Turkish Company Types Explained: A.Ş., Ltd. Şti. and Sole Traders – What They Mean for Buyers

The letters at the end of a Turkish company name are not decoration. "A.Ş.", "Ltd. Şti." or nothing at all tell you what kind of legal entity you are dealing with, who is liable, who can sign and which records you can check. Here is what each type means for a foreign buyer.

The three types you will meet most often* A.Ş. (Anonim Şirketi, Joint-stock company): Separate legal entity, board of directors, usually the larger and more formal suppliers

* Ltd. Şti. (Limited Şirketi, Limited liability company): Separate legal entity, one or more managers; common among small and mid-size companies

* Sole trader (Şahıs işletmesi, Sole proprietorship): Not a company: the business is the owner personally; no "A.Ş." or "Ltd." in the name

You may also see Koll. Şti. (general partnership), Kom. Şti. (limited partnership), Koop. (cooperative) or a branch (şube) of another company. These are less common in export trade.

A.Ş. (joint-stock company)* Has its own legal personality, registered in the trade registry with a MERSIS number.

* Managed by a board of directors (which can have a single member); authorised signatories are listed in the signature circular.

* Formation, capital changes and board changes are published in the Trade Registry Gazette.

* Requires a higher minimum capital than a Ltd. Şti., so it is often (not always) the larger company.

For you: check who sits on the board and who can sign. In an A.Ş., the person with the business card "General Manager" is not automatically a signatory. Read more: Signature circular: how to request and read it.

Ltd. Şti. (limited liability company)* Also a separate legal entity with a MERSIS number and gazette entries.

* Run by one or more managers (müdür), named in the gazette and the signature circular.

* Very common among family-owned factories and trading companies.

For you: a Ltd. Şti. can be a 200-person factory or a two-person trading office. The legal form says nothing about size, so check the activity code and the production address.

Sole trader (şahıs işletmesi)* Not a company. The business and the owner are the same person.

* A sole trader who counts as a merchant is registered in the trade registry and the chamber of commerce; a small artisan (esnaf) is registered with the artisans' registry and chamber. In both cases there is no separate legal entity, no board and no separate company assets.

* The invoice shows a personal name, often followed by a trade name.

For you: working with a sole trader is legal and common for small suppliers. But your contract partner is a private person: if that person stops trading, there is no company left to claim against. Bank accounts are often in the owner's own name, which makes the "account holder = legal name" check different. Ask for the tax certificate and confirm that the IBAN holder is the same person. Read more: How to verify a Turkish tax certificate.

Red flags around company type1. The type changes between documents. "X Tekstil A.Ş." on the website, "X Tekstil Ltd. Şti." on the proforma: two different companies, or a careless supplier.

2. No legal form on the invoice while the supplier presents itself as a large factory.

3. The bank account belongs to another type or name, for example a Ltd. Şti. invoice paid to a personal account.

4. A recent conversion (from sole trader to Ltd., or from Ltd. to A.Ş.) just before your order, without explanation.

A recent case from our work: a client asked us to check a supplier that was a properly registered Ltd. Şti., and the person they were dealing with was a genuine, registered employee of the company. Everything was in order except one detail: payment was requested to the employee's personal IBAN. That alone does not prove the supplier is dishonest. But a payment to a private account is not a payment to the company: there is no invoice, nothing in the company's books and, if something goes wrong, far less legal ground for the buyer to claim against the company. Our client asked the supplier for the official company IBAN, and the purchase went ahead on that basis.

How to check the company typeThe legal form is part of the registered company name. Check that the name, including A.Ş. or Ltd. Şti., is identical in the Trade Registry Gazette, on the tax certificate, on the proforma and on the bank account. Our step-by-step guide shows where each record is found: Turkish company registry guide.

Let us check it for youNeed it done for you? See our Turkish supplier verification service.

EnterTurkey's Lite check (USD 199, report in 24 hours) checks a Turkish supplier's legal identity and company type, registration and management, based on official records and the documents provided, in one English report. See packages.