Turkey is one of the few OECD countries where the employer has no statutory obligation to pay wages during sickness. Income during a certified absence comes from the Social Security Institution (SGK), not from payroll. Employers may top up, and many do — but that is contract, not statute.
What Turkish law does impose on employers is different and easy to overlook: an obligation to keep the job open for a defined period, a rule about how sick days count towards annual leave, and a set-off right if the employer chooses to keep paying wages.
Key takeaways
- There is no statutory employer-paid sick leave in Turkey. Wage continuation during illness is a matter of contract or collective agreement.
- SGK pays a temporary incapacity benefit (geçici iş göremezlik ödeneği) from the third day of a sickness report — the first two days are not compensated.
- The rate is two-thirds of daily earnings for outpatient treatment and one-half for inpatient treatment.
- The employee needs at least 90 days of short-term insurance premiums in the year preceding the incapacity.
- Work accidents and occupational disease are paid from day one, with no two-day gap.
- Under Labour Act No. 4857, art. 25/I(b), the employer may terminate for just cause once the illness has continued for more than six weeks beyond the applicable notice period.
- Under art. 55(a), sickness absence counts as time worked for annual leave accrual up to the notice period plus six weeks.
No employer sick pay — what that actually means
The starting position under Turkish law is that wages are consideration for work performed. An employee who cannot work because of illness is not, by statute, entitled to wages from the employer for that period. The income-replacement function sits entirely with SGK under Law No. 5510 on Social Insurance and General Health Insurance.
In practice, a large share of Turkish employers — particularly larger corporates and unionised workplaces — do continue paying salary, either in full or as a top-up over the SGK benefit. Where they do, Labour Act No. 4857, art. 48 allows the employer to deduct the SGK benefit from the wages it pays for the same days. Without that deduction the employee would receive both, which is not the intended outcome.
The practical drafting point: if your Turkish contracts promise “full pay during sickness”, say explicitly that the SGK benefit is set off against it. Otherwise you have contracted to pay full salary on top of the state benefit.
The SGK temporary incapacity benefit
Article 18 of Law No. 5510 sets the benefit:
| Situation | Paid from | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Sickness, outpatient treatment | Day 3 | 2/3 of daily earnings |
| Sickness, inpatient treatment | Day 3 | 1/2 of daily earnings |
| Work accident or occupational disease | Day 1 | 2/3 outpatient, 1/2 inpatient |
“Daily earnings” is the daily average of the employee’s insured earnings over the reference period, which is subject to the SGK earnings ceiling. High earners therefore receive a benefit calculated on the capped figure, not on actual salary — a gap that becomes visible quickly for senior staff.
Eligibility requires 90 days of short-term insurance branch premiums notified in the year before the incapacity began. That threshold is the reason new joiners frequently receive nothing: an employee three weeks into their first Turkish job has an unpaid absence unless the employer chooses to pay.
The two-day gap applies to ordinary sickness only. Work accidents and occupational disease are compensated from the first day, which is why classifying an absence correctly at the outset matters more in Turkey than in most jurisdictions.
Job protection: the notice period plus six weeks
The employer’s real statutory exposure is not money but tenure. Under Labour Act No. 4857, art. 25/I(b), an employer may terminate the contract for just cause where the employee’s illness or accident causes absence continuing for more than six weeks beyond the notice period applicable to that employee.
Because Turkish notice periods scale with service — from two weeks at under six months to eight weeks at over three years — the protected window scales too:
| Length of service | Notice period | Protected absence (notice + 6 weeks) |
|---|---|---|
| Under 6 months | 2 weeks | 8 weeks |
| 6 months to 18 months | 4 weeks | 10 weeks |
| 18 months to 3 years | 6 weeks | 12 weeks |
| Over 3 years | 8 weeks | 14 weeks |
Inside that window, absence on a valid sickness report is not a valid reason for termination. Outside it, the employer acquires a right to terminate for just cause — which, when properly exercised, is a different legal animal from an ordinary notice termination.
Employers should treat the table as a decision calendar, not a countdown to dismissal. Exercising the right requires the illness to be genuinely continuing and the procedure to be correct; a premature or badly documented termination converts a just-cause dismissal into an unfair one.
Sick leave and annual leave accrual
Article 55(a) of the Labour Act treats sickness absence as time worked for the purposes of calculating annual leave entitlement — but only up to the notice period plus six weeks. Absence beyond that ceiling does not accrue annual leave.
This is a genuinely useful rule for employers with long-term absentees, and one that spreadsheet-based leave tracking almost never models. An employee absent for five months with two years’ service accrues annual leave for the first twelve weeks of it and none thereafter.
Reports and notification
Incapacity is certified by a physician or authorised health institution on a sickness report (istirahat raporu), which is filed electronically with SGK. The employee must notify the employer; the report itself flows through the SGK system.
Employers must declare the absence to SGK in the monthly premium and service document, because the benefit calculation and the employee’s premium days depend on it. Failure to report the absent days correctly is one of the more common sources of SGK administrative penalties.
Where a collective agreement or a public employer arrangement applies, the employer may pay the benefit to the employee on SGK’s behalf and settle with SGK afterwards, under art. 18 of Law No. 5510.
Common employer pitfalls
1. Assuming statutory sick pay exists
It does not. Any wage continuation during illness in Turkey comes from the contract, not the Labour Act.
2. Paying full salary without the art. 48 set-off
If you keep paying wages during a certified absence, deduct the SGK benefit for the same days — and say so in the contract.
3. Treating a work accident like ordinary sickness
Work accidents and occupational disease are paid from day one with no two-day gap. Misclassification costs the employee two days of benefit.
4. Terminating before the protected window closes
Just cause under art. 25/I(b) arises only once absence exceeds the notice period plus six weeks. Terminating earlier exposes the employer to a reinstatement or compensation claim.
5. Accruing annual leave through an entire long absence
Sickness counts as worked time only up to notice period plus six weeks. Accruing beyond that overstates the employee’s leave balance and the termination payout.
6. Forgetting the 90-day premium test for new hires
Employees without 90 days of short-term insurance premiums in the preceding year receive no SGK benefit at all.
Turkey’s model — state benefit, no employer sick pay — is unusual among the countries we cover; see how it compares in our European sick leave comparison. For the paid-holiday side, read annual leave in Turkey, and for a broader overview of leave categories, our guide to the main types of leave employers manage.
Frequently asked questions
Does an employer have to pay sick leave in Turkey?
No. There is no statutory employer-paid sick leave. Income during a certified absence comes from the SGK temporary incapacity benefit. Employers may pay or top up by contract, and if they do they may deduct the SGK benefit for the same days.
How much is the SGK sick pay in Turkey?
Two-thirds of daily insured earnings for outpatient treatment and one-half for inpatient treatment, calculated on earnings subject to the SGK ceiling.
When does the SGK benefit start?
From the third day of a sickness report — the first two days are not compensated. Work accidents and occupational disease are paid from the first day.
What qualifying period applies?
At least 90 days of short-term insurance branch premiums notified in the year before the incapacity began.
How long must an employer keep a sick employee’s job open?
Until the absence exceeds the applicable notice period plus six weeks. That ranges from eight weeks for employees with under six months’ service to fourteen weeks for those with over three years.
Does sick leave count towards annual leave in Turkey?
Yes, but only up to the notice period plus six weeks. Absence beyond that ceiling does not accrue annual leave.
Putting it into practice
- State explicitly in Turkish contracts whether you top up, and that the SGK benefit is set off against any wages paid.
- Classify work accidents separately at intake — the day-one start and the reporting path both differ.
- Build the notice-period-plus-six-weeks calendar per employee and review long absences against it rather than by instinct.
- Cap annual leave accrual at the same ceiling so termination payouts are right.
- Flag employees under the 90-day premium threshold so managers know an absence will be unpaid.
Turkey’s sick leave rules turn on service-length thresholds that shift as employees pass six months, eighteen months and three years. Tracking those thresholds — and applying them to job protection and annual leave accrual at the same time — is exactly the kind of bookkeeping that is trivial in software and error-prone by hand.
Sources
- Labour Act of Turkey, Law No. 4857 (English) — ILO NATLEX
- Law No. 5510 on Social Insurance and General Health Insurance — Mevzuat Bilgi Sistemi
- Social Security Institution of Türkiye (SGK)
Last updated: 22 July 2026. This article is general guidance, not legal advice. Termination on health grounds under art. 25/I(b) is procedurally sensitive — take Turkish employment law advice before acting.