- Our customers or partners recruit and deploy the employee(s) of their choice
- Our customers and partners are able to immediately mobilize employees in Turkey where they do not have a permanent entity
- ERAI TURKEY sponsors the work permit and the residential permit and takes the employee(s) on ERAI TURKEY’s payroll
- According to client instructions and in accordance with the Turkish Labor Law, we set up and manage the employee’s benefits, payroll, and taxation, ensuring statutory compliance
- Our team manages all day-to-day operational issues such as employee expenses, and severance/termination if required.
- Pass on the compliance burden to Erai Turkey with no contractor risks
Work Permit Obtainment
PEO SERVICE FOR FOREIGN EMPLOYEES / OBTAINING THE WORK PERMIT
THE WORK PERMIT IN TURKEY
The work permit is an authorization given by the Ministry of Labour of the Republic of Turkey to foreign employees and companies wishing to employ foreigners. Work permit applications are made to The General Directorate of International Labor affiliated to the Ministry. It was founded to determine, inspect, and approve work permits granted to foreigners.
There are laws on the employment of foreigners residing in Turkey or to which foreigners who come to work in Turkey are subjected to work permits for foreigners coming to Turkey are regulated under the International Labour Law No. 6735 and the Law on Foreigners and International Protection No. 6458.
Four types of work permits exist for foreigners in Turkey: temporary (for a definite period), permanent (for an indefinite period), independent and Turquoise cards.
Permanent Work Permit: Foreigners who have a long-term residence permit in Turkey and a work permit for at least eight years have the right to apply for a work permit for an indefinite period of time. Foreigners who have a work permit for an indefinite period of time can benefit from the rights granted to Turkish citizens, except for specific special legal provisions. However, they are not entitled to such rights as military service, work in public institutions, and the right to vote and to be elected.
Temporary Work Permit: The work permit is granted to people whose application for a work permit for foreigners is approved for a maximum period of one year. It does not exceed the duration of the employment contract they have signed with the employer. At the end of this period, a permit is granted for a maximum of 2 years to foreigners who wish to extend their work permit, provided that they continue to work at the same workplace. On the third application and beyond, the work permit is granted for a maximum of 3 years.
Independent Work Permit:Not every foreigner can benefit from the independent work permit granted for a definite period. This permit is granted by the Ministry of Labor and Social Security according to the following criteria: Level of education, work experience, contribution to be made to science and technology, the investment amount to be made in Turkey and the capital amount to be invested in Turkey or Turquoise Card, etc.
Turquoise Card: The Turquoise Card is a new type of application that grants the right to privileged citizenship and indefinite work for foreign scientists, sportsmen and women, artists and people who buy a house or invest in Turkey, and also provides a residence permit for the cardholder’s spouse and dependent children.
CONDITIONS TO OBTAIN A WORK PERMIT IN TURKEY
The employer and the foreign employee must meet certain conditions for applications to be accepted; these conditions are as follows:
Foreign Labor Quota:
The employer/ sponsoring company must employ at least 5 Turkish citizens at the workplace in order to hire a foreign employee. If more than one foreign employee will be employed, it is necessary to employ 5 Turkish employees for each foreign employee.
Financial requirements:
The employer company that will employ a foreign employee must have at least TRY 100,000 of capital. If this requirement is not provided, the employer company’s gross sales must be TRY 800,000, or foreign sales must be at least USD 250,000.
If the applicant for a work permit is a shareholder of a company, they must have capital of at least TRY 40,000.
The amount of the salary paid to the foreign employee in Turkey must be following his professional competence according to the criteria below:
- 5 times the minimum wage for the executives/ senior managers,
- 4 times the minimum wage for architects, engineers, and unit/branch managers,
- 3 times the minimum wage for those who will be employed in jobs requiring specialization or skills; teachers, psychologists, physiotherapists, musicians, and performing artists,
- At least the minimum wage for foreigners who will be employed in household services
- 5 times the minimum wage for foreigners that will be employed in jobs other than the above (sales representatives, marketing-export employees).
- 2 times the minimum wage for foreigners who will be employed in tourist entertainment and organization companies, SPA masseurs, therapists, etc.
THE PROCEDURE OF OBTAINING A WORK PERMIT IN TURKEY
Foreign employees and the sponsoring company are required to submit certain documents and complete specific steps to obtain the work permit.
The applications can be made in two ways: in Turkey or outside of Turkey.
If foreign employees living in Turkey would like to apply for a work permit in Turkey, they are required to have a residence permit valid for at least six months. Foreign employees who meet this requirement are required to submit their application online. Within six working days of application, the application form and application letter must be submitted to the Ministry of Labor and Social Security.
This option is available for foreigners with residence permits in Turkey.
The application for a work permit for foreign employees is made through the Turkish Consulate from which the foreign employee obtained the residence permit or the Turkish Consulate in the foreign employee’s home country. Our company organizes consulate appointments for foreign employees.
The documents required to be submitted by the foreign employee during the application are as follows:
- A fixed-term employment contract,
- Invitation Letter,
- Application letter for the work permit,
- Photocopy of the passport (of which Turkish translation made by a sworn translator and approved by a notary and passport page showing the last entry date to Turkey),
- Photocopy of the diploma of the foreign employee (Turkish translation made by a sworn translator and approved by a notary),
- 1-piece white backed biometric photo
The sponsor company will request the information required for the preparation of these documents.
CASE STUDY
CUSTOMER:
Confidential
INDUSTRY:
Bearings, constant-velocity joints, linear modules, distribution rollers, suspension parts, and associated training and services.
OFFICES
76 offices around the world and 97 sales offices
GLOBAL EMPLOYEES:
25.000+ employees
ERAI TURKEY SERVICES:
- Feasibility Report- Market Search
- Office Rental
- Recruitment/ Head Hunting
- PEO service
- Back Office Management
The company is one of the world leaders in bearings.
The company’s 25,000 employees use their knowledge and expertise to support their clients worldwide. With 76 sites and 97 sales offices, the company designs and manufactures high-quality products.
The company which has excellent power in bearing design, development, and production, and the lower branches of the automotive industry and space industry, also offers comprehensive support with maintenance services and solutions.
The company is continually active in automobile, aviation, textile, packaging, reducer, thermoforming machines, food, cement, iron and steel, crane systems, and defense industry sectors.
The company wished to develop the group’s industrial and commercial activities in Turkey, through local partners (distributors) and by creating a local team to boost their activities in the automotive aftermarket and industry.
Aftermarket research to determine the potential of the company in industry, decision-makers of the company were convinced of its potential and decided to invest.
Erai Turkey provided recruitment/headhunting service for the company, an Area Sales Manager that will hire new distributors and manage this channel, as well as access key-accounts directly.
After a successful year, recruitment projects for both the automotive aftermarket and the industry sector continued for the company, which wanted to expand the team.
Today, the company has a 6-person team in Turkey and under Erai Turkey’s payroll. Besides, this team is hosted in the Erai Turkey’s premises since 2011.
ERAI Turkey determined the commercial strategy in 2011. The implementation was finalized, and the local team of 8 people was successfully put in place.
Two sector managers and four highly qualified sales managers are now part of a team with their own office in a dedicated space hosted by ERAI Turkey.
To date, the company’s turnover for the industrial sectors has increased by ten times in 8 years.