Remote digital company setup was announced, how do foreign founders register today?
Not yet: setting up a company in Türkiye with a passport, without travelling there, has been announced but is not in force, and no start date or legal basis has been given (Dünya/AA, 27 April 2026). Today a company with foreign partners is formed through MERSİS, Türkiye’s central trade registry system, with a potential tax number, apostilled documents and, if needed, a power of attorney. A proxy can handle the process, but the document chain stays as it is.
What this means for you: if you plan to set up a software or e-commerce company in Istanbul in autumn 2026 with a partner abroad, you can follow today’s route without waiting for the plan. The announcement gave no scope, criteria or date for its virtual office, automated accounting and tax incentive items. Put today’s steps in your schedule, not the plan.
Can a foreign founder set up a company in Türkiye today without travelling there?
Partly, through a proxy. According to the Presidential Investment Office guide, the process can be handled by a representative holding a power of attorney; the page does not say whether the founder must be present in person. Documents still need a notary and apostille abroad, then sworn translation and notary approval in Türkiye. A fully remote, passport-based setup is only an announced plan.
When will passport-based remote setup under the digital company plan start?
That has not been announced. Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacır presented the plan on 27 April 2026 at the “Century of Türkiye: Strong Centre for Investment” programme. According to the report, the announcement gave no start date, platform or legal basis. The Ministry’s definition of a digital company (dijital şirket) has also not been published as of 14 October 2026.
Which steps form a company with foreign partners in Türkiye today?
BU BÖLÜMÜN ÖZETİ
- Step 1: Prepare the documents abroad
- Step 2: Get a potential tax identification number
- Step 3: Deposit the capital and the Competition Authority share
- Step 4: Submit the articles of association in MERSİS and register
Today’s process has four main steps: document approval, a potential tax number, capital and bank account, and registration through MERSİS. The steps follow the Investment Office guide to establishing a business. The page marks itself as a test version, so confirm each step with the Ministry of Trade and MERSİS as well.
Step 1: Prepare the documents abroad
The passport copy, or the certificate of activity and partners’ board resolution, need a notary and an apostille in your country. Without an apostille, approval from a Turkish consulate is required. Once in Türkiye, the documents go through sworn translation and notary approval.
Step 2: Get a potential tax identification number
Non-Turkish partners and board members obtain a potential tax identification number from a tax office. The number is needed for the bank account where the capital is deposited. The guide gives no time or cost for this step, so get your own quote.
Step 3: Deposit the capital and the Competition Authority share
0.04% of the capital is paid as the Competition Authority share. According to the Investment Office, a limited company does not need to pay 25% of its capital before registration and can pay it within 24 months. Ask your bank separately whether the account can be opened remotely.
Step 4: Submit the articles of association in MERSİS and register
The articles of association are prepared and submitted online in MERSİS. According to the guide, registration at the Trade Registry Office is completed the same day, but earlier steps such as the notary and tax number can take longer. After registration come the tax certificate, social security registration, ledger certification, signature circular and a foreign direct investment notice through E-TUYS.
A trap worth naming: hearing the announcement and assuming apostilles are no longer needed. Under today’s rules, apostille, notary and sworn translation requirements still apply. Whether passport-based verification will replace them is unknown, and an incomplete file gets turned away at the door.
Who does the digital company remote setup plan affect, and how?
If the plan comes into force, the main winners would be technology founders living abroad and software startups with foreign partners. For now the effect stays in expectations, because the plan exists only on paper. The side that waits loses business the longer it delays incorporation.
What should a digital company with foreign partners prepare on the web and digital side?
Digital preparation can start before the company exists. A domain, a bilingual website and a business email become the first point of contact for a company whose partner works remotely.
What should a business owner setting up a company with a foreign partner do this week?
Start the document chain this week and complete the checklist. Book the notary and apostille appointment in your partner’s country, and choose your representative and accountant in Türkiye. Our digital company page, where we collect every question on the topic, is a good place to follow the plan’s status.
Quick Summary
- Passport-based remote company setup was announced on 27 April 2026 and is not in force (Dünya/AA).
- Today a company with foreign partners is formed through MERSİS with a potential tax number (Investment Office).
- Foreign documents still need a notary, apostille, sworn translation and notary approval in Türkiye.
- 0.04% of the capital is paid as the Competition Authority share (Investment Office).
- The process can be handled by a representative holding a power of attorney.
Short Glossary
- Apostille
- Apostille is the certification used to make an official document issued in one country valid in another.
- Potential tax identification number
- Potential tax identification number is the number non-Turkish partners and managers obtain from a tax office, used for bank and incorporation steps.
- MERSİS
- MERSİS is the central registry system used to run company formation and trade registry procedures online.
Frequently Asked Questions
Next Step
If you want to map out the documents and steps for your foreign-partner company together, fill in the consult your expert form.
The definition and conditions of the digital company scheme are not final yet; check the latest information with the Ministry of Industry and Technology, KOSGEB and the Official Gazette before deciding. This is not legal or financial advice.
Support amounts and conditions can change; check the current terms on the institution’s official page before applying. This article is not financial or legal advice.
Sources: Dünya (AA), Minister Kacır: foreign investors will be able to set up companies remotely in Türkiye (27 April 2026) · Presidential Investment Office, Establishing a Business (updated 11 August 2026)
Updated: October 2026
Sık Sorulan Sorular
It lets a representative in Türkiye carry out the incorporation steps on your behalf. A power of attorney issued abroad goes through the same approval chain as other foreign documents.
Individual partners provide a copy of their passport. Corporate partners provide a certificate of activity and a board resolution of the partners. All of these need an apostille or approval from a Turkish consulate.
No. According to the Investment Office, Türkiye’s Foreign Direct Investment Law gives foreign investors the same rights and obligations as local investors.
According to Dünya/AA, Kacır said foreign investors will be able to set up a company fully remotely through passport-based identity verification, known as KYC. It describes a goal, with no system or date named.
The announcement says founders will have access to virtual office services and automated accounting infrastructure from day one. Scope, price and provider were not given. No new rule was found on whether a virtual office address can serve as the registered head office address.
That is unclear. It was not said whether the plan covers only companies that fit the digital company definition or all foreign investors. The digital company provision in Law 7582 only grants a dues exemption and says nothing about remote setup.
E-commerce and SaaS startups with a partner living abroad gain most directly. Remote verification could cut the paperwork that today runs between two countries.
The founder who treats the plan as law and delays incorporation struggles. A team with a customer or investor ready but no company to invoice from has no cash coming in. We cover how to judge that choice in our article on waiting for the definition or incorporating now.
Notaries, sworn translation offices and the accountants who handle incorporations may see their workflows change later. How much depends on what happens to the apostille and notary requirement.
Foreign partners, investors and first customers often do not read Turkish. Turkish and English pages let you show up in search in both markets.
Keep the draft articles of association, the power of attorney and scanned copies of approved documents in one shared folder. Note in each file name which approval the document has been through.
After registration you can open a business profile with the company address. Since no new rule was found on accepting virtual office addresses in the registry, decide on the address with your accountant.
Is the passport copy, or the certificate of activity and board resolution, ready? Has the apostille or consulate approval been obtained, and is a sworn translation office chosen? Are the potential tax number application and the draft power of attorney ready?
Plan the work permit route for founders or team members separately. Tech Visa, mentioned in the same announcement, is one option; details are in our Tech Visa and work permit guide.
With foreign partners, tracking the document, tax and registry steps from one place cuts the running around. We provide foreign trade and foreign-partner structuring consultancy; see the scope on our foreign trade consultancy page.
Yes. Under today’s rules, foreign documents need notary approval and an apostille or consulate approval; the remote setup plan has not been published as a rule that removes this requirement.
According to the Investment Office guide, the process can be handled by a representative holding a power of attorney. Confirm your own case with the notary and your bank.
That has not been announced. The 27 April 2026 announcement gave no start date, platform or legal basis.