Thinking of Investing in Turkey? Here are the Reasons and the Sectors

Updated 22 September 2026. This article is general information, not legal advice; requirements change and should be verified before acting.

If you are interested in investing in Turkey and want to know what advantage you would get, then this article is just for you. Over the last decade, Turkey has grown significantly with its mega projects, research, and development investments. With its developing economy, Turkey has captured the attention of many international investors. According to the Investment Office of the Presidency of the Republic of Turkey, Turkey became the 7th most popular Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) destination in Europe in 2018, which is first stated in EY Attractiveness Survey Europe. Every investor thinks about whether to invest in another country, and it is beneficial to research the reasons and advantages before investing. Here, you can find the reasons to invest in Turkey, the incentives for foreign investors, and the sectors that foreign investors prefer to invest in.

The Reasons to Invest in Turkey

The main reasons to invest in Turkey are the growing economy, population, large domestic market, skilled labor force, innovative investment climate, strategic location, incentive opportunities, low taxes on corporations, and opportunities in several sectors. With the help of agreements, laws, and policies that encourage foreign investors, it is aimed to attract foreign capital to our country. Overall, Turkey is an ideal country to invest in with its developing economy, young labor force, and many other reasons. Overall, Turkey is an ideal country to invest in with its developing economy, young labor force, and many other reasons.

The Government Incentives for the Foreign Investors

Turkey offers an extensive investment incentives program that supports to minimize the upfront cost burden and accelerate the returns on investments. Also, the Turkish government provides many support programs through various grants, incentives, and loans. Therefore, with all these incentives that the government offers, it provides great advantages to foreign investors.

Who can benefit from investment incentives?

• Real persons, ordinary partnerships, stock corporations, cooperatives, joint ventures,
• Public institutions and agencies,
• Public professional organizations,
• Associations and foundations,
• Turkish branches of foreign-based companies can benefit from investment incentives provided that they check all the criteria.

Here, you can see the incentive types in the graphic below;

To sum up briefly, due to these incentive opportunities, foreign investors are carrying on with their business with more productively and profit.

What are the Sectors that Foreign Investors Investing in Turkey?

If you want to make a good investment, you should know about the sectors first. Here is the detailed information about the top 3 the sectors that foreigners are interested in investing in;

Real Estate

The real estate sector is one of the sectors foreign investors turn to most often in Türkiye. According to the Investment Office, “The complete number of homes sold in the Turkish property market reached 1.4 million units in 2018. The foreign investors, who are interested in investing, choose Turkey because of its geological location, cultural and social opportunities, exchange rate, obtaining citizenship, and life and career opportunities. Moreover, in 2018, 39.663 homes were sold to foreigners in Turkey.” Also, the highest demand in cities that foreigners interesting in investing in is Istanbul, Antalya, Bursa, and Ankara, as stated in the Investment Office. Since the Turkish Government loosen its property investment laws in 2017, it made it easier for foreigners to invest in Turkey. To give information about obtaining Turkish citizenship; with the decision published in the official newspaper in 19.09.2018, the financial and investment costs when obtaining citizenship were reduced. Under the regulation in force, the property route requires a minimum investment of USD 400,000 or its equivalent (since 13 June 2022; subject to current legislation) and a commitment not to sell for 3 years. Many foreign investors are interested in investing in the real estate sector, with mega-projects, such as the Istanbul Airport, Marmaray, Eurasia Tunnel, and Canal Istanbul. Moreover, there are many natural attractions in Turkey to invest in social and cultural opportunities. Overall, there are many reasons foreign investors consider real estate in Türkiye; returns depend on the property, the location and the market, and are never guaranteed.

Tourism

With its unique coasts, winter and summer tourism, and its great location for cultural and natural tourism, Turkey is a highly valuable destination point of tourists for many years. Turkey was the 6th most popular tourist destination in the world with attracting more than 46 million tourists in 2018. Also, standing out with its long-standing past, Turkey is a highly attractive location for history lovers. In addition, with its natural beauties, winter tourism is also a center of attention for local and foreign investors. It points out that the tourism sector, with the incentives that the government offers for the local and foreign investors, is one of the profitable sectors to invest in.

Health

The health sector became the center of attention for many foreign investors, due to the health sectors undergoing a rapid change for the last ten years. Many tourists visit Turkey for medical health services, such as hair transplantation, aesthetic operations, dental, and other medical treatments every year. According to the official data, Turkey attracted nearly 1 million foreign visitors for medical treatments in 2018. Especially because foreign investors can get high-quality service at a suitable price, they are very interested in the health sector in Turkey. The health sector, which the investment is very profitable, is one of Turkey’s important sources of income. If you are interested in investing in real estate or have any questions, you contact us.

Published 10 July 2021. Figures, rules and timelines change — confirm the current position with an adviser before you act on anything here.