Foreign Employee Rights in Turkey: Termination, Severance and Mobbing Explained
Foreigners working as expats or international employees in Turkey often sign English-language contracts and report to international HQ, yet their day-to-day rights are governed by Turkish labour law. Understanding how Turkish rules on termination, severance, work permits and mobbing (workplace bullying) operate is crucial for protecting yourself.
1. English employment contract, Turkish law and termination
It is common for expats to have a contract written in English, sometimes with references to foreign HR policies, but with Turkish law chosen as the governing law. In principle, this is valid – and even if no law is chosen, Turkish law usually applies where the work is habitually carried out in Turkey.
What this means in practice:
- The Turkish Labour Law and mandatory employee protections (notice, severance, annual leave, working hours, minimum wage, union rights, etc.) apply regardless of the contract language.
- Any clause that reduces your minimum rights under Turkish law (for example, “no severance under any circumstances”) will normally be invalid to that extent.
Notice periods and “ihbar tazminatı”
If your contract is open-ended (no fixed term), termination must respect statutory notice periods, which depend on your length of service. If the employer terminates without giving the required notice or payment in lieu, you may claim notice compensation (ihbar tazminatı).
Severance pay (“kıdem tazminatı”)
If you have at least one year of service with the same employer, and the termination falls into a qualifying category (for example, employer termination without just cause, certain resignations for just cause, retirement or military service for Turkish citizens), you can be entitled to severance pay equal to one month’s last gross salary per completed year of service, subject to a statutory cap. Foreign employees benefit from this in the same way as Turkish workers, as long as they are employees under Turkish law.
Reinstatement lawsuits (“işe iade davası”)
If:
- you have at least 6 months’ service, and
- your employer in Turkey has 30 or more employees,
you may challenge a termination as invalid and file a reinstatement lawsuit (işe iade davası) after first going through mandatory mediation. If the court finds that there was no valid reason or the procedure was defective, it may order reinstatement and award up to 4 months’ salary for the period you were unemployed plus 4–8 months’ salary as compensation if the employer chooses not to take you back.
These protections apply equally to foreign employees, even if your HR team sits in London or Dubai. Internal policies cannot replace statutory rules.
2. Work permit expiry and “illegal” continued work
Foreign nationals (except certain limited categories like some permanent residents or dual citizens) must have a valid work permit or work permit exemption to work in Turkey. The permit is usually tied to a specific employer, role and location.
What if your work permit expires but you keep working?
In practice, this is not rare: the company “forgets” to renew the permit or delays the application, while the foreign employee keeps working. Legally, however:
- Working without a valid permit is considered unauthorised (kaçak) work.
- Administrative fines can be imposed on both the employer and the foreign employee, and the situation may affect future residence/work applications.
Despite this, from the labour-law perspective, if you continued to work under the employer’s direction and control, the relationship is still treated as an employment relationship. This means you can usually still claim:
- unpaid salary,
- overtime and other wage components,
- notice compensation and, where conditions are met, severance pay,
- social security registration and past-period premium under-payments (which are an issue primarily for the employer).
Courts tend to protect the employee’s economic rights, even when the work itself was not authorised from an immigration perspective. The fact that you worked “illegally” does not automatically erase your labour claims; rather, it adds a regulatory problem for the employer and, to a lesser extent, for you.
Practical tips in permit scenarios
- Keep copies of your work permit card, extension applications, e-mails where you ask HR to renew your permit, and any promises made.
- If you realise your permit has expired, raise it in writing with HR/management; this later shows that you did not intentionally hide the situation.
- In a dispute, these documents help prove that the employer knowingly let you work without a permit, strengthening your wage and compensation claims.
3. Mobbing and workplace bullying: expats and mixed teams
“Mobbing” in Turkey refers to systematic, hostile, humiliating or isolating behaviour towards an employee that goes beyond normal workplace conflict. For foreign employees and managers, mobbing issues often arise in cross-cultural teams, for example:
- a foreign manager accused of pressuring Turkish staff,
- a foreign employee isolated by a local team, denied information or openly humiliated,
- repeated threats of “we can cancel your work permit at any time” used as a tool of pressure.
Legal framework
Mobbing is not defined in a single stand-alone statute, but Turkish courts recognise it under:
- the Labour Law (employer’s duty to protect the employee’s personality and health),
- the Code of Obligations (employer’s duty of care and loyalty), and
- sometimes even constitutional and human-rights principles.
An employee who proves mobbing can seek:
- moral damages (compensation for psychological harm),
- sometimes material damages for health treatment, loss of income, etc.,
- termination of the employment contract for just cause with related compensation (e.g. severance),
- potentially administrative or criminal complaints, depending on the behaviour (harassment, insults, threats).
Evidence in mobbing cases
Foreign employees often underestimate the importance of evidence. Turkish courts are relatively strict:
- E-mails, chat messages, SMS and internal messaging tools showing humiliating language, unfair workload, or exclusion can be powerful.
- Witnesses (current or former colleagues) are important; Turkish courts place substantial weight on oral testimony.
- Performance evaluations, disciplinary warnings, restructuring documents and organigrams can show patterns of targeting.
- Medical reports from psychiatrists or psychologists and prescriptions for anxiety or depression can support the claim that mobbing harmed your health.
Because many expats work in English or a foreign corporate language, judges may request sworn translations of key e-mails or documents. Keep original files and avoid editing or deleting them once a dispute seems likely.
Internal investigations and HR processes
Multinational companies often have ethics hotlines, whistleblowing channels or internal investigation teams. While these are helpful, they:
- do not replace your legal rights under Turkish law, and
- do not always stop time limits for bringing claims.
If you experience mobbing:
- Report it in writing to HR and management, keeping copies.
- Participate in internal investigations but avoid signing documents you do not fully understand.
- If the situation continues, consult a labour lawyer about possible compensation, health leave and termination for just cause.
4. Why “Foreign employee rights in Turkey” matter
For expats, there is often a feeling that “this is just a foreign assignment” and that the real employment relationship is with HQ abroad. But if you physically work in Turkey for a Turkish legal entity (or a branch / liaison office), you generally benefit from the same core protections as any Turkish employee:
- minimum wage and regulated working hours,
- overtime pay and annual leave,
- protection against unfair dismissal and entitlement to notice and severance,
- workplace safety and anti-mobbing obligations,
- social security coverage and contributions.
Contract language, foreign policies or relocation status do not erase those rights. At the same time, as a foreigner you need to be especially careful about work permits, residence status and documentation, because immigration and labour law questions are closely linked.
This overview is general information and not legal advice. If you are a foreign employee or expat facing termination, unpaid entitlements or mobbing in Turkey, you should obtain personalised advice from a Turkish employment lawyer based on your contract, permits and company structure.
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