80–95%
Income tax exemption on R&D salaries
95% for PhD or master's in supported programmes, 90% for bachelor's or master's in aligned programmes, 80% for others. Capped at 40× the gross minimum wage per person per month.
Tax, Accounting & R&D
R&D Center Application
A Ministry-certified R&D Center under Law No. 5746. A stack of incentives that drops the effective cost of R&D and design personnel sharply, once the file is approved.
- Law No. 5746
- ≥ 15 R&D FTE
- Through 2028
- Ministry of Industry
What it is
Under Law No. 5746 on Supporting Research, Development and Design Activities, a Ministry-certified R&D Center delivers a stack of incentives: 80 to 95% income-tax exemption on qualifying R&D and design personnel salaries, half of the employer social-security premium funded by the Treasury for five years, 100% corporate-tax deduction on R&D expenditure, stamp-tax exemption on R&D documents, and customs-duty exemption on R&D imports. The status is granted by the Ministry of Industry and Technology after a defended application file and an on-site evaluation by a three-to-five member expert committee. The threshold is 15 full-time-equivalent R&D personnel (raised from a lower draft and reduced from 50 in 2016), a dedicated and physically segregated R&D workspace, and a credible project portfolio. We assess your eligibility honestly, prepare the file to the standard the Ministry expects, and run the approval process end to end. Approval is the Ministry's decision; we commit to a complete, compliant file.
The incentive stack
Five benefits. One Ministry certificate.
The headline numbers are big but the real value is the stack. Salary cost drops, social-security cost drops, R&D expenditure goes through corporate tax once and then again as a deduction, and the import and stamp lines drop to zero.
½
Employer social-security funded
Half of the employer's SGK premium for qualifying R&D, design, and support personnel funded by the Treasury for 5 years from the personnel's R&D Centre enrolment date.
100%
R&D expenditure deduction
Qualifying R&D and design expenditure 100% deductible from the corporate-tax base, stacking on top of normal expense treatment for the same costs.
0
Stamp tax on R&D documents
Documents related to R&D and design activities exempt from stamp tax. Material for studios with active partnership, licensing, and grant contracts.
0
Customs duty on R&D imports
Imports for R&D projects (equipment, software, materials) exempt from customs duty and import-stage VAT, subject to project-scope documentation.
On top of the stack: the R&D deduction and the service-export exemption (Article 10/1-ğ) are both preserved against the 10% Domestic Minimum Tax base under Law No. 7524.
What it takes to qualify
Three gates the Ministry checks before the certificate is issued.
The 15 R&D FTE threshold (reduced from 50 in 2016) is a headcount test, not a budget test. The segregated-workspace test is a physical-floor-plan test, not a policy test. The project-portfolio test is a substance test, not a labelling test. A three-to-five member committee from academia and industry visits the workspace and reviews the projects. The file we prepare addresses each gate directly, with the evidence the committee expects to see.
A
15 R&D FTE
Full-time-equivalent R&D personnel. Support staff capped at 10% of total R&D headcount.
B
Segregated workspace
Dedicated, physically separated R&D area. Open-plan offices shared with non-R&D staff do not qualify.
C
Active project portfolio
Typically 3 to 6 projects with documented novelty, technical uncertainty, and a systematic approach.
How we do it
Eligibility to certificate.
Typical timeline 4 to 6 months from a complete file to the committee decision.
Eligibility assessment
Your team, projects, and spend mapped against Law No. 5746 criteria. The 15 FTE R&D threshold, the physically segregated workspace requirement, the project-novelty test, and the support-personnel cap (10%) reviewed against your real operation. If you are not ready, we tell you when and how.
Project portfolio documentation
Your R&D projects documented to the standard the Ministry's committee expects: novelty (yenilik), technical uncertainty (teknik belirsizlik), systematic approach (sistematik yaklaşım), industry relevance. Game and app studios typically need 3 to 6 active projects in the portfolio at filing.
Internal R&D process design
An internal R&D process designed and documented: how ideas enter, how they are evaluated, how projects are tracked, who approves milestones. The Ministry wants to see a real R&D organisation, not a re-labelled engineering team.
Application file assembly
Application file assembled: company info, organisation chart, R&D personnel list with CVs and degree evidence, infrastructure description (floor plan with R&D area marked), project portfolio, internal R&D process, financial projections.
Submission and pre-evaluation
Filed with the Ministry of Industry and Technology (General Directorate of Science and Technology). Initial Ön İnceleme (pre-review) handled. Any document requests answered before the committee visit.
Committee evaluation and approval
On-site committee evaluation (Komisyon Değerlendirmesi) attended with you. Three to five expert evaluators from academia and industry review the team, the workspace, and the projects. Decision typically issued within 4 to 6 months from a complete file.
Post-approval reporting
Annual activity report to the Ministry, personnel and project updates as they happen, and site-inspection support on request. The status is reviewed annually; the reporting cadence is part of our ongoing retainer.
What's included
Assessment to first annual report.
- Eligibility assessment against Law No. 5746 criteria
- Project portfolio documentation (novelty, technical uncertainty, systematic approach)
- Internal R&D process design and organisational chart
- Personnel pack: CVs, degree evidence, FTE allocation
- Workspace documentation including floor plan with R&D area marked
- Application file assembled to Ministry standards
- Pre-evaluation correspondence with the Ministry
- On-site committee evaluation attended with you
- Decision communicated and status certificate delivered on approval
- First annual activity report on retainer
Key facts
The statute, the authority, and the practical thresholds.
- Legal basis
- Law No. 5746 on Supporting Research, Development and Design Activities. In force from March 2008, amended in 2016 to introduce design activities and lower the personnel threshold. Administered by the Ministry of Industry and Technology (Sanayi ve Teknoloji Bakanlığı), General Directorate of Science and Technology.
- Personnel threshold
- Minimum 15 full-time-equivalent R&D personnel (reduced from 50 in 2016). Specific manufacturing sectors require 30 FTE. Support personnel are allowed but capped at 10% of total R&D headcount.
- Income-tax exemption on R&D salaries
- 95% for personnel with a PhD or a master's in a supported programme. 90% for those with a master's or a bachelor's in a supported programme. 80% for others. Capped at 40 times the gross minimum wage per person per month.
- Employer social-security funding
- Half of the employer's SGK premium for qualifying R&D, design, and support personnel is funded by the Treasury (İşveren Hissesi Desteği), for 5 years from the date the personnel enrolled in the R&D Centre.
- Corporate-tax deduction
- Qualifying R&D and design expenditures are 100% deductible from the corporate-tax base (R&D Indirimi). The deduction stacks with normal expense treatment for the same costs.
- Stamp tax and customs duty
- Documents related to R&D and design activities are exempt from stamp tax. Imports for R&D projects (equipment, software, materials) are exempt from customs duty and import-stage VAT, subject to project-scope documentation.
- Workspace requirement
- The R&D Centre must occupy a defined, physically segregated workspace. Open-plan offices shared with non-R&D staff do not qualify. Floor plans are submitted with the file and inspected during the committee visit.
- Sunset
- Current incentive package runs through 31 December 2028, subject to Presidential extension. Existing R&D Centres are typically grandfathered into extension regimes.
- Approval risk
- Approval is the Ministry's decision based on the committee's recommendation. We commit to a complete, compliant file aligned with current Ministry expectations. We do not promise approval. If the file is declined, we work the remediation path and re-file.
Bundled in
- StarterNo
- BuilderNo
- Enterprise✓
- Add-on available
Pricing
Included in Enterprise. Standalone: from USD 9,500 (excludes Ministry filing fees and any third-party expert reports). Annual reporting on retainer at USD 1,800 per year.
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