Cross-border matters

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• A foreign adoption used in Türkiye: validity and effect Article 30 of Law No. 5490 makes a foreign adoption valid if it complies in substance with Turkish law, and ties enforceability to a court decision.
• A Turkish translation made abroad: which routes accept it Whether a Turkish translation certified in your own country suffices depends on the route: the 1970 Convention allows it, the 1954 Convention does not.
• Acknowledgement of paternity made abroad Article 28(5) of Law No. 5490 allows acknowledgements made abroad to be filed with consulates, or with registry offices if translated and certified.
• After exequatur: enforcing a foreign judgment in Türkiye Türkiye’s enforcement law says nothing about translation. The judgment is translated for exequatur, then enforced with the Turkish decision beneath it.
• An arbitration seated in Türkiye: which language Arbitration under the International Arbitration Law runs in Turkish or in the official language of a State that Türkiye recognises.
• Asking Türkiye about Turkish law: the reply is Turkish Under the 1968 London Convention a court may ask Türkiye what Turkish law provides. The request goes in Turkish and the answer comes back in Turkish.
• Child return applications and Türkiye: which language An application to Türkiye under the 1980 Hague Convention goes with a Turkish translation, or English or French where that is not feasible.
• Confiscation requests to Türkiye: Turkish, or English? Türkiye asks for Turkish under the 2005 Warsaw Convention and accepts Turkish or English under the 1990 one. Which applies depends on the requesting State.
• Criminal mutual assistance with Türkiye: the language rules The 1959 Council of Europe convention requires no translation unless a State declares one. Türkiye made none; the Second Protocol adds a short summary.
• Cybercrime assistance: Budapest has no language rule The Budapest Convention sets no language requirement of its own. Article 25(4) sends the question to the applicable assistance treaty or to Turkish law.
• ECHR applications against Türkiye: language and annexes An application to the European Court of Human Rights may be written in Turkish and its Turkish annexes need no translation; English or French comes later.
• Electronic service in Türkiye and the fifth day Electronic service is compulsory for a long list of recipients in Türkiye, and it is deemed effected at the end of the fifth day after delivery.
• Enforcing a foreign judgment in Türkiye: the translation set For exequatur in Türkiye, the judgment and the proof of finality each need an approved translation. Two layers of approval, copies and venue.
• EU service and evidence regulations do not apply to Türkiye Regulations (EU) 2020/1784 and 2020/1783 apply only between Member States. Service and evidence in Türkiye follow the Hague Conventions.
• Extradition papers: which language Article 23 allows In the 1957 European Convention on Extradition the requested State picks the translation language. Türkiye made no declaration under Article 23.
• Foreign law in a Turkish case: the judge applies it A Turkish judge applies the relevant foreign law of their own motion and may ask the parties to help establish what that law provides.
• Grounds for refusing a foreign arbitral award Article 62 of Law No. 5718 lists the grounds for refusing a foreign award and places the burden of proof for most of them on the respondent.
• Hague 1996 child protection: Türkiye objects to French A communication sent to Türkiye under the 1996 Hague Child Protection Convention carries a Turkish translation; if that is not feasible, only English.
• Intercountry adoption: the Article 34 translation rule In the 1993 Hague Adoption Convention a translation is furnished only if the receiving State’s authority asks for it, and the parents bear the cost.
• Judicial cooperation material: the limits on use Information and documents that reach Türkiye through judicial cooperation cannot be used outside the file they were requested for without consent.
• Jurisdiction objections in a Turkish enforcement case Article 54(1)(b) of Law No. 5718 has two limbs: exclusive Turkish jurisdiction, and a genuine-connection test that only operates if the defendant objects.
• Letters of request to Türkiye: why Turkish is required Türkiye excluded Article 4(2) of the 1970 Evidence Convention, so letters of request must be in Turkish or carry a Turkish translation.
• Maintenance claims and Türkiye: Hague 2007 or New York 1956 Whether a maintenance claim involving Türkiye runs under the 2007 Hague or the 1956 New York Convention decides the language and who pays for it.
• Mediated settlements in Türkiye: the Singapore route A settlement agreement from mediation abroad is enforced in Türkiye after an annotation from the commercial court, which may ask for a Turkish translation.
• Moving a criminal case or sentence to Türkiye: Turkish Two Council of Europe conventions require no translation, but Türkiye reserved the right to ask for Turkish in both, and few States are bound by them.
• New York Convention awards in Türkiye: who certifies A foreign arbitral award relied on in Türkiye needs Turkish translations of the award and the arbitration agreement, certified under Article IV(2).
• No service by post in Türkiye: why Article 10 matters Türkiye objected to every Article 10 channel of the 1965 Convention, postal service included. What that means for a claim served from abroad.
• Papers served through a Turkish consulate abroad A Turkish consulate serves papers only on a Turkish citizen, in Turkish and in one set, and service is deemed effected on the thirtieth day.
• Producing a document you hold outside Türkiye A Turkish court can order a party or a third person to produce a document, and the Code says which parts of a continuously used record are enough.
• Public policy as a limit in Turkish enforcement Enforcement requires that the judgment is not manifestly contrary to public policy. The same limit appears for arbitral awards and divorce records.
• Receiving Turkish court papers: what the translation shows Turkish service papers come with a translation signed on each page, the translator named and a statement of accuracy in your language. What else to expect.
• Reciprocity: required for enforcement, not recognition Article 54 of Law No. 5718 requires reciprocity in one of three forms. Article 58 states that this condition does not apply to recognition.
• Registering a foreign divorce in the Turkish registry Article 27/A of Law No. 5490 allows a foreign divorce to be registered without a Turkish judgment; if refused, the route returns to court.
• Sending a Turkish case file abroad: the data rules Personal data in a Turkish case file leaves the country only on the grounds set out in Article 9 of the data protection law.
• Sending Turkish court documents to the United States Service, evidence and criminal requests from a Turkish court to the United States: the instrument, the English translation and its certification.
• Service by publication on an addressee abroad A Turkish court that cannot find an address abroad serves by publication, and service is deemed effected seven days after the last announcement.
• Serving documents in Türkiye: when the addressee can refuse Documents served in Türkiye without a Turkish translation can be refused by the addressee. What the 1965 Convention and the Turkish practice require.
• Setting aside a Turkish auction from abroad Article 134 of the Enforcement and Bankruptcy Law limits the request to listed persons, requires an address in Türkiye and sets a seven-day period.
• Summoned by a Turkish criminal court while abroad A Turkish criminal court can question an accused who is abroad before the hearing date, and can declare a person it cannot reach a fugitive.
• The 1954 Hague civil procedure route: who certifies In the 1954 Hague route, the requesting State’s diplomatic or consular agent or a sworn translator of the requested State certifies the translation.
• The Hague 1965 request form: which language for which part The model form’s printed terms are in English or French, its entries may be in the addressed State’s language, and the documents follow their own rule.
• Transfer of sentenced persons: Türkiye asks for Turkish Türkiye declared under ETS 112 that transfer requests and supporting documents come with a Turkish translation. Law No. 6706, costs and the channel.
• Turkish administrative and tax court papers abroad Papers from a Turkish administrative or tax court are served under the Service Law, and the period to reply runs from the day after service.
• Türkiye’s agreements with India and Pakistan: English English is the common language of Türkiye’s bilateral agreements with India and Pakistan; in the Pakistan convention a consul certifies the translation.
• Which Turkish court hears an enforcement case Article 51 of Law No. 5718 gives jurisdiction to the court of first instance; with no domicile in Türkiye, Ankara, Istanbul or Izmir may be chosen.