If you are about to pay a Turkish supplier for the first time, the first question is simple: does this company really exist, under this exact name, and is it still active?

In the UK you would open Companies House. In Turkey there is no single website that gives a foreign buyer a full company profile on one screen. The information exists, but it is spread over several official records. This guide shows which records exist, what each one proves, and how to use them together.

The four records that make up the "Turkish company registry"* MERSIS number: the 16-digit central registration number from the Ministry of Trade's central registry system. It proves that the company is registered in the central trade registry.

* Trade Registry Gazette (Ticaret Sicili Gazetesi): the official gazette where company formation, capital changes, address changes, new managers and closures are published. It shows the company's history: when it was founded, who manages it and what changed.

* Tax number (VKN) and tax certificate (vergi levhası): the 10-digit tax ID and the annual tax certificate. They prove that the company is a registered taxpayer and show its tax office and main business activity.

* Chamber registration: membership of the local chamber of commerce or industry. It proves that the company is registered with the local chamber.

None of these alone is enough. A company can have a valid tax number and still be in liquidation. A gazette entry can be ten years old. You need all four to agree.

Step 1: Get the exact legal name, not the brand nameTurkish companies often trade under a short brand ("Yildiz Textile") while the legal name is longer, for example (fictional) "Yıldız Tekstil Sanayi ve Ticaret Anonim Şirketi". The legal form at the end matters:

* A.Ş. (Anonim Şirketi): joint-stock company

* Ltd. Şti. (Limited Şirketi): limited liability company

* No A.Ş. or Ltd. at all: often a sole trader, which changes who you are actually contracting with.

Ask the supplier in writing for the full legal name, registered address, MERSIS number and tax number. A real company will send these in minutes; they are printed on its invoices and letterheads. Hesitation here is your first warning sign.

Step 2: Check the MERSIS numberThe MERSIS number is the closest thing Turkey has to a single company registration number (companies also have a separate local trade registry number). Check that it has 16 digits, that the same number appears on the website, the proforma invoice and the contract, and that it belongs to the same legal name.

Read more: How to check a MERSIS number.

Step 3: Read the company's history in the Trade Registry GazetteThe gazette is where a company's life story is published. Search it by the company's legal name and look for:

* Formation date. A supplier that says "30 years in business" but was founded 14 months ago needs to explain.

* Managers and authorised signatories. Is the person negotiating with you actually listed?

* Recent changes. A new owner, a new address or a big capital change just before your order is worth a question.

* Liquidation or merger notices. These should stop the deal until clarified.

Read more: How to read the Turkish Trade Registry Gazette.

Step 4: Verify the tax number and tax certificateAsk for the latest tax certificate. Check that the legal name, tax office and tax number match everything else, and that the main activity code fits what you are buying: a company registered as a wholesaler is not a factory. Electronic tax certificates can be verified online with the official verification code.

Read more: How to verify a Turkish tax certificate.

Step 5: Check who can signThe signature circular (imza sirküleri) is the notarised document that shows who may sign for the company and within which limits. If the person signing your contract is not on it, the contract may be disputed later.

Read more: Signature circular: how to check who can sign.

Step 6: Make sure the bank account belongs to the companyThe most expensive fraud is not a fake company. It is a real company's name with someone else's bank account. The account holder name on the IBAN must match the legal name exactly. Confirm any bank detail change by phone, using a number you found yourself, not the one in the email.

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.

What the registry will not tell youOfficial records prove that a company exists and who runs it. They do not prove that:

* it owns a factory, rather than subcontracting the work,

* it has the capacity for your order,

* it is financially healthy today,

* it has delivered to buyers like you before.

That is where a document check ends and a supplier verification starts.

A 10-minute checklist1. Full legal name with A.Ş. or Ltd. Şti.

2. 16-digit MERSIS number, same on every document

3. Gazette entries: formation date, managers, recent changes

4. Tax number and current tax certificate, activity code fits the product

5. Signatory on the signature circular

6. Bank account holder = legal name

7. Registered address matches the address you were shown

If any of these do not match, do not send money until the difference is explained in writing.

Need it done for you?Need it done for you? See our Turkish supplier verification service.

EnterTurkey checks Turkish companies for European buyers. Our Lite check (USD 199, 24 hours / 1 working day) verifies the registered company identity and current status, ownership and company background, the representative you are dealing with and who the payment account belongs to, in one English report, so you do not have to read Turkish gazettes yourself. Pro (USD 499, 48 hours) adds official-source research, an exterior visit to the physical address and sector interpretation; Enterprise (from USD 1,500, up to 120 hours) adds an agreed interior facility and production capacity review. See packages.