KHKahanHukukDanışmanlık

Practice Areas

Enforcement and Bankruptcy Law

Recovering receivables and protecting debtors — from initiating proceedings to lifting attachments.

In short

Enforcement and bankruptcy law governs the state-backed collection of monetary and security claims, and in Türkiye is regulated by the Enforcement and Bankruptcy Law. Proceedings are brought either on a court judgment or without one. In proceedings without a judgment, a debtor who objects within seven days of service of the payment order automatically suspends them (Art. 62).

In enforcement matters the outcome is often decided by deadlines rather than by the merits. Once the seven-day window to object to a payment order is missed, the proceedings become final and the debtor's substantive objections are confined to a much narrower field.

For creditors, what matters is identifying recoverable assets accurately and quickly. For debtors, exemptions from attachment, third-party ownership claims and objections to the debt must be raised in time. On either side we run the file against a deadline calendar.

What we do in this area

  • Initiating and conducting enforcement proceedings with and without a judgment
  • Enforcement of negotiable instruments (cheques, promissory notes, bills of exchange)
  • Objections to payment orders and actions to lift or annul the objection (Arts. 67-68)
  • Attachment of movable and immovable property, sale and realisation
  • Attachment of rights and receivables held by third parties (Art. 89 notices)
  • Third-party ownership actions and complaints regarding exempt assets
  • Applications to suspend, annul or stay enforcement
  • Enforcement proceedings for rent arrears and eviction
  • Representation of creditors or debtors in composition and bankruptcy proceedings

How the process works

  1. Reviewing the claim and the instrument

    We determine which route is available based on the note, contract or judgment you hold.

  2. Commencing proceedings

    The request is prepared and the payment or enforcement order issued and served on the debtor.

  3. Objection and litigation stage

    If an objection is filed we bring an action to lift or annul it; if you are the debtor, the objection is filed in time and in the correct scope.

  4. Attachment and recovery

    Once proceedings are final we trace assets and carry through attachment, sale and collection.

Frequently asked questions

Frequently asked questions about Enforcement and Bankruptcy Law

All questions

01How many days do I have to object to a payment order?

In enforcement proceedings without a judgment the objection period is seven days from service of the payment order (Art. 62). For negotiable instruments the period is five days and the objection is filed with the enforcement court rather than the enforcement office. If the deadline is missed, the proceedings become final.

02What happens if I object to enforcement proceedings?

A timely objection automatically suspends proceedings brought without a judgment. To continue, the creditor must bring an action to annul the objection (within one year, before the general courts) or to lift it (within six months, before the enforcement court).

03How much of a salary can be attached?

No less than one quarter of wages is exempt; as a rule at most one quarter may be attached. Maintenance claims are not subject to this limit. Pensions, as a rule, cannot be attached without the debtor's consent.

04Can my home contents be seized?

Household goods essential to the life of the debtor and their family cannot be attached (Art. 82). Items regarded as luxury goods, and immovable property belonging to the debtor, can be. A complaint that assets are exempt must be filed with the enforcement court within seven days of the attachment.

05I cannot locate the debtor's assets — what can be done?

Through the enforcement office, assets can be traced via land registry, vehicle, bank, social security and postal cheque records, and attachment notices can be served on third parties holding receivables. If nothing is found, the debtor can be summoned to declare their assets and the relevant sanctions applied where necessary.

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Legally reviewed: Attorney at Law, Founder Gökay Kahan

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