Nikolai Timofejev
15 years in FinTech and payments. Maps your business model to the right licence scope and leads the file all the way to the CBRT decision, including banking and payment rails.
Get a payment license in Türkiye.
Eighty-five million consumers, instant rails, and a licence priced in lira: the Central Bank licenses payment and e-money institutions under Law 6493, with equity floors it revalues every year - TRY 40 million for payment institutions and 105 million for e-money issuers from mid-2026. We run the file from our own Istanbul office.
27 yrs
on the international marketon the market
60+
in-house specialistsspecialists
400+
Licenses obtainedlicenses obtained
Updated
Türkiye in brief
A big market behind a lira-priced door.
Türkiye licenses payments through its central bank under Law 6493, with the 2021 regulation on payment services and e-money issuance carrying the detail. The operative numbers are equity floors the CBRT redetermines every January against revaluation: under the communiqué in Official Gazette 33154, from 30 June 2026 a payment institution holds minimum equity of TRY 40 million - 20 million if it only intermediates invoice payments - and an e-money institution 105 million. The application itself runs in published stages: an intelligence phase on founders and funds first, the substantive review after, each with its own file. Two structural points decide most Turkish applications before they start - the source-of-funds story on every lira of capital, and the localisation of systems and data the CBRT expects from institutions it supervises.
What the door opens onto: 85 million consumers, one of Europe's largest e-commerce markets, FAST instant payments and the TROY card scheme carrying national volume, and a fintech-literate talent pool concentrated an hour from your office. Tax asks its price - payment and e-money institutions pay corporate tax at 30%, five points above the standard rate, with VAT at 20% - and the licence buys no passport anywhere. Türkiye is a destination market: you licence here because the demand is here, in a currency that keeps the capital requirement moderate in hard-money terms. We build Turkish files from our own Istanbul office, in Turkish, which is the language the file must be in.
CBRT licenses under Law 6493: payment institutions at TRY 40M minimum equity (20M invoice-only), e-money at 105M - floors from Gazette 33154, effective 30.06.2026, revalued every January. Staged process: founders and funds first, the file after.
The market: 85M consumers, FAST rails, TROY scheme, deep talent. No passport - pure destination demand. We file from our own Istanbul office, in Turkish.
The two routes
Payment institution - or e-money issuer.
Law 6493 splits the family in two: ödeme kuruluşu for moving money, elektronik para kuruluşu for issuing it - with the invoice-intermediation sub-tier as the light entry. We fix the route first, then build once.
PI for moving money - EMI for issuing it; invoice tier as light entry.
01 - PAYMENT INSTITUTION
Ödeme kuruluşu
Transfers, acquiring, aggregation and initiation without issuing e-money: TRY 40 million minimum equity from mid-2026 - or 20 million for the invoice-payments-only model that starts many Turkish groups.
Transfers, acquiring, aggregation and initiation without issuing e-money: TRY 40 million minimum equity from mid-2026 - or 20 million for the invoice-payments-only model that starts many Turkish groups.
- ✓Payment services under Law 6493
- ✓Minimum equity TRY 40,000,000
- ✓Invoice-only tier - TRY 20,000,000
- ✓Staged CBRT application process
- ✓Systems and data localised in Türkiye
- ✓Equity floors revalued annually
02 - E-MONEY INSTITUTION
Wallets & float - CBRTElektronik para kuruluşu
Wallets, prepaid and stored balances: TRY 105 million minimum equity from mid-2026, safeguarded float, and the licence behind Türkiye's largest consumer fintechs.
EMI: TRY 105M equity, safeguarded float, the consumer-scale licence.
- ✓E-money issuance - wallets, prepaid
- ✓Minimum equity TRY 105,000,000
- ✓Float safeguarded per the regulation
- ✓FAST and TROY rails to plug into
- ✓The consumer-scale licence
- ✓Same CBRT supervision
Costs and timelines are confirmed for your case before any work begins. Equity floors are set by CBRT communiqué and revalued annually - we model the requirement at your planned launch date, not today's.
Why Türkiye
Destination demand at lira prices.
No passport, no offshore angle - just one of the largest untapped payment markets between Europe and Asia, licensed in its own currency.
✓
85 million consumers
Europe's second-largest population, young, urban and mobile-first - the domestic demand alone justifies the licence for consumer models.Destination demand, not overflow.
✓
Lira-priced capital
The equity floors are set in TRY and revalued annually - in hard-currency terms the entry stays moderate for a market this size.Moderate in hard currency.
✓
Rails that already run
FAST instant payments and the TROY scheme carry national volume - a licensed institution plugs into live infrastructure, not a roadmap.FAST + TROY carry volume.
✓
A staged, knowable process
The CBRT publishes its application stages - founders and funds vetted first, the substantive file after. You always know which gate you are at.You know which gate you're at.
✓
The talent bench
Istanbul's fintech engineering and compliance pool is the deepest between Frankfurt and Singapore - licensed institutions staff locally, fast.Deepest pool in the region.
✓
A bridge market
Corridors to the EU, the Gulf, Central Asia and the diaspora run through Türkiye naturally - the licence anchors a hub the map already drew.EU-Gulf-Central Asia corridors.
How it compares
How Türkiye differs from other routes.
Türkiye is a destination licence - the comparison is with other big single markets, not with passport hubs. The honest table is below.
Türkiye vs other jurisdictions
| Feature |  Türkiye | Other jurisdictions |
|---|---|---|
| Market | 85M - destination demand | Passport hubs, thin home base |
| Capital | TRY-priced, revalued yearly | Hard-currency flat minimums |
| Process | Published stages - CBRT | Opaque single-track reviews |
| Tax | 30% - sector rate | 9-25% regionally |
Market
Türkiye85M - destination demand
Other jurisdictionsPassport hubs, thin home base
Capital
TürkiyeTRY-priced, revalued yearly
Other jurisdictionsHard-currency flat minimums
Process
TürkiyePublished stages - CBRT
Other jurisdictionsOpaque single-track reviews
Tax
Türkiye30% - sector rate
Other jurisdictions9-25% regionally
Country by country
| Country | License type | Taxation | Requirements |
|---|---|---|---|
| Türkiye | PI / EMI (CBRT) | 30% payment sector | TRY 20-105M equity |
 UAE | RPS Cat I-IV (CBUAE) | 9% · 0% band | AED 0.1-3M by volume |
 Saudi Arabia | PI / EMI (SAMA) | 20% foreign share | SAR 1-10M by tier |
 Israel | Payment company (ISA) | 23% · tech reliefs | ISA directives · fees set |
TürkiyeLicense typePI / EMI (CBRT)
Taxation30% payment sector
RequirementsTRY 20-105M equity
UAELicense typeRPS Cat I-IV (CBUAE)
Taxation9% · 0% band
RequirementsAED 0.1-3M by volume
Saudi ArabiaLicense typePI / EMI (SAMA)
Taxation20% foreign share
RequirementsSAR 1-10M by tier
IsraelLicense typePayment company (ISA)
Taxation23% · tech reliefs
RequirementsISA directives · fees set
Before you apply
Requirements for the CBRT licence.Requirements for the licence.
The regulation and the CBRT's published stages state the file - the craft is source-of-funds and localisation done properly. The checklist below is what a passing application contains.
01
A Turkish joint-stock company (A.Ş.) - with registered shares and the payment business as its activity.
02
Minimum equity for your route - TRY 40 million for a payment institution (20 million invoice-only), TRY 105 million for an e-money institution, at the floors effective from 30 June 2026.
03
Source-of-funds evidence - every lira of capital traced and documented; this is where Turkish applications are won or lost.
04
The staged file - the intelligence-phase dossier on founders and shareholders first, the substantive operational file after.
05
Fit and proper founders and managers - clean records, competence, ownership transparent to UBOs.
06
A programme of operations - services, volumes and three-year financials the CBRT can interrogate.
07
Safeguarding - customer funds and e-money float protected per the regulation.
08
Localisation - primary systems and data held in Türkiye to the CBRT's supervision standards.
09
AML/CFT framework - KYC, monitoring and MASAK reporting with a resident compliance officer.
10
Governance - board arrangements, internal control and audit functions to regulatory standard.
01
Turkish A.Ş., registered shares.
02
Equity: TRY 40M / 20M / 105M.
03
Source of funds - fully traced.
04
Staged file: founders, then operations.
05
Fit & proper to UBOs.
06
Interrogable programme of operations.
07
Float safeguarded per regulation.
08
Systems and data in Türkiye.
09
AML with MASAK reporting.
10
Board, control and audit functions.
Reflects Law 6493, the December 2021 Regulation and the CBRT equity communiqué in Official Gazette 33154 (31 January 2026, effective 30 June 2026).Law 6493 + 2021 Regulation + Gazette 33154, as of 2026.
How it works
From first call to the CBRT list.
01
Route and equity plan
PI, invoice-only or EMI - the route, the equity floor at your launch date and the funding trail, fixed in writing.Floor at launch date, funding trail fixed.
02
Turkish company and people
A.Ş. formation, capital placement with documented source, and the resident officers the CBRT vets.A.Ş., capital, resident officers.
03
The intelligence phase
Founders, shareholders and funds examined first - the gate most applications underestimate, prepared as its own file.Founders and funds - its own dossier.
04
The substantive review
Programme, safeguarding, localisation and AML documentation defended through the CBRT's question rounds - plan on 12-18 months end to end.12-18 months realistic overall.
05
Licence and launch
The list entry, FAST and TROY connectivity, float safeguarded - and the reporting calendar running.Listed, connected, safeguarded.
Quick facts
RegulatorCBRT
Law6493 · Reg. 2021
PI equityTRY 40M
Invoice-only PITRY 20M
EMI equityTRY 105M
Floors effective30 June 2026
Realistic timeline12-18 months
Corporate tax30% - sector rate
The equity floors move every January with revaluation - a file planned for next year is modelled at next year's number. We do that arithmetic first.
On the ground in Istanbul
Licensed from the city we work in.
Prifinance - Türkiye
Istanbul · Perpa Ticaret Merkezi
Perpa Ticaret Merkezi, A Blok, Istanbul
01
Turkish company formation
A.Ş. incorporation, registered share structure and capital placement - built for the licence from day one.A.Ş. built for the licence.
02
The staged CBRT file
Intelligence-phase dossier and the substantive application, in Turkish, per the published stages - drafted by us and defended through the rounds.Both gates, in Turkish.
03
Source-of-funds architecture
The capital trail documented to CBRT standard before filing - the single biggest cause of Turkish refusals, solved first.The refusal-maker, solved first.
04
Substance and localisation
Resident officers, MASAK-ready compliance and Türkiye-hosted systems - assembled from our own Istanbul office.From our Istanbul office.
We also have offices in
Tallinn
Estonia
Roseni 13
Vilnius
Lithuania
Gedimino pr. 2
Prague
Czech Republic
Vlkova 532/8, Žižkov
London
United Kingdom
7 Bell Yard
Dubai
UAE
33 Level, Al Saqr Business Tower
Madeira
Portugal
Rua da Alegria 31, 1F
Budapest
Hungary
Korányi Sándor u. 4
Good to know
Taxation of payment companies in Türkiye.
Türkiye taxes its financial sector harder than the rest of its economy: 30% corporate tax for payment and e-money institutions against the standard 25%.
Corporate tax 30%
Payment and e-money institutions sit in the financial-sector bracket alongside banks - 30% against the general 25%. The margin model is built with the right rate from day one.Financial-sector bracket.
VAT 20%
The standard rate; financial-service exemptions apply by product - the fee mix is mapped before launch, not discovered at the first return.Product-mapped exemptions.
Inflation accounting
Türkiye's inflation-adjustment rules touch equity, monetary items and the tax result - a modelling layer most foreign applicants meet here for the first time.Modelled, not discovered.
Withholding on the way out
Dividends carry withholding with treaty relief across a wide network - group structures above the Turkish A.Ş. model cleanly.Treaty-relieved dividends.
Payroll reality
Employer costs are material, but Istanbul's engineering and compliance salaries still price well below Western Europe for the depth on offer.Below Western Europe.
Incentives exist at the edges
Technology development zones and R&D regimes reduce the burden for qualifying activity - worth testing against the operating model early.Edge incentives exist.
Tax summary
Corporate tax - sector30%
Corporate tax - general25%
VAT20%
Dividend withholdingTreaty-relieved
Inflation accountingApplies
Tax treaties85+
*Figures as of 2026 per the Revenue Administration (GİB). Sector classification and inflation adjustment are modelled per structure.
Turnkey professional support
Experienced lawyers and international consultants.
We provide end-to-end support, from company registration and the application file to regulatory interaction and compliance oversight - with an individualized approach to each client.
Oleksii Kindratenko
Builds the application itself: Turkish A.Ş., AML/KYC policy pack, capital structure and tax registrations. His document sets are the reason reviews finish in months, not years.
Eugeniu Bevziuc
First point of contact for international founders. Runs the whole setup remotely, across time zones and languages - from the first call to a live, licensed institution.
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Türkiye · CBRT
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Request a free conclusion →FAQ
The Turkish payment licence, answered.
What licence does a payment business need in Türkiye?+
An operating permit from the Central Bank under Law 6493 - as a payment institution (ödeme kuruluşu) for moving money, or an e-money institution (elektronik para kuruluşu) for issuing wallets and stored balances.
How much capital is required?+
Minimum equity, not just share capital: TRY 40 million for a payment institution, 20 million for the invoice-payments-only tier, 105 million for an e-money institution - at the floors the CBRT set in January 2026, effective 30 June 2026.
Why do the numbers change every year?+
The CBRT redetermines the equity floors annually against revaluation and publishes them in the Official Gazette each January. We model your requirement at the planned launch date, not at today's figure.
What is the staged application process?+
Two published gates: an intelligence phase examining founders, shareholders and the source of every lira of capital - then the substantive review of the operational file. Most refusals happen at the first gate, which is why we build it as its own dossier.
How long does licensing take?+
Plan on 12-18 months end to end across both stages. The source-of-funds file and Turkish-language documentation done properly at the start are the levers that keep it at the short end.
What localisation applies?+
Primary systems and data are expected in Türkiye, under the CBRT's supervision standards - the architecture decision is made before the file, because retrofitting it afterwards is expensive.
How are payment companies taxed?+
At the financial-sector corporate rate of 30% - five points above the general 25% - with 20% VAT, inflation-adjustment rules and treaty-relieved withholding on dividends. The margin model carries the right rate from day one.
Does the licence passport anywhere?+
No - Türkiye is a destination licence for its own 85-million market and the corridors that run through it. EU-facing models pair it with an EEA licence; we build the pairs.
What substance is expected?+
A Turkish A.Ş. with resident management, a compliance officer reporting to MASAK, Türkiye-hosted systems and real premises. Istanbul's talent pool makes the hiring the easy part.
Why Türkiye rather than a passport hub?+
Different question, different answer: a hub sells reach, Türkiye sells demand. If your users are Turkish - consumers, merchants, diaspora corridors - no passport substitutes for the local licence. That is the model we build here.
Which licence?+
CBRT PI or EMI under Law 6493.
Capital?+
Equity TRY 40M/20M/105M from 30.06.2026.
Why changing?+
Revalued every January by communiqué.
Process?+
Two gates: founders/funds, then the file.
How long?+
12-18 months realistic.
Localisation?+
Systems and data in Türkiye.
Taxes?+
30% sector CIT, VAT 20%.
Passport?+
None - destination licence.
Substance?+
A.Ş., MASAK compliance, real premises.
Why Türkiye?+
If your users are Turkish, nothing substitutes.
Client notes
Google4.7★★★★★
Founders who wanted it done right.
Google4.7★★★★★
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Prifinance is an independent law and advisory firm. We are not a regulator and are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or acting on behalf of the Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye or any other public authority. Authorisations are granted by, and obtained directly from, the competent authorities.