Taking a UK vehicle to Turkey

Temporary import: for people who still live abroad

Customs law lets a person resident outside Türkiye bring one foreign-plated vehicle registered in their own name into the country temporarily, under the customs communiqué on temporarily imported land vehicles (Geçici İthal Edilen Kara Taşıtlarına İlişkin Gümrük Genel Tebliği). The vehicle is recorded on your passport at the border and must leave again; it cannot be sold or lent to residents. The general rule, as the legal summary we cite explains, is that you must have spent at least 185 days abroad in the year before entry. The standard stay is up to 730 days, and the border officer sets the period according to your status.

Pensioners have two advantages. A person who retired outside Türkiye does not need to meet the 185-day condition for the first entry after retirement, and on producing a pension document they are given the full 730 days. The communiqué defines that document in words worth reading: a document issued under the social security law of the country concerned showing entitlement earned through work, together with a Turkish translation certified by an embassy, consulate or notary. A UK state pension letter from the DWP or a private-pension statement is the usual proof; the London consulate's own note lists a pension statement for duty-free vehicle import among the documents it certifies through a consulate-registered translator.

Duty-free import: for a permanent return

A different regime applies when you move back for good. With an İkametgâh Nakil Belgesi from the consulate, showing 24 months' residence abroad, the vehicle can be imported permanently under the relief for people transferring their residence, and is then registered on Turkish plates. Conditions on how long the car must have been registered in your name before the move, the age of the vehicle and the taxes that still apply (the relief is not always total) change by amendment and are the province of a customs broker (gümrük müşaviri). We describe the paperwork; we do not advise on eligibility. Our page on kesin dönüş explains the certificate.

Which translations customs wants and how they are certified

1. Pension document. Translate after any legalisation. DWP letters are signed by a government officer and can be apostilled by the FCDO, but customs asks for certification of the translation rather than an apostille on the original. Our route is a translation sworn before an Ankara notary; the consulate route is a registered translator plus the consulate's stamp. Both satisfy the wording of the communiqué.
2. V5C registration certificate. The DVLA logbook proves the vehicle is registered in your name. Customs officers read the key fields, but registration in Türkiye after a permanent import needs a notarised Turkish translation for the notary and the traffic registry.
3. UK driving licence and insurance. The licence is translated when it is converted; a green card or Turkish third-party policy is bought at the border.

Documents you will need

• UK state or private pension statement (pensioners)
• V5C vehicle logbook
• UK driving licence
• İkametgâh Nakil Belgesi from the consulate (permanent import only)
• Passport and, for a foreign spouse driving the car, the residence permit
• Purchase invoice or finance settlement letter, where customs asks about ownership

Common pitfalls

• Entering as a resident abroad and then staying in Türkiye past the days allowed, which converts the car into a customs debt.
• A car registered in a spouse's or company's name; the vehicle must be in the name of the person who qualifies.
• A pension letter that shows a benefit rather than a work-based pension; the communiqué ties the relief to entitlement earned through work.
• Letting a relative resident in Türkiye drive the temporarily imported car.
• Presenting a UK-certified translation; the wording requires an embassy, consulate or notary certificate.

How we help and what it costs

A pension letter and a V5C are 1 to 2 pages each of 1,000 characters, so £13 to £26 for the translations, plus the Ankara notary tariff of about £13.50 per page and £5 handling per document at cost. Adding the driving licence brings a typical bundle to £30 to £45 before notary fees. No UK VAT is charged. Scans arrive within 1 to 2 working days; the notarised originals, which customs and the traffic registry keep, go by courier for £30 to you before you drive down or to your address in Türkiye. We have no UK office and no collection. The route-by-route guide is at taking your car to Türkiye.