I. Introduction
Law No. 7589 on Amendments to Certain Laws for the Effective and Efficient Functioning of the Judiciary, published in the Official Gazette dated 31 July 2026 and numbered 33326, amended various rules ranging from enforcement and administrative jurisdiction to criminal and civil procedure. Its selected provisions introduce new rules on the sale of immovable property acquired by inheritance, administrative cases to be heard by a single judge, statutory interest, participation in fraud, molecular genetic examination data, deferment of the announcement of the judgment, interest on compensation, actions for unquantified and partial claims, and hearing procedure.
Under Article 26 of the Law, the amendment concerning handwritten signatures in remote civil hearings enters into force on 31 October 2026, while the remaining selected amendments entered into force on 31 July 2026. Provisional Article 1 nevertheless prescribes different transitional criteria for certain provisions, including the date on which an auction was announced, the date on which an action was filed, the date of the event causing loss, and the procedural stage reached by a criminal case.
II. Amendments Concerning Enforcement, Administrative Jurisdiction and Statutory Interest
First Auction Among Heirs
Under the amendment to Article 114 of the Enforcement and Bankruptcy Law, where all owners acquired an immovable property by inheritance and no third party other than the heirs holds an ownership right in it, the first auction for the dissolution of co-ownership by sale is conducted exclusively among the heirs who own the property. This procedure applies only once. At the first auction, a bid must exceed the greater of the property’s full appraised value and the total amount of claims secured by the property that rank ahead of the claim of the party requesting the sale, together with the costs of realisation and distribution. The general threshold of 50% applies at the second auction.
The amended text provides an application-based exemption from the bid-security requirement for a creditor that requested the sale and wishes to participate in the auction, as well as an exemption for the Treasury. It does not establish a general exemption based solely on a person’s status as a co-owner or heir. If the highest bidder fails to pay the auction price within the prescribed period, the security is not returned, the statutory rules on costs and distribution apply, and an administrative fine equal to 5% of the bid is imposed. If the defaulting bidder is the creditor that requested the sale, 10% of the appraised value is also set off against that creditor’s claim, and the costs of that sale are not charged to the debtor. These amendments do not apply to auctions announced before 31 July 2026.
Administrative Cases to Be Heard by a Single Judge
The amendment to Article 7 of Law No. 2576 expands the categories of administrative cases to be heard by a single judge, excluding actions brought against regulatory acts. In addition to annulment and full remedy actions with a subject matter not exceeding TRY 486,000, a single judge will determine cases concerning specified student disciplinary measures, promotion to the next grade, grades, dormitories, loans and scholarships; temporary assignments, travel allowances, official housing, leave and warning disciplinary penalties concerning public officials; specified disciplinary measures imposed by professional bodies with public institution status; and the application of Law No. 2022. Student disciplinary measures resulting in suspension or expulsion, and sanctions imposed by professional bodies that temporarily or permanently prevent the exercise of a profession, remain outside this scope. The new allocation rule applies to actions filed after 31 July 2026.
Linking Statutory Interest to the Rediscount Rate
Under Article 1 of Law No. 3095, where interest is payable under the Turkish Code of Obligations or the Turkish Commercial Code but the rate has not been agreed by contract, statutory interest is calculated at 80% of the rediscount rate applied by the Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye to short-term credit transactions on 31 December of the preceding year. If the rediscount rate applicable on 30 June differs by at least five percentage points from the rate applicable on the preceding 31 December, 80% of the 30 June rate applies during the second half of the year.
The official CBRT table records the rediscount rate applicable on 31 December 2025 as 38.75%. Accordingly, the statutory interest rate calculated under the new formula for 2026 is 31%. The amendment concerns Article 1 of Law No. 3095, which governs statutory interest; contractually agreed interest and default interest remain subject to their respective legal bases.
III. Amendments to Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure
Special Sentence Reduction for Limited Participation in Fraud
The fourth paragraph added to Article 158 of the Turkish Penal Code requires a one-half reduction in the sentence where a person’s participation in fraud is confined to a specified form of contribution. The reduction applies where, for the purpose of securing an unlawful benefit for that person or another, the participation is limited to providing another person with a payment instrument such as a bank or credit card, or with information or means necessary to use an account held with a bank, intermediary institution, payment service provider or crypto-asset service provider. The provision does not eliminate criminal liability for participation; it introduces a mandatory reduction for the limited conduct defined by law.
The transitional provisions prescribe different procedures depending on whether a judgment delivered before the amendment entered into force is pending before a criminal chamber of a regional appellate court, is before the Office of the Chief Public Prosecutor at the Court of Cassation, or has reached the sentence-enforcement stage. Certain convicted persons at the enforcement stage may benefit from the effective-remorse provision in Article 168(2) of the Turkish Penal Code if it was not previously applied to them and they fully compensate the victim’s loss within six months following notice from the court.
Recording and Destruction of Molecular Genetic Examination Data
Article 80 of the Code of Criminal Procedure requires the results of molecular genetic examinations to be recorded in a dedicated system after identifying information has been removed, with a copy retained in the case file as evidence. The information must be destroyed immediately upon expiry of the period for objecting to a decision not to prosecute, dismissal of such an objection, or the finalisation of an acquittal or a decision that no penalty should be imposed. In other cases, it must be destroyed 20 years after the court judgment becomes final. In either case, destruction takes place in the presence of a public prosecutor.
The person whose information has been recorded may request earlier deletion from a judge or court where the purpose requiring its retention no longer exists or there is a justified reason. Use of the records in an ongoing investigation or prosecution requires a decision of a court, judge or public prosecutor. A decision of a court or judge may be challenged by objection, while a decision of a public prosecutor may be referred to the criminal judgeship of peace. The technical operation of the system, the procedures for retention and destruction, and the rules governing use of the records will be prescribed by a regulation issued jointly by the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Interior.
Deferment of the Announcement of the Judgment
Paragraphs 5 to 14 of Article 231 of the Code of Criminal Procedure have been revised. Where the defendant is sentenced to imprisonment for two years or less or to a judicial fine, the court may defer the announcement of the judgment if the defendant has not previously been convicted of an intentional offence, the court concludes that the defendant will not reoffend, and the loss caused by the offence has been fully remedied. If the loss cannot be remedied immediately, full payment in monthly instalments during the supervision period is also permitted. The supervision period is five years. Confiscation is excluded from the rule that a judgment whose announcement has been deferred produces no legal consequences for the defendant.
A decision to defer the announcement of the judgment is, as a rule, subject to appellate review by a regional appellate court. Where such a decision is issued by a regional appellate court or the Court of Cassation acting as a court of first instance, an appeal on points of law is available. Appellate review covers procedural and substantive unlawfulness affecting both the decision and the judgment. A judgment announced or newly issued following a breach of supervision requirements is instead subject to an objection whose review is limited to the statutory conditions. This regime does not apply to torture or torment offences, or to offences committed by public officials in connection with their duties that may qualify as ill-treatment under Article 17 of the Constitution.
IV. Amendments Concerning Compensation and Monetary Claims
Compensation for Loss of Earning Capacity and Loss of Support
The provisions added to Article 55 of the Turkish Code of Obligations divide the commencement of interest into two periods for losses arising from a reduction or loss of earning capacity and for loss of support following the supporter’s death. Statutory interest accrues from the date of the tort or other event causing loss on compensation calculated for the period during which the earnings of the injured person or the deceased supporter are known. For compensation calculated for a period during which those earnings cannot be determined, statutory interest accrues from the date of judgment. A payment made in performance of the obligation before the evidentiary phase begins is set off proportionately against the amount of compensation determined as at the payment date. These provisions apply only to torts or other events causing loss that occur after 31 July 2026.
Actions for Unquantified Claims and Increases in Partial Claims
Article 107 of the Turkish Code of Civil Procedure, which governed actions for unquantified claims, has been repealed. Accordingly, no new action based on Article 107 may be filed after 31 July 2026. Under Provisional Article 1, however, Article 107 continues to apply to actions filed before its repeal.
Under the fourth paragraph added to Article 109, which governs partial actions, where only part of a claim has been brought before the court, the amount claimed may be increased once in the same proceedings before the end of the evidentiary phase, without being subject to the prohibition on expanding the claim. The limitation period is deemed to have been interrupted from the filing date in respect of the increased portion as well.
V. Other Procedural Amendments to Civil Proceedings
Maximum Interval Between Hearings
The third paragraph added to Article 147 of the Turkish Code of Civil Procedure provides that, under the written procedure, the interval between hearings may not exceed three months. Where mandatory circumstances arise, such as an expert examination taking longer because of the nature of the matter or procedural acts in the evidentiary phase being conducted through judicial assistance, the judge may set a longer period by stating the reasons. The Law does not prescribe any specific invalidity or sanction for exceeding the three-month period.
Handwritten Signatures in Remote Hearings
Under Article 149(4) of the Turkish Code of Civil Procedure, which enters into force on 31 October 2026, the rules requiring a handwritten signature will not, as a rule, apply to persons whom the court has permitted to attend a hearing remotely by audio and video transmission. The handwritten-signature requirement continues to apply to admissions, the taking of an oath, consent to withdrawal of the action, waiver of the claim, acceptance of the claim and settlement. The provision governs the signature procedure for persons already permitted to participate remotely; it does not itself establish a right to remote participation.
Binding Effect of a Consolidation Order
Under the amendment to Article 166 of the Turkish Code of Civil Procedure, the court before which the first action was filed becomes bound by the other court’s consolidation order only after that order becomes final. Article 24 of the Law permits an independent appeal to a regional appellate court against consolidation orders issued by civil courts of the same level and status within the same judicial district. The decisive factor for the binding effect of a consolidation order is that it has become final, whether following an appeal or without one.
VI. Conclusion
The selected amendments under Law No. 7589 are not governed by a single transitional criterion. The relevant factors are the date on which an enforcement auction was announced, the filing date for administrative cases to be heard by a single judge, the date of the tort or other event causing loss for the compensation provisions, the filing date for an action for an unquantified claim, and the procedural stage reached by a case for the purposes of Article 158(4) of the Turkish Penal Code. Unlike the other selected provisions, the amendment concerning handwritten signatures in remote hearings enters into force on 31 October 2026.
Within a single legislative instrument, the Law amended the conditions for participation and bidding in enforcement auctions, the method for calculating statutory interest, specified criminal-law and criminal-procedure mechanisms, interest on compensation, and the rules governing forms of civil action and hearing procedure. The scope and temporal application of each amendment are determined by the conditions set out in the relevant provision or in Provisional Article 1.
