To purchase your new home in Turkey you will need to send all or part of your money over for the transfer of ownership. Also for future bills, paying taxes or even investing in a savings account.
Money can enter Turkey by different ways, the most common way for larger transfers is via Bank
to Bank transfer, other ways of sending money are via a Foreign exchange transfer service, and
for smaller amounts Western Union transfers or simply withdrawing from the ATMs in resort.
When looking for a service provider to carry out a money transfer to Turkey, it is crucial that you
pay attention to your individual requirements. Make a selection only after considering factors that
might have an effect on your transfer. – such as the charges and timescale and whether the money needs to be kept in GBP or foreign currency.
New regulations on Property Purchases for foreigners were introduced from the 21st of January 2022 under Article 13 of the circular of Movement of Capital, all property purchases must be made through the Turkish banking system in Lira. But the way this works is that the foreign currency amount (GBP/USD etc) has to be changed in Turkiye to TL via the Central Bank of Turkey in order to receive the required Certificate from the bank. So your money must be held here in GBP first for this transaction.
Important Note: If you transfer your purchase monies over in TL, it will have to be transferred back into GBP – Paying Tax for the transfer and no doubt losing money on the exchange rate! Only then can it be exchanged via the Central Bank of Turkey.
Bank to Bank Transfers – Great for lump sum Sterling Transfers and Purchase Money Transfers required in your own Currency (GBP/USD)
Sending from your own UK bank to a Turkish Bank – This is a fairly straightforward process, your UK Bank will charge a fee for this service and the receiving bank may also charge a fee, in some cases there is also an intermediary bank used and again a fee can be charged. Check with your own bank as to what they charge and also the limits they have for sending money abroad, the limits may differ for doing the transaction online or going into the branch.
If you will be doing the transaction while you are abroad, make sure all the necessary paperwork is in place and that you know all your online or telephone banking passwords.
If using this option, make sure that you send GBP to GBP, that way money is not lost on the low interest rates that the UK give for foreign exchange.
Transfers normally take anything from 2 hours to 3 working days.
The following information is required:
Bank Swift Code (Similar to a UK Sort Code as it identifies the branch)
IBAN – International Bank Account Number – this is a combination of the bank code & your actual account number and can be found on your bank passbook or statement
If you want to send money overseas, a foreign exchange or currency broker can be a good option. They often charge no fees and usually offer a better exchange rate than a high street UK bank. So how do they work?
Exchange rates
Let’s say you want to send 50,000 Lira to Turkey as a deposit on a property purchase. You’ve contacted your bank but the service is expensive. You’ve also checked out a money transfer firm but, again, the charges are high. You therefore decide to use a foreign exchange broker.
Once you have requested a quote as a new customer they usually contact you to discuss the transfer. If you are happy with the costs and exchange rate, you can book the transaction, give details of the recipient’s account and pay the agreed amount, typically by electronic transfer from your UK bank account.
Once the Foreign exchange Company has received the funds, the broker will send the currency electronically to your beneficiary. The whole process shouldn’t take more than one or two days
Foreign exchange brokers do not normally charge a fee for transfers of more than £3,000. They also generally offer better exchange rates than the high-street banks. For example, you might need £6,600 send 50,000 lira through a broker, compared to £6,650 through a bank.
The bank would also charge a fee on top, which could be as high as £40. In other words, you could save about £90 by choosing a currency broker.
Types of transfer – You can also benefit from exchange rate movements by using a foreign exchange broker.
Contact TorFx for a free quote
There is no limit to how much foreign currency you may bring into Turkey. However, any amount over €10,000 or TRY 25,000 being taken into or out of the country needs to be declared to the relevant authorities – so receipts may need to be provided showing where the money has come from. Foreign investors may freely convert and repatriate profits generated in Turkish lira.
