In Turkey, after divorce, the division of assets usually follows the "participation in acquired property" system. This system stipulates that assets accumulated during the marriage are divided equally between the spouses. However, there are exceptions to this rule. For example, personal property acquired by one of the spouses before the marriage, inherited property, and moral compensation claims are considered personal and are not included in the division process.

A property division lawsuit must be filed separately after the divorce decree becomes final. These lawsuits are subject to a statute of limitations in Turkey and should be filed within 10 years after the divorce decree is finalized.

According to the current civil law, the system of sharing acquired property has been adopted as a legal regime, meaning that the spouses will share the acquired property during the marriage equally.

Assets owned by individuals before marriage remain with their registered owners and are not included in the property division.

The division of property takes place in a separate lawsuit, filed after the finalization of the divorce decree

According to the Turkish Civil Code, spouses can mutually agree on a property sharing agreement. If such an agreement does not exist, they will be subject to the legal regime.

What is the legal property regime and how is it determined?

Each spouse has personal and acquired properties.

Personal property before marriage:

Personal property is owned by each spouse individually, and the other spouse cannot claim any rights over it. According to the law, personal properties are defined as:

Properties owned by one spouse before the marriage contract.
Properties acquired by one spouse through inheritance.

Acquired property after marriage:

Acquired property refers to assets obtained during the marriage period. Each spouse has the right to claim half of the value of the acquired property during the marriage contract, based on the principle of cooperation and sharing sought by the property regime. The characteristics of acquired properties according to the law include:

Earnings from work.
Payments from social security institutions or social assistance institutions or similar funds for employee assistance.
Compensation for loss of work ability.
Revenues from personal property.

If one spouse claims that acquired property is personal, they must provide evidence. If sufficient evidence cannot be provided, the property will be considered acquired and treated accordingly.

How is property divided after divorce in Turkey?

To initiate a property division lawsuit, the marriage contract must have terminated due to reasons such as death, annulment, or divorce. The property division claim can only be considered under these conditions.

In a liquidation lawsuit of the property regime, determining whether assets were personal or acquired during the marriage contract is crucial. It is important to consider the period from the start of the marriage until the divorce claim to identify assets as acquired.

Before filing the lawsuit, the acquired assets before the filing date should be determined by the spouses. After this determination, the market values of these assets at the time of liquidation are assessed, and any related debts are subtracted to reach the final financial value known as the residual value. The spouses have equal rights to this value, representing their financial entitlement.

If one spouse pays a private debt related to the assets during the marriage using personal property, or if there is a contribution to personal property from acquired assets, the parties can demand the adjustment of the contribution value to ensure fairness in the liquidation of the property regime between spouses.

For properties acquired before 2002, the asset separation system of the old law applies, while the new law's acquired property sharing system applies for assets acquired post-2002.

Assets acquired by the woman before marriage and personal properties owned during the marriage are not subject to division in divorce.

Jewelry is not considered acquired property in the property regime, and all wedding jewelry worn by the woman is personal property. Therefore, the husband cannot claim any rights over this jewelry. Consequently, in the event of divorce, the woman has the right to claim all jewelry given to her.

When should a property division lawsuit be filed after divorce in Turkey?

The property regime liquidation lawsuit is a separate claim filed after the final divorce decree, as previously mentioned. However, if filed before the end of the divorce trial, the judge must wait for the result of the divorce trial.

The competent court responsible for hearing the property division claim is the family court.

In case the property regime ends due to one spouse's death, the court where the last residence of the deceased is located is competent.

If the marriage ends due to a divorce decree or an ongoing divorce trial, the court handling the divorce trial also handles the property regime liquidation, i.e., property division upon divorce.

In all other cases, the competent court is the family court where the defendant spouse resides.

Can a property division claim be filed in cases of mutually agreed divorce?

Even in mutually agreed divorce cases, where the parties must reach a settlement on the financial consequences of divorce, the possibility of filing a property division claim is not contingent on this condition. The parties can initiate a property division claim, provided they have not declared in writing or orally that they will not pursue claims regarding property division post-divorce. In the absence of such an agreement, the parties can file for a property division claim even in cases of consensual divorce.

Property division in divorce lawsuits due to infidelity or violence

In cases where divorce occurs due to infidelity or attempted murder, the judge may decide to reduce or cancel the guilty party's share of the residual value, ensuring fairness.

Concealment of property by a spouse in divorce lawsuits

A major issue in divorce lawsuits is one spouse concealing property from the other. To prevent this, spouses can impose a "precautionary measure" on each other's properties. However, to impose such a measure, a property liquidation lawsuit must also be filed. This prevents the sale of properties until the property division lawsuit decree is issued.

Another option is for one spouse to apply to the court to restrict the other spouse's disposal rights of their properties, which is done through placing a mark in the land registry. Regardless of the owner's name in the land registry, the family home is considered joint property after marriage. By marking the family home in the land registry, the house (property) cannot be sold without both spouses' consent.