Iskân in Turkey: the occupancy permit that decides the fate of your tapu

Iskân is the everyday name for a building occupancy permit; the official term is yapı kullanma izin belgesi. The municipality issues it once it has satisfied itself that the building was constructed according to the approved plans and is fit for use. For a buyer this is far from a formality: the iskân determines whether the apartment will ever get a full kat mülkiyeti title (freehold ownership of the individual unit), permanent utility contracts and a workable mortgage.

What the iskân is and what it certifies

The iskân certifies that construction was completed in line with the building permit and the approved project, and that the building has passed the required inspections. The document is issued for a building (or for a self-contained unit inside it) on application by the developer or the owners to the municipality, and in certain cases to the provincial administration.

The iskân is issued once and is not reissued when the property changes hands: the name of the first owner or of the developer may remain on it indefinitely. That is normal and does not affect your rights — ownership details live in the tapu (the title deed), not in the iskân.

An occupancy permit is not a document of title. It says nothing about who owns the apartment — only that the building is legal and fit for occupation.

Iskân and yapı ruhsatı: two documents from two different stages

These two are frequently confused, and some sellers confuse them on purpose.

The phrase "the building has a permit", with no indication of which one, means nothing at all. Ask to see the actual document and check its title.

Genel iskan and ferdi iskan

Occupancy permits come in two forms.

• Genel iskan (also called "toplu iskan" in everyday speech) — a blanket permit covering the whole building or the entire complex. The developer obtains it once the project has been fully delivered. For a buyer this is the best-case scenario: from there, the titles to all the apartments are converted to kat mülkiyeti.
• Ferdi iskan — an individual permit for a single unit. It is issued on the application of the owner of that specific apartment and is possible where the building itself meets the conditions for a permit. You see this route when a complex is delivered in phases, or when an owner has to pursue the paperwork alone rather than wait for everyone else.

There is a third scenario as well — buildings legalised under the construction amnesty, for which a building registration certificate (yapı kayıt belgesi) was issued. That is not an iskân: the document records that the structure exists, but does not confirm that it matches the approved project and does not always open the road to kat mülkiyeti. Properties with this status need separate and careful handling.

What a buyer risks with an apartment that has no iskân

A building without an occupancy permit can still be bought, and the land registry will complete the transaction. But the resulting problems become yours.

• The tapu stays at kat irtifakı. You own a share of the plot with a unit attached to it, rather than the unit itself. There is a full breakdown in our guide on the tapu in Turkey.
• Utility contracts. Permanent water, electricity and gas contracts are set up for buildings that hold an iskân. Without one, the connection is registered as temporary — under special provisions of planning legislation, through a more convoluted procedure and on less convenient terms. In such buildings the meters are often registered to the developer or shared across an entire block, and you pay through the management company with no control over the tariff.
• Address registration and residence permits. A confirmed residential address is required to obtain a residence permit. When an apartment has no permanent utility subscription and no correct address record, proving the address becomes harder and is sometimes impossible without extra documents. What to do if you are turned down is covered in our article on a residence permit refusal.
• Mortgages. Banks lend against kat mülkiyeti properties far more readily. For buildings without an iskân the terms are tighter, and some banks will not even look at the application. That limits both your own borrowing options and the pool of future buyers.
• Resale. An informed buyer will either negotiate the price down or walk away. A property without an iskân sells more slowly and for less than a comparable one that has it.
• Municipal enforcement. Where the departure from the approved project is serious, the municipality may issue an enforcement order, impose a fine and, in the worst cases, require the structure to be brought back into compliance — up to demolishing the unauthorised part.
• Safety and common areas. Issuing the iskân depends on inspections, from lifts to fire-safety requirements. A building that has not passed them may be used only with restrictions: the lift, for instance, may not be formally commissioned.

How to check whether an iskân exists

The word of the seller or the agent is not enough here — you need the document or an official record.

1. Look at the tapu. If the title states kat mülkiyeti, the building has an iskân: without one, the move to unit-by-unit ownership is impossible. Kat irtifakı is a signal that there is most likely no iskân.
2. Ask for the document itself. Request a copy of the yapı kullanma izin belgesi from the developer or the management company and cross-check the address, the plot reference (ada/parsel) and the block number.
3. Go to the municipality. The planning department (imar müdürlüğü) for the area where the property sits will confirm whether an iskân has been issued, and will also tell you whether there are any enforcement notices or discrepancies against the building.
4. Check the utility contracts. Permanent water and electricity subscriptions in the name of the specific apartment are an indirect but reliable sign. A temporary connection is a signal too.

If the seller dodges a straight answer, or has been saying the iskân is "about to come through" for years, that alone is reason enough to revisit the deal or the price.

What to do when there is no iskân

Circumstances vary, and not all of them are hopeless.

• The building has only just been completed. The paperwork takes time: the developer assembles the file, the municipality inspects the property. This is a workable situation, but fix a deadline for obtaining the iskân in the contract, together with the developer's liability for missing it.
• There are minor departures from the project. These get put right — glazed balconies are returned to their designed state, extra partitions are removed. Cost and timing depend on the scale of the work.
• The departures are substantial. An extra floor, a changed building footprint, a deviation from the permit — that is a serious case. Sometimes it can only be resolved through amendments to the planning documentation; sometimes it cannot be resolved at all.
• The developer no longer exists. Then it falls to the owners to pursue the permit — collectively through a general meeting, or individually by applying for a ferdi iskan. This is slow and calls for legal support.

One rule applies universally: never pay the price of a property with an iskân for a property without one. The difference in status is a difference in money and in how long it takes to exit the investment.

How the iskân links to converting the tapu to kat mülkiyeti

The iskân is not an end in itself but a precondition. As soon as the municipality has issued the occupancy permit and forwarded it to the land registry office, the building's titles are converted from kat irtifakı to kat mülkiyeti. Any one of the co-owners may file the application, and no additional set of documents is required from every individual owner.

Formally, this conversion is compulsory. But the administrative fine for failing to do it was abolished, so buildings sometimes sit on the old status for years even though the iskân has been granted — simply because nobody filed the application. If you are buying in such a building, ask whether the iskân has been obtained and, if needed, start the conversion yourself: it makes your asset more liquid.

Frequently asked questions

Can you live in an apartment that has no iskân?

In practice people do, but this is not lawful occupation of the building: connections are registered as temporary, and the municipality retains grounds for enforcement action. Legally correct occupation begins with the permit.

Does the iskân have to be transferred to the new owner?

No. The document is issued for a building or a unit, not for a person. The first owner's name on it is not a problem.

How long does it take to obtain an iskân?

It depends on the municipality's workload, the size of the building and how complete the document file is. For a fully finished property you are looking at weeks; where there are defects, months or longer. Precise timescales are best confirmed with the specific municipality.

Who pays for obtaining the iskân?

For new builds, the developer — it is part of their obligations. Where an individual permit is sought, the owner bears the cost. The fees are set by the municipality and are revised periodically, so check current amounts locally.

Does the absence of an iskân affect property tax?

Property tax (emlak vergisi) is payable regardless of whether an occupancy permit exists — it attaches to the property and its assessed value, not to the status of the paperwork.

Which matters more: the iskân or kat mülkiyeti on the tapu?

The two are linked. Kat mülkiyeti on the tapu is the quickest and most reliable indicator for a buyer, because that status cannot exist without an iskân. But if the title is still kat irtifakı, the existence of an iskân has to be verified directly with the municipality.

This article is for general information. The requirements of the land registry (TKGM), the municipalities and the migration authority, along with fee levels and document lists, change over time, and practice differs from one office to the next. Before filing anything, verify the current rules with the relevant authority or with a lawyer.

Need a hand?

New Time Investment handles property transactions and document processing in Alanya and across Turkey. We check the property against the land registry and the municipality, review encumbrances and title status, prepare the document package and accompany you on signing day together with a sworn translator (yeminli tercüman).

If you are still choosing a property, it is worth showing us your shortlist before you pay a deposit — this is the stage where fixing problems costs the least.