than this, the ceiling amount is used. The ceiling equals the highest civil servant salary plus social supplements and is updated twice a year (January 1 and July 1). The ceiling for the first half of 2024 (January–June) was 31,608.92 TL.
No — kıdem tazminatı is exempt from income tax and SGK contributions. Only a small stamp tax (damga vergisi) of 0.759% is deducted from the total severance amount. This makes severance pay highly tax-efficient compared to regular salary. However, if the severance exceeds the legal ceiling, the excess portion is subject to full income tax.
Kıdem tazminatı is severance pay based on years of service (1 month gross per year). İhbar tazminatı is notice pay for failing to give the required notice period before termination. Notice periods in Turkey are: 2 weeks (under 6 months), 4 weeks (6 months–1.5 years), 6 weeks (1.5–3 years), 8 weeks (over 3 years). Whichever party fails to give notice (employer or employee) must pay ihbar tazminatı. İhbar tazminatı is subject to full income tax and SGK.