Turkey: notarial and documentary services guide
Documents, certificates, letters and notes available at British consulates in Turkey.
Overview
The British consulate can provide a range of notarial and documentary services for British nationals in Turkey. Most of these services are only available at the British Embassy and the British Consulate General Istanbul.
Where local notaries can provide services, the British consulate will not provide them. In many cases local notaries or lawyers can provide services more cheaply, quickly and conveniently. UK registered lawyers at the British Chamber of Commerce of Turkey may be able to provide for services intended to be used in the UK.
Some services may be available by post. You must make an appointment for each service that requires your personal attendance. Please use the links after each service to make an appointment.
Before booking, make sure you have selected the correct service and that the document will be accepted by the relevant authority. This could be the local town hall, registry office, tax authorities, immigration office or another authority either in Turkey, the UK or a third country.
Services we provide in Turkey
Consular staff in Turkey can:
- administer an oath, affirmation or affidavit
- make a certified copy of a document (only British passports and UK degree certificates that have been issued in the UK by a recognised institution and are listed on the Legalisation Office website)
- unite documents
- prepare a document in English or the local language
For information about documents relating to marriage, such as affirmations or affidavits of marital status, please see getting married abroad.
If you can’t find the service you are looking for on this page, please see other services provided by the British embassy in Turkey.
What to bring to your appointment
See the individual services below for details of supporting documents to bring. Make sure you have acceptable proof of address and identity, and payment for any fees. See the full list of consular fees.
Payment
We accept payment by credit/debit cards (Visa, MasterCard only) and Visa Electron (only UK debit card) in Sterling, or cash in Turkish Lira on the day of the appointment.
Proof of address and identity
For all appointments for notarial services you will need to bring acceptable proof of your identity and address.
We accept passports or Turkish national identity cards as proof of identity. We accept a utility bill, bank statement, residency permit book or Ikamet Belgesi from your local registry office as proof of your address.
Administer an oath, affirmation or affidavit
This service is for people who need to swear an oath, make an affirmation or make an affidavit in front of a consular officer.
This type of affidavit is the one that you may be asked to provide by the Turkish authorities as proof of your status to apply for Turkish citizenship or to register your baby’s birth in Turkey.
It is also the service you will need when buying or selling a vehicle in Turkey that was previously registered in the UK.
If you need to make an affirmation or affidavit of marital status in order to get married in Turkey please visit getting married abroad to find out what you need to do.
The consulate will not draft documents for you. First check with the consulate what format they need and then have the document drawn up or checked by a professional.
What you will need to bring with you:
- the oath, affirmation or affidavit that you will swear or affirm
- the correct fee – see the list of fees and payment options
- proof of identity and address – see what we will accept as proof
Make a certified copy of a document
This service is for customers who need certified photocopies of British passports and UK educational documents that have been issued in the UK by a recognised institution and are listed on the Legalisation Office website.
What you will need to bring with you:
- the document to be copied
- proof of identity and address – see what we will accept as proof
- the correct fee – see the list of fees and payment options
Book an appointment to make a certified copy of a document at the British Consulate General Istanbul
Book an appointment to make a certified copy of a document at the British Embassy Ankara
Unite documents
This service joins documents together using ribbon and a seal and is usually only needed for legal reasons.
What you will need to bring with you:
- the document to be copied
- proof of identity and address – see what we will accept as proof
- the correct fee – see the list of fees and payment options
Book an appointment to unite documents at the British Consulate General Istanbul
Book an appointment to unite documents at the British Embassy Ankara
Prepare a document in English or the local language
In a limited number of cases, consular staff can write a statement of fact (‘preparing a certificate’) to help British nationals with various local authorities. The wording must be cleared with the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office in London, which means these documents will take longer to prepare.
We can only provide this service if we have proof that the wording/content you require is correct and unambiguous. This service is provided at the discretion of consular staff and we can refuse to provide it. Contact the consulate before making an appointment.
We can prepare these documents in English or in the local language. Make sure you select the correct service and note the difference in fees.
What you will need to bring with you:
- the wording or content and proof it is correct and unambiguous
- proof of identity and address – see what we will accept as proof
- the correct fee – see the list of fees and payment options
For documents in English:
Book an appointment to prepare a document in English at the British Consulate General Istanbul
Book an appointment to prepare a document in English at the British Embassy Ankara
For documents in the local language
Book an appointment to prepare a document in the local language at the British Embassy Ankara
Other services we provide
Services provided elsewhere
We no longer provide life certificates for British nationals claiming a British pension abroad. Refer to the list of professionals who can witness a life certificate.
Only for documents to be used outside of Turkey: British Chamber of Commerce of Turkey may be contacted for administering an oath, affirmation or affidavit, witnessing signatures, making copies of document other than the above, or any other service that they agree to provide.
For documents with the intention of being used in Turkey:
- legalising UK documents/certificates: Legalisation Office
- provide copies of British birth, death & marriage certificates: GRO
- information on marriage in the UK: GOV.UK
- yachting and sailing certificates: RYA
- certify your fingerprints: Metropolitan Police UK
- pension certificates: DWP
- taxation and UK National Insurance contributions certificates: HMRC
- renew British driving licences or provide certificates regarding British driving licences: DVLA
- UK Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks (previously Criminal Records Bureau checks): DBS
- certificates confirming British Nationality: UK Border Agency
- Certificates Relating to British Nationality
The British embassy and consulates no longer handle applications for naturalisation or registration as a British citizen, or renunciation of British citizenship. All applications are now handled by the Home Office.
Informative notes and letters
Further information:
The following certificates are available for you to download free of charge for presentation to relevant authorities. If you need an officially stamped/sealed version you will need to make an application under Fee 2 using the information above.
If you cannot find what you are looking for please contact the consular section through this contact form
Data protection
The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office holds and uses data for purposes notified to the Information Commissioner under the Data Protection Act 1998. Such personal data may be disclosed to other UK government departments and public authorities.
Disclaimer
This information is provided as a general guide and is based upon information provided to the embassy or consulate by the relevant authorities and may be subject to change at any time with little or no notice. Accordingly the FCDO and the British embassy / consulate will not be liable for any inaccuracies in this information. For all notarial and legalisation services it is the responsibility of the customer to ascertain the precise requirements of the person requesting the notarial or legalisation service and to satisfy themselves that the service provided by the embassy/consulate will be accepted.
Last updated 25 March 2024 + show all updates
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Attachments updated
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info updated
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CHANGE OF FCO TO FCDO
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New information added to notarial page
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Updated broken link to HMRC
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Clarified the distinction between affidavits for mariage purposes and all other purposes.
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First published.
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Updated Notarial and documentary services guide for Turkey
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added a second information note
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added information note under 'INFORMATIVE NOTES/LETTERS'
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The information is updated by the Consular sectıon
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updated
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update
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Added ###Life certificates for UK state pensions
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made additions to the original document as requested by the Consular Team heads in Turkey
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added online booking appointment system information.