Power-of-attorney authority for Turkish property transactions
A document titled Power of Attorney or Vekâletname does not by itself prove that the person holding it can complete the proposed property transaction. The controlling questions are who granted it, who is acting, what powers are written into the instrument, whether those powers cover the property or act in question, and whether the instrument remains usable on the closing date. Due diligence must therefore move beyond the appearance of the document and test the operative authority.
Match the principal and attorney
Reconcile the principal with the registered owner or other person who holds the underlying right. Reconcile the attorney with the individual who will sign or appear before the land-registry office. Name spelling, nationality, identity or passport information and translations should be consistent enough to demonstrate that all documents concern the same persons. A difference should be resolved through accepted official evidence rather than an informal assumption. TKGM procedures require an appropriate representation document where a party acts through a representative.
Read the operative powers
Do not rely on the label general power of attorney. Read the clauses authorising sale, purchase, acceptance of transfer, mortgage creation or release, declarations and handling of the sale price as relevant. A representative may have power to sell without power to receive the sale proceeds, or power to buy without power to mortgage, or authority limited to one identified property. Each important act should be supported by the instrument and accepted procedure rather than inferred expansively for convenience.
If the power identifies a property, match province, district, neighbourhood, block, parcel and independent-unit details where stated. If the instrument is broader, that does not mean every banking or financial act is automatically included. Where the scope is uncertain, the safer course is clarification or a corrected instrument before an irreversible payment.
Powers issued outside Türkiye
TKGM maintains specific rules for powers of attorney issued abroad. Circular 2015/5 and its supplementary guidance explain that acceptability depends on the issuing authority, the authentication path applicable to the country and treaty framework, the content of the authority and a properly certified Turkish translation where required. In Hague Convention cases an apostille may form part of the authentication chain, while other cases can require consular legalisation or another accepted route. Apostille should therefore not be treated as a universal one-word rule for every country.
The foreign instrument must cover the requested transaction. Where it is drawn in a foreign language, the Turkish translation required by the applicable TKGM procedure must be linked to the document. A phone image, partial scan or stand-alone translation should not be treated as a transaction-ready file.
Revocation and replacement
An instrument that was valid when signed may no longer be the controlling document at closing. Check for revocation, later replacement or another circumstance affecting current authority. A TKGM archive instruction dated 8 December 2025 explains that foreign powers cannot be checked through Turkish Notaries Union systems in the same manner and directs that originals of such foreign powers continue to be retained in land-registry archives after the transaction. For buyers, this underlines the difference between a locally verifiable notarial instrument and foreign authority that requires its own official verification chain.
Unified workflow
- Define the exact act the representative will perform.
- Match principal, attorney and property identities.
- Locate the clause granting authority for that act.
- Verify formalities, authentication and translation according to the place of issue.
- Recheck present status and possible revocation or replacement before closing.
- Separate signing authority from authority to receive or redirect money.
- Preserve the complete version actually relied upon.
Closing-day check
Before final execution, match the attorney to the identity document and confirm that the same power reviewed in due diligence is being used. If the land-registry office requests clarification or an additional instrument, do not allow a non-refundable payment to outrun that condition. When sale proceeds are to be paid to the attorney, independently verify the authority to receive the funds and the beneficiary account; sale authority alone should not be treated as proof of price-receipt authority.
Recordkeeping
The useful substance of the former recordkeeping page is consolidated here. Preserve the full power, apostille or legalisation pages, translation, identity evidence for principal and attorney, any revocation-status verification, official requests for clarification and the final document used in the transaction. Record the review date and reviewer. If a newer power supersedes an earlier version, retain the old document with a clear superseded label rather than deleting it.
Red flags
- Only selected pages of the power are supplied.
- The contract allows the attorney to receive the price although the instrument only addresses sale authority.
- A foreign power has no verifiable authentication or translation chain consistent with TKGM rules.
- Principal or attorney names conflict across the original, translation and identity documents.
- The power identifies a different property or a narrower transaction.
- There is information about revocation or dispute but no fresh status check.
- A payment-account change is requested by message without independent verification.
Frequently asked questions
Is a general power of attorney automatically enough to sell property? No. The title of the document is not the test; the operative powers and accepted procedure for the transaction must be reviewed.
Does power to sell include power to receive the sale price? It should not be assumed. The instrument and money-handling authority need a separate check.
Does every foreign power require an apostille? No universal answer applies. The route depends on the issuing country, treaties and the TKGM requirements for that document.