You are about to sign a contract with a Turkish supplier, approve a proforma invoice or send the first deposit. The person on the other side introduces themselves as “general manager”, “export manager” or “owner”. But can that person actually bind the company? The answer is not in their job title. It is in the company’s signature circular (imza sirküleri), in the representation entries of the trade registry and, where relevant, in a power of attorney issued before a Turkish notary.
This guide explains what a Turkish signature circular is, how to read it, how to cross-check it, and how to work out who can sign for a Turkish company. It draws on the points we look at when we check Turkish suppliers for foreign buyers before payment. For a definitive view on the legal effect of a particular document, speak to a lawyer; our aim here is to help you ask the right questions before money leaves your account.
In short* An imza sirküleri is a document, usually issued by a notary, that shows the specimen signatures of the people authorised to represent a company and how they may sign.
* It states whether each signatory may sign alone or only jointly, and any limits on amount, subject matter or duration.
* In a limited company (Ltd. Şti.) the signatory is usually a manager (müdür); in a joint-stock company (A.Ş.) it is the board or the people the board has authorised.
* Always cross-check the circular against the representation announcement in the Trade Registry Gazette.
* If someone not named in the circular signs for the company, ask for a power of attorney (vekaletname) that covers the act.
* The circular shows authority on paper. It does not prove that the person emailing you is that person, or that the bank account belongs to the company.
What is a Turkish signature circular?A signature circular is a document that identifies the people authorised to represent and sign for a company, reproduces their specimen signatures and sets out the scope of their authority. In practice it is usually prepared by a notary (noter): the authorised person attends in person, shows their identity document, and signs before the notary on the basis of the company’s registry records and the resolution granting authority. Banks, public bodies and trading partners ask for it to confirm that a signature made on the company’s behalf is valid.
There is a nuance worth knowing. Under the Turkish Commercial Code, authorised representatives may also give their signature declaration (imza beyannamesi) before the trade registry office rather than a notary. Some suppliers may therefore send you a signature declaration from the trade registry office instead of a notarised circular. The questions are the same for both: who may sign, for which company, in what manner and within what limits?
What a signature circular usually contains* The company’s full legal name and, usually, its trade registry number, MERSİS number or tax number
* The authorised person’s full name, identity number and often their nationality
* Their role: manager, chair or member of the board, or a person authorised to represent the company
* The manner of representation: alone (münferiden) or jointly with another signatory (müştereken)
* Any limits on authority, such as a cap on amount, specific transactions or a particular branch
* The term of office, or the resolution and registration date on which the authority rests
* The specimen signature, plus the notary’s name, journal number (yevmiye numarası), date, seal and signature
What “temsil ve ilzam” meansYou will often see the phrase “temsil ve ilzam yetkisi” in Turkish company documents. It means the authority to represent the company towards third parties and to bind it, that is, to place it under obligations. A contract signed by someone holding this authority will, as a rule, bind the company. Where that authority sits depends on the type of company.
* Limited company (Ltd. Şti.): Authority lies with the manager or managers. Whether they sign alone or together is set by a partners’ resolution and recorded in the registry.
* Joint-stock company (A.Ş.): Authority belongs to the board of directors. The board may delegate it to one or more of its members or to managers who are not board members; those representatives are registered and announced.
* Sole proprietorship (şahıs şirketi): There is no separate legal entity. The owner signs in their own name and may also obtain a signature circular for their business.
Turkish law restricts how far some internal limits on authority can be relied upon against third parties acting in good faith. However, a restriction to a particular branch and a joint-signature requirement can be relied upon if they have been registered and announced. The practical lesson for a buyer is simple: if the circular requires two signatures, treat that as a condition that may affect whether the contract is valid, not as a formality.
Cross-check the circular against the Trade Registry GazetteA signature circular should not be read in isolation. The authority it shows rests on a representation decision that has been registered and announced in the Turkish Trade Registry Gazette (Ticaret Sicil Gazetesi). The gazette records appointments of managers, board elections, who holds the authority to represent and bind the company, and resignations or removals. We explain how to find and read these announcements in our guide on how to read the Turkish Trade Registry Gazette.
When you compare the two, look for answers to these questions:
1. Are the legal name, registry number and address on the circular identical to the registry entry?
2. Is the person shown as a signatory announced in the gazette as a manager or authorised representative?
3. Is there a later announcement showing that this person resigned, was removed or had their authority changed?
4. Is the manner of representation the same in both? If the gazette says “jointly” and the circular says “alone”, that is a serious inconsistency.
5. Has the board’s term of office expired? Board members of a joint-stock company are elected for a set period, and a circular based on an expired board may no longer be current.
If the circular pre-dates the most recent representation announcement, bear in mind that it may no longer reflect who is authorised. A signature circular does not normally carry an expiry date; its value depends on the underlying authority still being in force.
Staff who are not signatories: when you need a power of attorneyThe people foreign buyers deal with day to day are often sales representatives, export managers or foreign trade specialists. It is entirely normal for them to prepare quotations, send samples and negotiate prices. But the title “export manager” does not, on its own, give anyone the right to bind the company. As our glossary notes, the status of authorised representative comes from the registry, the signature circular or a power of attorney, not from a business card.
If someone not named in the circular signs a contract, confirms an order or provides bank details, ask for a power of attorney granted before a notary by the company’s authorised signatories. When you receive it, check the following:
* Is the person granting the power shown as an authorised representative in the circular or the registry?
* Which company is it granted for, and is the legal name exactly the same?
* Does its scope clearly cover the act being signed? A power of attorney limited to customs formalities, for example, may not extend to signing a sales contract.
* Does it have a term or expiry date, and has that date passed?
* Is there any sign it has been revoked? The most reliable way to confirm this is to ask the company’s registered signatory directly.
How to check an imza sirküleriThere is no single search that tells you whether a signature circular sent to you as a PDF is genuine; several layers need to be checked together. It is also worth saying at the outset that there is no general public register where anyone can look up a company’s authorised signatory by name.
1. Examine the document itselfThe notary’s name, journal number, date, seal and signature should all be present. Turkish notarial documents generally also carry a barcode or verification code. Mixed fonts, traces of erasure around the company name or signatory’s name, misaligned lines and image quality that changes between parts of the page can all suggest editing.
2. Confirm the notarial recordNotarial transactions in Türkiye are recorded in the information system of the Union of Turkish Notaries (Türkiye Noterler Birliği). A document verification service belonging to the Union is listed on e-Devlet, the Turkish government portal, and depending on the type of document and the details on it, some notarial documents may be verifiable through channels of this kind. Whether a given signature circular can be checked this way may vary. The most reliable route is to contact the issuing notary’s office, using contact details you have found yourself rather than ones supplied by the supplier, and ask whether the journal number and date correspond to a transaction recorded there. What a notary will confirm, and to whom, is a matter for that office.
3. Cross-check against registry recordsCompare the company details on the circular with the MERSİS record, the tax certificate and the Trade Registry Gazette. The legal name, tax number and tax office should be consistent across every document. Our guide on how to verify a Turkish tax certificate walks through that check step by step.
4. Link the person to the companyEven a genuine circular does not show that the person emailing you is the person named in it. Calling a landline number you have found on the company’s official website or another independent source, and speaking to the signatory directly, is the simplest way to close that gap.
Red flagsThese are the authority-related problems we see most often in pre-payment checks. For a broader checklist, see our guide on how to spot a fake Turkish supplier.
* A circular for a different company: the name is similar but not identical, or the company is registered in a different city.
* Expired or changed authority: the gazette shows that the person named later resigned or was replaced.
* A signature from someone not on it: the contract or proforma is signed by someone named in neither the circular nor a power of attorney.
* Bank details from someone without authority: account details, or a “new account” instruction, come from a member of staff with no signing authority, or only by email.
* A joint-signature requirement ignored: the circular calls for two signatures, but the document carries one.
* Sole proprietorship confusion: the quotation uses a company name, but the circular and the account belong to a sole proprietorship or an unrelated individual.
* A copied or edited PDF: notary details are missing, the barcode does not read, fonts are mixed, or the document is only ever shared as a low-resolution image.
* Reluctance to provide documents: requests for authority documents are repeatedly put off while you are pressed to pay quickly.
What to ask the supplier forFor a genuine Turkish company, sharing the following is an ordinary request. Respect personal data when you ask; your aim is only to confirm authority.
1. The company’s current signature circular, or the signature declaration given at the trade registry office
2. The latest Trade Registry Gazette issue announcing the authority to represent and bind the company
3. If a non-signatory will sign the contract, a notarised power of attorney covering that act
4. A current tax certificate and the MERSİS number
5. A bank account confirmation on company letterhead, signed by an authorised signatory, showing the account is in the company’s name
What a signature circular does not showA signature circular is a valuable document, but it has limits. It shows on paper who was authorised on a given date. On its own, it does not prove:
* that the person you are emailing or messaging is the person named in it
* that the authority is still valid today
* that the bank account on the proforma belongs to the company
* the company’s production capacity, financial health or reliability in delivering
* that a fraudster has not copied a real company’s real circular and used it from their own email address
That last point matters. Companies share documents such as signature circulars with customers and suppliers from time to time, so a fraudster may hold a genuine one. That is why the authenticity of the document, the identity of the person and the account holder each need checking separately.
How EnterTurkey handles this checkAn EnterTurkey Lite review checks the company’s identity and registration status, the authority of the representative who quoted or signed, and who holds the bank account. The report is delivered within 24 hours (1 working day) and costs $199. It is the level of check most buyers need when the question is “can this person sign, and is this the company’s account?”
If you need more depth, the Pro package, at $499 within 48 hours (2 working days), adds research in official sources and an exterior check of the address. To see what you would receive, have a look at our sample report.
ConclusionAsking “can this person bind the company?” before you pay a Turkish supplier is one of the cheapest and most effective precautions available. Ask for the signature circular, compare it with the representation announcement in the Trade Registry Gazette, request a power of attorney if a non-signatory is signing, and confirm separately that the bank account belongs to the company. If something does not add up, holding the payment until you have a clear answer is always the safer choice.
Frequently asked questionsWhat is an imza sirküleri?An imza sirküleri, or signature circular, is a document, usually issued by a Turkish notary, showing the specimen signatures of the people authorised to represent a company, whether they may sign alone or jointly, and any limits on their authority.
Who can sign for a Turkish company?In a limited company, usually the manager or managers; in a joint-stock company, the board of directors or the people the board has authorised to represent it. These appointments are registered and announced in the Trade Registry Gazette. Others can sign only under a power of attorney that covers the act.
How do I check an authorised signatory in Turkey?Ask for the signature circular, compare it with the latest representation announcement in the Trade Registry Gazette, and, if needed, contact the issuing notary using details you have found independently to confirm the journal number and date. Then confirm by phone that the person you are dealing with is the signatory.
Does a signature circular expire?It does not normally show an expiry date, but it is only as good as the authority behind it. If the signatory has resigned, been replaced or the board’s term has ended, an older circular may no longer reflect who can sign.
Can an export manager sign a contract for a Turkish supplier?Not on the strength of the job title alone. If the export manager is not named as a signatory in the circular or the registry, ask for a notarised power of attorney from the company’s authorised signatories that covers the contract, and check its scope and term.
Does the signature circular prove the bank account belongs to the supplier?No. It only shows who may represent the company. Whether the account on the proforma is held in the company’s name must be checked separately. An EnterTurkey Lite review checks the representative’s authority and the account holder together.