Crypto Regulation & Tax in Turkey: VASP Licensing

Türkiye did something unusual with crypto: it regulated the platforms thoroughly and well ahead of the tax treatment. Since 2024 crypto asset service providers have required authorisation from the Capital Markets Board and operate under a supervised regime. Meanwhile there is still no crypto-specific article in the income tax legislation, so individual gains are assessed by applying general principles to an asset class the statute was not written for.

Both halves matter, and they matter to different clients: the first to platforms and funds, the second to the individuals who trade on them.

The licensing regime

Amendments to the Capital Markets Law No. 6362 introduced in 2024 brought crypto asset service providers under the supervision of the Capital Markets Board (SPK). In outline:

• Providing crypto asset trading, custody or transfer services in Türkiye requires CMB authorisation. Operating without it is an offence.
• Authorisation carries capital adequacy, governance, IT and information-security, and internal-control requirements, together with rules on the segregation and custody of client assets, the point on which most international failures turned.
• Platforms operating before the regime came in were placed under a transitional process requiring declaration to the CMB and compliance within the stated timetable. Firms that did not enter that process are not grandfathered.
• Marketing to Turkish users by a provider without authorisation is itself within scope. Offshore platforms with Turkish-language sites, Turkish payment channels and local marketing should not assume they are outside the regime.

The AML layer, which is separate

Independently of the CMB regime, crypto asset service providers have been obliged parties under the anti-money-laundering legislation supervised by MASAK since 2021. That brings customer identification, record-keeping, and suspicious transaction reporting duties, with administrative fines that are applied in practice. Compliance with the CMB regime does not discharge these obligations, and a licence application that has not addressed the AML framework is not ready.

Separately, since 2021 crypto assets may not be used as a means of payment in Türkiye, and payment and e-money institutions may not intermediate in such use. Trading and holding are not prohibited; paying for goods and services in crypto is.

The tax position, stated honestly

There is no dedicated crypto tax regime for individuals in Türkiye. The consequences are practical rather than theoretical:

• Occasional private trading. Turkish income tax lists the categories of gain it taxes, and crypto assets are not named among the instruments in the capital gains provision. This has produced genuine uncertainty rather than a settled exemption, and positions taken on the basis that no tax arises should be documented as considered positions, not assumed.
• Systematic, organised activity (frequency, scale, organisation, use of employees or premises) is assessed as commercial income, which is taxable, and brings registration, bookkeeping and declaration obligations with it.
• Mining, staking and similar returns are assessed according to their character and the scale of the activity, and are not automatically treated the same as trading gains.
• Companies holding or trading crypto assets fall within ordinary corporate tax and accounting rules; the questions are recognition, valuation and documentation rather than whether tax applies.
• Residence decides scope. An individual who is tax resident in Türkiye is taxed on worldwide income. Anyone relocating here with a significant crypto position should settle their residence position and the timing of disposals before the move, not after.

Because this area is moving, the current position is confirmed against the legislation in force at the time of each file rather than assumed from earlier advice.

What we do

• Licensing: assessing whether a business model falls within the regime, preparing and filing the CMB application, and building the governance, custody and AML framework the application has to demonstrate.
• Corporate: incorporating the Turkish entity, capital structure, and the contracts between the local entity and a foreign group.
• Tax: determining the correct characterisation of an individual's or company's activity, residence planning ahead of relocation, and declarations.
• Disputes and enforcement: responding to CMB and MASAK proceedings, blocked accounts and access restrictions, and civil claims following exchange failures or fraud.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a licence to run a crypto exchange in Türkiye?

Yes. Since the 2024 amendments to Capital Markets Law No. 6362, providing crypto asset trading, custody or transfer services in Türkiye requires authorisation from the Capital Markets Board, with capital, governance, information-security and client-asset segregation requirements.

Is cryptocurrency legal in Türkiye?

Holding and trading crypto assets is lawful and now regulated. Using crypto assets as a means of payment for goods and services has been prohibited since 2021, and payment and e-money institutions may not intermediate in such use.

Is there a crypto tax in Türkiye?

There is no crypto-specific income tax article. Gains are assessed by applying general principles: activity that is systematic and organised is treated as commercial income and is taxable, while occasional private trading sits in a genuinely uncertain area because crypto assets are not named among the instruments in the capital gains provision. Companies are subject to ordinary corporate tax rules.

I am moving to Türkiye with a large crypto portfolio. What should I do first?

Settle your tax residence position and the timing of any disposals before the move. Once you are tax resident in Türkiye you are taxable on worldwide income, and decisions taken before arrival are usually the ones that matter.

My exchange is offshore but serves Turkish users. Am I in scope?

Possibly. Marketing and providing services to users in Türkiye is within the scope of the regime, and a Turkish-language site, Turkish payment channels and local marketing are the factors that are looked at. This should be assessed rather than assumed.