Can a Foreign-Owned Property Be Included in Urban Transformation in Turkey? (2026 Updated Guide)

Can a foreign-owned apartment, home, shop or office be included in urban transformation in Turkey? Learn how Law No. 6306 affects foreign property owners, including risky building assessments, objections, demolition, majority decisions, share sales and replacement property rights.

Can a Foreign-Owned Property Be Included in Urban Transformation in Turkey?

Yes. The fact that a property is owned by a foreign national does not, by itself, prevent that property from being included in an urban transformation process in Turkey.

If a foreign-owned apartment, home, office, shop or other property is located in a building that becomes subject to the applicable urban transformation framework, the owner’s foreign nationality does not automatically exempt the property from the process.

Law No. 6306 establishes procedures concerning disaster-risk areas and risky buildings, with the objective of creating safe and healthy living environments through improvement, clearance and renewal. The statutory definition of a risky building focuses on the characteristics and risk status of the building rather than creating a general exemption based on the nationality of an individual property owner.

This has an important practical consequence. A foreign owner cannot generally stop an otherwise lawful risky-building procedure simply by saying:

“I am not a Turkish citizen, so my apartment cannot be included.”

At the same time, foreign ownership does not mean that the owner’s property rights disappear. Foreign owners can have important rights concerning notification, objections, owner meetings, redevelopment decisions, contractor agreements, dissenting-owner procedures and the replacement property.

For Lawyer Fırat Fesih Kaya, the critical issue for foreign owners is therefore not whether they are protected from urban transformation altogether, but whether they actively protect their ownership rights at every stage of the process.

Does Law No. 6306 Apply to Property Owned by Foreigners?

Law No. 6306 regulates properties and buildings falling within its statutory scope.

Its purpose includes procedures concerning land and properties containing risky buildings, whether those buildings are inside or outside designated disaster-risk areas. A risky building is defined by reference to technical and scientific risk criteria.

Accordingly, the legal focus is primarily on the property and the building’s status.

If a foreign national owns one apartment in a condominium building and that building is officially determined to be risky under the applicable framework, the foreign-owned apartment does not normally remain outside the process merely because its owner is a foreign citizen.

The same principle can become relevant to foreign-owned commercial premises.

Does Foreign Ownership Give the Owner a Veto Right?

No general veto arises simply from foreign nationality.

Consider a building containing twenty independent units. Nineteen are owned by Turkish citizens and one apartment belongs to a foreign investor.

If the building enters the statutory risky-building process, the foreign owner cannot ordinarily exclude the individual apartment from the structural assessment merely because the title is registered to a foreign citizen.

A building is structurally interconnected. The transformation process therefore cannot normally be treated as if one apartment could remain physically untouched while the rest of the risky building is demolished.

However, this does not mean the foreign owner must accept every proposal made by the other owners or the contractor.

The owner can still examine whether the risky-building procedure, majority decision, notification process and proposed redevelopment agreement comply with the applicable law.

Can the Process Begin Without the Foreign Owner’s Consent?

Yes.

Under the current official procedure, a risky-building assessment may be initiated upon the application of one owner or that owner’s legal representative. The application is made through an institution or organization licensed for risky-building assessments, and the building is assessed according to the applicable technical principles.

This is particularly important for foreign owners.

A foreign investor may purchase an apartment, return to their home country and later discover that another owner has initiated the risky-building assessment.

The foreign owner does not have to sign the initial assessment application for the process to begin.

Does Starting the Risky-Building Assessment Mean the Contractor Has Been Approved?

No.

These are different legal stages.

One owner may be able to initiate the risky-building assessment, but that does not mean that the same person automatically receives authority to select the contractor, determine the redevelopment terms or decide which replacement unit the foreign owner will receive.

Foreign owners should carefully distinguish between:

the risky-building assessment,

the demolition process,

the owners’ redevelopment decision,

and

the redevelopment agreement with the contractor.

Rights and procedures differ at each stage.

How Can a Foreign Owner Find Out Whether the Building Has Been Declared Risky?

Foreign owners should actively monitor the official process rather than relying exclusively on information from neighbors, building management or the contractor.

The Urban Transformation Directorate states that notifications relating to risky-building assessments, evacuation and demolition under Law No. 6306 are communicated to owners through the e-Government system and published through the Directorate’s official notification mechanisms.

Current procedures also use notices posted on the building and announcements through the relevant local administrative process.

This makes monitoring especially important where the owner lives abroad.

What If the Foreign Owner Lives Outside Turkey?

Living abroad does not automatically suspend the urban transformation process.

This is one of the greatest practical risks for foreign owners.

An owner may be outside Turkey while the building is assessed, notifications are issued, an owners’ meeting is organized and redevelopment negotiations begin.

Therefore, a foreign owner should not assume:

“Nothing can happen until I return to Turkey.”

That assumption can lead to missed deadlines and loss of procedural opportunities.

Can a Foreign Owner Object to the Risky-Building Assessment?

Foreign ownership does not, by itself, remove the owner’s ability to use the applicable objection mechanism.

If the owner believes the official risky-building assessment contains technical or procedural problems, the assessment should be obtained and reviewed immediately.

The objection should focus on the risky-building determination itself rather than merely expressing opposition to redevelopment.

For example, an owner may support construction of a safer building but still believe that the existing risky-building assessment contains technical errors.

These positions are not contradictory.

Is Objecting to Urban Transformation the Same as Objecting to the Risky-Building Report?

No.

This distinction is extremely important.

A foreign owner might say:

“I accept that the existing building should be replaced, but I do not accept the contractor’s proposal.”

That is primarily a redevelopment and contractual dispute.

Another foreign owner might say:

“I believe the official assessment incorrectly classified the building as risky.”

That concerns the risky-building determination.

A third owner might accept both the risky-building assessment and the need for redevelopment but dispute the apartment being allocated in the replacement building.

That can raise a different property and contractual issue.

Foreign owners should therefore identify precisely what they are challenging before choosing a legal strategy.

What Happens When the Risky-Building Assessment Becomes Final?

Once the risky-building process reaches the final stage, evacuation and demolition can follow under the statutory framework.

Current official guidance states that owners and occupants may be given a period not exceeding 90 days for evacuation and demolition. If demolition is not completed within the prescribed period, the authorities may proceed with or arrange the evacuation and demolition according to the applicable rules.

A foreign owner should therefore begin protecting the redevelopment position before the old building disappears.

Can the Foreign Owner Refuse to Vacate?

Simply refusing to leave does not necessarily stop a lawful final demolition procedure.

Where the statutory conditions are satisfied, the authorities have mechanisms for carrying out evacuation and demolition. Current official guidance also provides for administrative action where evacuation is obstructed and for recovery of certain officially incurred costs from owners according to their shares.

If the foreign owner believes an underlying administrative action is unlawful, the appropriate legal remedy should be considered promptly.

Passive refusal is not equivalent to a legal challenge.

What Should a Foreign Owner Do Before Demolition?

Before demolition, preserve evidence of the existing property.

This is particularly important if the future redevelopment agreement promises an “equivalent” apartment or commercial unit.

The owner should document the existing property’s floor, orientation, internal layout, approximate usable area, balconies, storage areas, parking rights and other important characteristics.

Photographs and videos can also be valuable.

For commercial property, additional characteristics should be documented, including street frontage, visibility, entrance position, display area, ceiling height and customer access.

After the building has been demolished, reconstructing this evidence can become substantially more difficult.

Why Should the Foreign Owner Check the Title Deed?

The owner should obtain and review the current title position before signing a redevelopment agreement.

Important matters include the registered owner, independent-unit information, land share, mortgages, attachments, usufruct rights and other title restrictions.

Foreign owners often focus exclusively on the physical apartment they purchased.

In urban transformation, however, the underlying land share can become particularly important because redevelopment decisions may depend on ownership shares.

Do Foreign Owners Have Voting Rights in the Redevelopment Decision?

A foreign owner does not lose the ownership position merely because of nationality.

Where the foreign owner holds a registered share in the relevant property, that ownership interest must be considered within the applicable decision-making framework.

Current official guidance provides that once risky-building status becomes final, owners can meet to decide the new implementation. The meeting and decision-making mechanism is based on ownership shares.

A foreign owner should therefore obtain meeting notices and participate personally or through appropriately authorized representation where necessary.

Do All Owners Have to Agree on the New Project?

No.

This is one of the most important rules for foreign owners to understand.

Under the current official framework, if unanimous agreement cannot be reached regarding the new implementation replacing a risky building, specified decisions may be made by owners representing a simple majority according to their ownership shares.

This means one foreign owner does not automatically have a veto merely because they refuse the redevelopment proposal.

However, the majority must actually satisfy the applicable share-based requirement and follow the prescribed procedure.

Is the Majority Based on the Number of Owners?

No. The ownership shares matter.

Suppose a building has ten owners. Six support the contractor and four oppose the project.

It would be incorrect to conclude automatically that the necessary majority exists solely because six people voted in favor.

The relevant ownership shares must be examined.

For foreign owners, this means a statement such as:

“Seven out of ten owners signed, so you have no rights.”

should not be accepted without reviewing the actual title-share structure.

Can the Owners Decide on the New Project Before Demolition?

Yes.

Current official guidance states that after risky-building status becomes final, the physical building does not have to be demolished before owners meet and make decisions concerning the new implementation.

This is particularly significant for owners living abroad.

Waiting until demolition before becoming involved in the project can mean that important negotiations have already occurred.

What If the Foreign Owner Does Not Agree With the Majority?

The foreign owner should not simply ignore the decision.

The current framework requires the majority decision and the terms of the offer, or information identifying where the offer can be reviewed, to be communicated to owners who do not participate in the agreement.

Official guidance provides for notification through prescribed mechanisms, including a notarial route or announcement at the relevant local administrative office for fifteen days.

This notification can trigger important consequences.

Can a Foreign Owner’s Share Be Sold If They Refuse the Redevelopment?

Potentially, yes.

Where the statutory requirements are satisfied, the shares of owners who do not participate in the qualifying majority decision can become subject to the special auction procedure.

Official guidance states that shares belonging to owners who do not participate in the simple-majority agreement may be sold through auction to the owners who have reached agreement, subject to the statutory process.

Therefore, refusing to sign and then ignoring all subsequent notifications can be extremely risky.

Does This Mean the Majority Can Confiscate a Foreign Owner’s Property?

No.

A statutory share-sale procedure is not the same as confiscation by the contractor or neighboring owners.

The applicable legal procedure must be followed.

Depending on the circumstances, important issues can include whether the correct majority existed, whether the decision was properly adopted, whether the offer was properly communicated, whether the required time was provided and whether the valuation and auction procedure complied with the applicable rules.

A foreign owner facing a share sale should investigate these issues immediately.

What Should a Foreign Owner Do After Receiving a Majority-Decision Notice?

The owner should obtain the complete redevelopment file.

This should include the owners’ decision, meeting minutes, ownership-share calculation, proposed redevelopment agreement and the contractor’s offer.

The foreign owner should then determine:

What replacement property will I receive?

What rights must I transfer?

When must those transfers occur?

What happens if the contractor does not complete construction?

What security protects me?

How long will construction take?

Who pays temporary rent?

What happens if the contractor is late?

These questions should be answered before the owner signs.

Can a Foreign Owner Be Forced to Accept an Unfair Contractor Agreement?

The existence of a statutory majority should not be confused with the conclusion that every term proposed by a contractor is automatically fair or legally safe.

The owner should review the actual redevelopment terms.

A contract can create significant risks even where the majority procedure itself is valid.

The foreign owner should therefore analyze both issues separately:

Was the majority decision legally valid?

and

Does the agreement adequately protect my property rights?

What Should the Redevelopment Agreement Include?

The agreement should clearly identify the replacement property and the contractor’s obligations.

For residential property, important provisions may include the replacement unit, floor, orientation, net and gross area, land share, parking, storage, technical specifications, construction schedule, permit obligations, completion date and delivery conditions.

Financial provisions may include temporary rental payments, delay compensation, contractual penalties and security.

The agreement should also regulate title transfers, contractor default, termination and the consequences of incomplete construction.

Why Is “You Will Receive the Same Apartment” Dangerous?

Because the word “same” can mean almost anything.

Will the replacement apartment be on the same floor?

Will it have the same orientation?

Will the usable internal area be equivalent?

Will the land share remain comparable?

Will the owner receive the same parking rights?

A foreign owner should not rely on oral assurances concerning a property that may represent a significant investment.

The replacement unit should be described with sufficient precision in the contractual documents.

Special Protection for Foreign Commercial Property Owners

Foreign-owned commercial property can be particularly vulnerable during redevelopment.

The economic value of a shop or office may depend on characteristics that cannot be measured simply through floor area.

For example, a street-facing ground-floor shop may derive substantial value from its frontage and visibility.

A replacement unit with the same nominal floor area but located at the rear of the new development could be worth substantially less.

Commercial redevelopment agreements should therefore address location, frontage, entrance, visibility, floor level, ceiling height, storage, parking and permitted use where relevant.

Can a Foreign Owner Receive Rental Assistance?

Assistance mechanisms may be available to qualifying owners, tenants and other rights holders under the applicable urban transformation framework.

Eligibility and current requirements should be checked for the specific project.

Foreign owners should distinguish between public assistance and any separate rental payment promised by the contractor.

If a contractor agrees to pay temporary rent during construction, the amount, payment date, duration and consequences of non-payment should be written clearly into the agreement.

What Happens If the Foreign-Owned Property Has a Mortgage?

A mortgage does not automatically prevent the building from entering urban transformation.

However, demolition of the physical building does not mean the mortgage can simply be forgotten.

Its relationship with the underlying ownership share, redevelopment transactions and replacement property must be considered.

A foreign owner should therefore review the mortgage position before authorizing title transfers connected with the contractor agreement.

What If the Foreign-Owned Property Has an Attachment?

An attachment or other title restriction can complicate subsequent redevelopment transactions.

The restriction may affect the owner’s share and the ability to complete certain title transfers.

The full title record should therefore be examined before the owner signs the redevelopment agreement.

What If the Foreign Owner Inherited the Property?

Inheritance can create additional procedural issues.

If the title still records a deceased owner, inheritance and registration procedures may need to be completed so that the correct ownership shares can be identified.

This is especially important because redevelopment decisions are connected to ownership shares.

Foreign heirs should therefore resolve inheritance and title issues as early as possible.

Can a Foreign Owner Manage Urban Transformation From Abroad?

Yes, many aspects of the process can be managed through representation where legally permitted.

However, the power of attorney should be drafted and reviewed carefully.

The owner should know whether the representative is authorized merely to attend meetings or whether the document also allows the representative to:

sign the redevelopment agreement,

sell the property,

transfer ownership shares,

establish a mortgage,

receive money,

settle disputes,

or appoint another representative.

These are very different powers.

Should the Foreign Owner Give the Contractor a Power of Attorney?

Only after the precise scope and necessity of the authority have been examined.

A contractor may require authority to perform legitimate project-related administrative procedures.

That does not automatically mean the contractor requires unrestricted authority to sell, mortgage or transfer the owner’s property.

Foreign owners should be especially careful about broad powers of attorney presented as “standard documents.”

Should the Foreign Owner Transfer the Property Share to the Contractor Before Construction?

There is no reason to assume that an unrestricted immediate transfer is always the safest or necessary arrangement.

The proposed title-transfer structure should be evaluated in relation to construction progress and contractor security.

Depending on the project, staged transfers tied to measurable construction milestones may provide greater protection.

The central risk is straightforward: if substantial ownership rights are transferred early and the contractor later fails, recovering those rights can become complicated.

What Happens If the Contractor Goes Bankrupt?

Contractor insolvency is one of the most serious risks in urban transformation.

The old building may already have been demolished.

The foreign owner may be paying rent elsewhere.

The contractor may have received valuable ownership rights.

Construction may remain incomplete.

At that point, disputes can involve contract termination, title recovery, security enforcement, damages, third-party purchasers and the selection of a replacement contractor.

The redevelopment agreement should therefore be designed with the failure scenario in mind before demolition begins.

Can a Foreign Owner Sell the Property During Urban Transformation?

A property may potentially be transferred during different stages of the process, but the legal and commercial consequences should be examined carefully.

A buyer may acquire a property already affected by risky-building status, redevelopment decisions, contractual obligations or title restrictions.

The parties should therefore determine precisely which rights and obligations will pass with the transaction.

A foreign owner should not market the property as an ordinary unaffected apartment if an advanced transformation process is already underway.

What Happens to the Foreign Owner’s Tenant?

If the foreign-owned property is rented, the tenant can also be affected by evacuation and demolition.

The statutory transformation process and the private lease relationship should be considered separately.

Commercial leases may require particular attention because the tenant may operate an active business and face relocation, equipment and business-continuity issues.

The owner should therefore review the lease rather than assuming that urban transformation automatically resolves every landlord-tenant issue.

Can a Foreign Owner Go to Court?

Potentially, depending on the dispute.

Urban transformation can generate several different types of proceedings.

A dispute concerning an official risky-building determination may involve administrative law.

A contractor dispute may involve contractual remedies.

A dispute concerning title transfers or ownership registration may involve property-law proceedings.

A dissenting-share sale can create additional procedural issues.

The correct legal remedy depends on the specific decision or transaction being challenged.

Does Filing a Lawsuit Automatically Stop Urban Transformation?

Not necessarily.

Filing a case against an administrative action does not generally mean that implementation automatically stops.

Where the relevant legal conditions exist, interim judicial protection may need to be considered separately.

This becomes particularly important where demolition or another difficult-to-reverse transaction is approaching.

What Happens When the New Building Is Completed?

The owner’s attention should not end when construction appears physically finished.

The replacement property must also be examined legally.

The owner should compare the redevelopment agreement, approved project, condominium structure, delivered independent unit and final title record.

Any difference between the promised property and the property actually delivered should be documented promptly.

What Should a Foreign Owner Check on the New Title Deed?

The final title record should be checked carefully for the correct owner, independent unit, ownership share and registered property characteristics.

The owner should also check whether there are mortgages, attachments, annotations or unexpected third-party rights.

Receiving the keys does not necessarily prove that the title structure is correct.

The redevelopment should not be considered fully complete until both the physical property and the legal ownership position have been verified.

What Are the Biggest Mistakes Foreign Owners Make?

The most common mistake is believing that foreign ownership prevents urban transformation.

Another major mistake is waiting for a personal paper notice abroad before taking action.

Foreign owners may also rely on outdated voting rules, fail to check their registered land share, ignore an owners’ meeting, sign vague redevelopment agreements or grant unnecessarily broad powers of attorney.

Transferring ownership rights to a contractor too early can create additional risk.

Perhaps the most serious mistake is becoming involved only after the old property has already been demolished.

2026 Practical Legal Strategy for Foreign-Owned Property

A foreign owner should divide the transformation process into four separate protection stages.

First, verify the legal status of the building. Determine whether an official risky-building assessment exists, what stage it has reached and whether any objection or other procedural deadline remains available. The official framework confirms that one owner or legal representative can initiate a risky-building assessment through a licensed institution.

Second, protect the existing ownership position. Obtain current title records and verify the independent unit, land share, mortgages, attachments and other restrictions. Preserve evidence of the physical property before demolition.

Third, verify the redevelopment decision. Under the current framework, where unanimity cannot be achieved, specified new-project decisions may be adopted by owners representing a simple majority according to their ownership shares. Non-participating owners can subsequently face the statutory share-sale mechanism if the relevant requirements are satisfied.

Fourth, protect the replacement property. Do not focus only on whether the building will be reconstructed. Determine exactly which apartment, shop or office will replace the existing property, what security exists, when title rights can be transferred and what remedies apply if the contractor fails.

The central principle for foreign owners is simple:

Foreign nationality does not automatically keep a property outside urban transformation, but it also does not eliminate the owner’s property rights. Those rights must be actively protected before deadlines expire and irreversible transactions occur.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Can an apartment owned by a foreigner be included in urban transformation in Turkey?

Yes. Foreign ownership does not by itself exempt an apartment from an otherwise applicable urban transformation process under Law No. 6306.

2. Can my building enter the risky-building process without my signature?

Yes. Current official guidance confirms that one owner or the owner’s legal representative can initiate the risky-building assessment through a licensed institution.

3. Does being a foreign citizen give me the right to stop demolition?

Not automatically. Foreign nationality does not create a general veto over a lawful risky-building and demolition procedure.

4. Can I participate in owners’ meetings if I live abroad?

Yes. Foreign ownership does not eliminate the owner’s interest in the decision-making process. Appropriate representation may also be used where permitted, but the power of attorney should be carefully drafted.

5. Do all owners have to approve the redevelopment?

No. Under the current framework, specified decisions can be taken by a simple majority based on ownership shares where unanimity cannot be achieved.

6. Can my ownership share be sold if I reject the majority decision?

Potentially, yes. Where the statutory requirements are satisfied, the share of a non-participating owner may become subject to the special auction procedure.

7. What if I never received information because I live outside Turkey?

Do not assume that no official notification occurred. Current Law No. 6306 procedures use electronic and official announcement mechanisms that should be checked promptly.

8. Can my mortgaged property still undergo urban transformation?

Yes. A mortgage does not automatically exclude the property from transformation, but its effect on the land share, title transfers and replacement property should be reviewed.

9. Should I sign the contractor’s power of attorney?

Only after its scope has been carefully reviewed. Particular attention should be paid to authority involving sale, title transfer, mortgage, receipt of funds and delegation to another representative.

10. What should I do first if my foreign-owned property enters urban transformation?

Confirm the official status of the building, identify any running deadlines, obtain the title records and ownership-share information, collect all owners’ meeting and contractor documents, and determine exactly what replacement property you will receive before signing or transferring valuable property rights.

Legal Support for Foreign Property Owners in Urban Transformation

Foreign-owned apartments, homes, offices and commercial properties can be affected by urban transformation in Turkey. Foreign nationality does not automatically exempt the property from Law No. 6306, but foreign owners continue to have important ownership and procedural interests throughout the process.

The greatest risks frequently arise when an owner lives abroad and discovers the process too late. Risky-building procedures, evacuation, demolition, ownership-share calculations, majority decisions, dissenting-owner share sales, contractor agreements, powers of attorney and title transfers should therefore be monitored from an early stage.

Fırat Fesih Kaya Law Office provides legal assistance to foreign homeowners, commercial property owners and real estate investors dealing with urban transformation and redevelopment matters in Turkey.

Lawyer Fırat Fesih Kaya assists foreign clients with reviewing risky-building procedures, protecting ownership rights, examining owner decisions, reviewing redevelopment agreements, assessing dissenting-owner procedures, monitoring title transactions and protecting rights in replacement properties.

Phone: +90 312 434 22 22
WhatsApp: +90 532 769 22 22
Email: info@firatfesihkaya.av.tr