What is the family residence annotation and how is it placed?

In the Turkish Civil Code and TKGM practice, the family residence is the place where the spouses carry out all their life activities and use it for regular settlement. This quality is related to the actual function of the house in the marital union rather than who owns it in the title deed. The general approach is that the family residence is single.

A summer house used from time to time, an apartment held for investment purposes or an empty house does not automatically fall under the same protection. On the other hand, even if the type of real estate in the title deed appears to be land or field, a special evaluation can be made if it can be proven with authorized documents that it is actually a family residence.

Key distinctionFamily housing is not a type of property, but the function of housing within marriage.

Annotation does not automatically give the other spouse a share of the title deed; It makes the protection visible in certain legal proceedings regarding the family home.

According to the current circular of TKGM, the owner spouse, the non-owner spouse or both spouses together may request a family residence annotation. The owner spouse is not required to give prior approval for the non-owner spouse's application; As a result of the transaction, relevant persons may be notified.

Basic documents are the residence certificate and the civil registry sample showing marital status. In cases where the MERNIS address and the island and parcel information in the title deed do not directly match, additional evidence may be requested from sources such as the municipality, headman's office, cadastral directorate, apartment management or LİHKAB. The document list must be verified by the land registry office according to the concrete real estate.

According to Article 194 of the Turkish Civil Code, one of the spouses cannot transfer the family home or limit the rights on the home without the express consent of the other spouse. The TKGM circular explains that the consent of the non-owner spouse will be required for transfer transactions such as sales and donations, as well as mortgages, promise of sale, usufruct and similar restrictive transactions.

Consent should not be assumed only in the form of “my spouse knows.” It must be clear and provable for which transaction it is given. In cases where consent is not given or obtained without a justified reason, the intervention of a judge may come to the fore. The sales or loan process should not be scheduled until this legal issue is resolved.

• Transfer by sale or donation
• Establishing a mortgage
• Promise of sale and long-term rights restrictions
• Records such as usufruct, residence or lease annotation
• To what process and under what conditions is consent given

For the seller, the nature of the family residence and the consent of the spouse should be resolved in preparation for the sale, not after the advertisement is published. Otherwise, the process may stop at the deposit, loan and title deed appointment stage. If the spouse's consent is required, it should be clarified with the lawyer and the land registry office in what form and when it will be provided.

For the buyer, the presence of a family residence annotation in the current title deed record is a clear warning. However, the absence of an annotation should not be treated as a definitive guarantee that the real estate cannot actually be a family residence. If there is uncertainty about the marital status of the seller, the way the property is used and the consent of the spouse, an independent legal review should be carried out.

Abandonment of the family residence annotation may require different documents and consents depending on who requested the annotation and the marriage status. Situations such as the request of the beneficiary spouse, joint application of the spouses, finalized divorce or annulment of marriage, death or court decision are regulated separately in the circular.

The annotation requires the consent of the spouse in certain transactions carried out by the owner of his own free will; It does not absolutely prevent transactions that occur outside the will of the owner, such as registration by default, forced sale, seizure and injunction. For this reason, the annotation should not be presented as "no action can be taken on the house" or "it is protected from all debts".

• Who had the annotation made and with what document
• Whose consent is required for cancellation requests
• Whether the marriage continues
• Nature of the court or enforcement action
• Previous mortgages, liens and measures on the real estate