Serving Foreign Court Documents in Türkiye
Serving foreign court documents and letters of request in Türkiye: the Ministry of Justice as central authority, the channels and the language rule.
A court abroad that wants to serve a claim on someone in Türkiye, or to obtain evidence there, works through international judicial cooperation. In Türkiye, the Ministry of Justice acts as the central authority under the cooperation conventions and Turkish law; the work is done by its General Directorate of Foreign Relations and EU Affairs.
How requests arrive
The Ministry examines whether service documents received from foreign judicial authorities comply with the international conventions and sends them to the public prosecutor's office where the addressee lives, for service. Letters of request in civil and commercial matters are checked for compliance with Turkish law and the conventions and forwarded to the authority that will carry them out. Notices of dismissal and formal notices sent through consulates and embassies by citizens living abroad are also passed to prosecutors' offices for service on the addressee in Türkiye.
The Ministry notes that serving documents such as a statement of claim, a hearing date or a reasoned judgment is a form of judicial cooperation regulated by a separate circular. Requests may also concern evidence, including originals or certified copies of bank records, accounting documents, company files and commercial papers.
Conventions and language
The work is carried out under bilateral treaties or multilateral conventions, and in their absence under international custom and reciprocity. Türkiye is a party to the 1954 Convention on civil procedure and the 1970 Convention on taking evidence abroad, and has bilateral treaties with several states, whose provisions then apply. Letters of request are executed in the forms provided by the law of the requested state.
Letters of request in civil matters must be made in the official language of the requested state; a request to Türkiye therefore needs Turkish. We translate court documents into Turkish in Ankara through translators sworn before a Turkish notary; the Turkish authorities decide on execution.
Where the document goes in Türkiye
| Document family | Receiving authority in Türkiye | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Court | Ministry of Justice, Directorate General for Foreign Relations and EU Affairs (Central Authority) | diabgm.adalet.gov.tr |
| Notarial | Ministry of Justice, DG for Foreign Relations and EU Affairs – Civil Letters Rogatory and Miscellaneous Bureau (service via public prosecutors' offices) | diabgm.adalet.gov.tr |
| Company | Ministry of Justice (Central Authority) | diabgm.adalet.gov.tr |
Frequently asked questions
- Which Turkish authority receives court documents (Service of foreign court documents in Türkiye)?
- Ministry of Justice, Directorate General for Foreign Relations and EU Affairs (Central Authority).
- Which Turkish authority receives notarial documents (Service of foreign court documents in Türkiye)?
- Ministry of Justice, DG for Foreign Relations and EU Affairs – Civil Letters Rogatory and Miscellaneous Bureau (service via public prosecutors' offices).
- Which Turkish authority receives company documents (Service of foreign court documents in Türkiye)?
- Ministry of Justice (Central Authority).