Hiring the first team, and bringing in the manager who runs it

A translated contract is not a Turkish contract

The Labour Law No. 4857 is protective of the employee, and it overrides contradicting contract terms rather than being modified by them. Clauses that work perfectly well in the parent’s home jurisdiction routinely fail here:

• At-will termination. There is no such thing. Termination requires a valid reason, and in workplaces above the size threshold the employee can bring a reinstatement claim.
• Probation. It exists, but it is limited in length and does not suspend statutory rights.
• Non-competes. Enforceable only within limits on duration, geography and scope, and the courts read them narrowly.
• Bonus discretion. A bonus paid consistently becomes a customary term, whatever the contract calls it.
• Severance. Kıdem tazminatı accrues at roughly 30 days’ pay per year of service, subject to a statutory ceiling revised twice a year. It is a liability from the first year, not a cost that appears at exit.

Getting payroll right on the first run

Employer and employee both contribute to social security, with the employer also carrying unemployment insurance. A five-point reduction in the employer’s share is available where the company’s filings and payments are current — a saving that is lost by being late, not by being ineligible. Payroll declarations are filed monthly through the combined Muhtasar ve Prim Hizmet Beyannamesi, and the SGK workplace registration must be in place by the day the first employee starts.

Configuring this correctly at the first payroll run matters more than it appears. Corrections propagate: an incorrect premium base flows into the severance calculation, the annual leave accrual and the incentive position, and unpicking a year of it costs more than setting it up did.

The work permit is a headcount problem

Work permits are granted by the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, and the criterion that catches foreign investors is the ratio: generally five Turkish employees per foreign employee at the same workplace. There are also capital and turnover criteria the employing company must meet.

The practical consequence is an ordering rule. Local hiring comes first, the permit application follows. Companies that bring the country manager in first are refused on a test that no amount of documentation can satisfy — only hiring can — and the refusal costs a quarter.

Employer of record, where a subsidiary is premature

Not every entry justifies an entity. Where a company wants a person on the ground before committing to incorporation, employer of record lets the individual be employed compliantly by an existing Turkish entity while the commercial case is tested. It is a genuine alternative for the first year, not a permanent structure — and the point at which it stops being appropriate is worth agreeing at the start.