🇹🇷Payment Platforms for Turkey Freelancers

The Central Bank of Turkey (TCMB) has introduced several foreign-exchange measures in recent years, including a requirement that Turkish exporters convert a portion of foreign-currency export proceeds to lira. This applies to service exporters, meaning freelancers receiving USD or EUR may be required to convert 25% or more of incoming amounts to TRY (the exact percentage has changed; confirm the current TCMB directive with your bank). Garanti BBVA, İş Bankası, Akbank, and Yapı Kredi all process SWIFT inflows and offer USD/EUR accounts for the portion not subject to mandatory conversion.

• Open a foreign-currency account (döviz hesabı) alongside your TRY account at Garanti BBVA or İş Bankası — this allows you to hold the non-converted portion of your USD/EUR income and manage conversion timing.
• Confirm the current mandatory conversion percentage with your bank before receiving large payments; TCMB has adjusted the export proceeds conversion rate multiple times since 2022.
• Wise supports TRY local bank transfers for Turkey — EU and UK clients can use Wise to pay with lower overhead, and the funds arrive in TRY at a rate close to mid-market.
• Register with the GİB (Gelir İdaresi Başkanlığı) as a self-employed taxpayer and issue e-Fatura or e-Arşiv invoices for service income; the GİB's digital invoicing system is mandatory for most business taxpayers.
• The TRY's historical depreciation against USD and EUR has been significant; consider your effective USD pricing carefully so that mandatory TRY conversion leaves you with sufficient lira purchasing power.