Counterparty Confirmation — Building permit status

Counterparty Confirmation — Building Permit Status

A counterparty confirmation for building-permit status is useful when a seller, developer or corporate owner is making a specific representation about the legal construction basis of a property. The confirmation is not a substitute for the permit itself or for verification with the municipality or other competent authority. Its purpose is to force the counterparty to identify exactly which permit it relies on, which parcel and structure that permit covers, whether later amendments exist, and whether any unresolved issue is known before the buyer signs or releases money.

Start with the exact project identity

Do not ask simply, “Does the project have a building permit?” Ask for the permit number, issuing authority, issue date, parcel identifiers, block or building reference, and the project stage covered. Large developments can contain several blocks, phases or revised projects. A valid permit for one block does not establish the status of another. The statement should therefore tie the permit to the same ada/parsel and independent-section chain used in the sale file.

Turkey's planned-area building rules and the land-registry condominium process distinguish the building permit from later occupancy/use documentation. TKGM's current FAQ lists the building permit among the documents relevant to establishing condominium construction servitude in the applicable process, while occupancy permission has its own role later. A seller's sentence that a building is “licensed” should not be allowed to blur those different documents.

What the written confirmation should contain

Full legal name of the confirming seller or developer and the authority of the person signing.
Permit number, date and issuing authority.
Parcel, block, project phase and building identifiers covered by the permit.
Reference to amendments, renewals, revised architectural projects or other later official actions.
A statement identifying any known suspension, cancellation, enforcement issue or unresolved mismatch.
A list of the permit copies and supporting official records supplied to the buyer.
A clear distinction between building permit status and occupancy/use permit status.

How to verify the counterparty's statement

Compare the written confirmation with the permit document and with the competent authority's current information. Check that the project name used in marketing has not replaced the legal parcel or building identifiers. Confirm that the document date and version are suitable for the decision being made. If the project has been amended, establish whether the amendment affects the unit, floor, block, permitted use, gross construction area or other feature material to the purchase. Where the authority uses electronic records, retain a dated copy or retrieval note so a later reviewer can reproduce the check.

Red flags

A buyer should escalate when the seller provides only a cropped image without the issuing page, when the permit belongs to a different parcel, when the legal block is not the marketed block, when the seller refuses to identify amendments, or when a permit is presented as evidence of occupancy even though those are separate regulatory questions. Another warning sign is a confirmation signed by a sales employee with no documented authority to make a legal representation for the owner or developer.

How to handle a discrepancy

Record the exact conflict rather than writing “permit unclear.” For example: “Seller letter identifies permit 2024/125 for parcel X; municipal copy supplied by seller refers to parcel Y,” or “Seller states no amendment, while the file contains a later revision.” Assign responsibility for obtaining the current competent-authority evidence and state what payment, signature or delivery step remains blocked until the issue is resolved. If the difference is harmless, keep the explanation and evidence showing why.

Transaction example

A developer confirms that Block C is covered by the project's original building permit. The buyer discovers that Block C was introduced by a later project revision. The proper conclusion is not necessarily that the building is unlicensed. The buyer should obtain the revised permit or competent-authority record, connect it to Block C, and require the developer to correct its confirmation. The file should retain both the original and revised documents so the change is auditable.

Buyer questions

Is a seller's signed permit confirmation enough by itself?

No. It is useful evidence of what the counterparty represents, but the building-permit status should be reconciled with the permit itself and, where material, with current information from the competent public authority.

Does a building permit prove that the building has an occupancy permit?

No. They address different stages. The buyer should verify the document actually needed for the transaction instead of treating one permit as proof of every later approval.

What if the project was amended after the first permit?

Identify the amendment, its date, approving authority and effect on the exact block or unit. The current decision should be based on the controlling project and permit chain, not on the earliest document simply because it is easier to obtain.

Primary official sources

's status.

Permit and occupancy are different stages

For a completed building, ask separately for iskan/Yapı Kullanma İzin Belgesi. “We have ruhsat” is not an answer to the occupancy question. Where occupancy permission is partial or block-specific, establish whether the block containing the offered unit is included.

For a project in progress, request dated evidence of licensing stage and construction status. A marketing percentage of completion is not a legal permit confirmation.

Record counterparty and official-source results side by side

Where they agree, keep both pieces of evidence. Where they conflict, preserve the conflict and open a reconciliation item specifying what document is missing. The cause may be a recent amendment absent from the sales file, a stale copy or a substantive problem.

A developer confirmation is not a PASS merely because it is written. Its value is that it creates a specific assertion that can be tested against the authority record and physical project. If the counterparty cannot identify the permit number, parcel and latest version, the confirmation remains weak regardless of reassuring language.

Evidence and decision plan for Counterparty Confirmation — Building permit status

When reviewing “Counterparty Confirmation — Building permit status”, the file should obtain independent confirmation of material facts from the responsible party or issuer instead of relying on a forwarded copy alone. This makes the article useful at the point of commitment because unresolved facts are separated from verified facts instead of being buried in narrative.

Evidence to assemble

For “Counterparty Confirmation — Building permit status”, match the property and party identifiers in the evidence to the asset and people actually involved; a correct document for the wrong unit or person does not close the check.
For “Counterparty Confirmation — Building permit status”, record issuer, source, issue or retrieval date and version where available, then distinguish an original/current record from a scan, translation, draft, expired copy or superseded version.
For “Counterparty Confirmation — Building permit status”, compare documentary status with the physical, payment or operational reality relevant to the topic and write down every unexplained difference before commitment.
For “Counterparty Confirmation — Building permit status”, convert each unresolved difference into a named condition: evidence required, person responsible, deadline and the consequence if the condition is not satisfied.

Official reference to recheck

The source register for “Counterparty Confirmation — Building permit status” includes Ministry — Building Permit / Occupancy Process (https://webdosya.csb.gov.tr/db/meslekihizmetler/haberler/yapi-ruhsati-yapi-kullanma--z-n-belges--surecler--20220328101647.pdf). Use that source for the matters within its authority and recheck it when timing or rules are material; it does not replace a registry, engineering, tax, banking or contractual record that the specific decision separately requires.

Decision boundary

A defensible conclusion on “Counterparty Confirmation — Building permit status” records both what was verified and the limits of that verification. If a missing fact could change ownership, legality, safety, cost or payment security, it should block the related commitment until resolved.

Counterparty Confirmation — Building permit status