Terminal Illness & End-of-Life Administration in Turkey: 5-Step Official Checklist

1. 1

   Coordinate Specialist Palliative Care Centers and Home Health Services

   The first step is to consult the treating specialist physician or family physician (aile hekimi) to establish a palliative care plan covering pain management, symptom control, and nutritional support:

   • Inpatient Palliative Care Centers (Palyatif Bakım Merkezleri): Operating within public training and research hospitals, state hospitals, and university hospitals under the coordination of the Sağlık Bakanlığı (Ministry of Health), palliative care wards handle inpatient admissions arranged through the relevant hospital's palliative care unit or attending physician [1]. For patients covered by social security, treatment costs in public hospital palliative care wards are covered under general health insurance (Genel Sağlık Sigortası) [1].
   • Home Health Services (Evde Sağlık Hizmetleri): If your family member's treatment and follow-up need to continue at home, you can apply by calling 444 38 33, the national call line of the Sağlık Bakanlığı Home Health Services Communication Center (Evde Sağlık Hizmetleri İletişim Merkezi) [1]. Following the application, the provincial home health coordination center and the family physician evaluate the patient and schedule regular home visits, wound dressings, catheter care, pain therapy, and renewal of medical device or medication reports (for acute medical emergencies, call the 112 Emergency Call Center directly) [1].
2. 2

   Document Written Medical Consent and Treatment Preferences under the Patient Rights Regulation

   Although Turkish law does not have a standalone living will statute with a separate central registry, the Patient Rights Regulation (Hasta Hakları Yönetmeliği, Articles 24 and 25) provides a clear legal basis for documenting treatment choices while capacity exists [2]:

   • Informed consent and refusal of treatment: Under the Hasta Hakları Yönetmeliği, the patient's informed consent (aydınlatılmış rıza) is required for every medical intervention, and a patient with decision-making capacity has the right to refuse planned or ongoing treatment or request its discontinuation by submitting a written declaration [2]. While conscious and able to make decisions, your family member can consult their attending physician to record in writing in the medical file which invasive procedures or intensive care interventions they accept or decline, as well as their palliative care preferences [1][2].
   • Designated family contacts: Clearly listing on hospital admission and palliative care medical records which family members the patient wishes to be kept informed and who should be contacted in emergencies ensures uninterrupted communication with the healthcare team [2].
3. 3

   Execute a Notarial or Consular Power of Attorney and Bank Mandates While Full Capacity Exists

   Under Turkish law, powers of attorney (vekâletname) require the principal to possess full legal capacity (fiil ehliyeti / ayırt etme gücü) at the time of execution; once a person permanently loses decision-making capacity, a notary cannot issue a power of attorney and a court-appointed guardian (vasi) must be sought through the Civil Court of Peace (Sulh Hukuk Mahkemesi) [3]:

   • Notarial power of attorney in form of a deed (Düzenleme Şeklinde Vekâletname): While your family member is lucid and retains full capacity, arrange a Düzenleme Şeklinde Vekâletname at a notary public in Turkey (registered in the system of the Türkiye Noterler Birliği, Union of Turkish Public Notaries) granting specific authority for banking transactions, land registry (tapu) actions, official agency applications, and managing healthcare/care documentation [3]. In cases of advanced age or severe illness, the notary may request a same-day mental capacity report (akıl sağlığı raporu) from a state hospital or forensic medicine office so future legal validity cannot be challenged; if the patient cannot travel to the notary office, a home or hospital visit can be requested from the competent or on-duty notary [3].
   • Banking specifications and consular execution abroad: Turkish banks require a notarial power of attorney to explicitly list each permitted banking operation (such as cash withdrawals, EFT/wire transfers, and time-deposit management). If the person executing the document is abroad, powers of attorney executed by appointment via konsolosluk.gov.tr at Turkish Consulates General under the Dışişleri Bakanlığı (Ministry of Foreign Affairs) are integrated directly with notary offices in Turkey through the Union of Turkish Public Notaries Information System (TNBBS) [4].
4. 4

   Apply for Inpatient Companion Rights, Incapacity Benefits, and Home Care Financial Assistance

   Both employed caregivers and insured patients can access statutory social security benefits and social assistance programs in Turkey [5][6]:

   • Companion rights and SGK incapacity benefits: When an attending physician or medical board certifies that an inpatient companion (refakatçi) is medically necessary during hospitalization, employed family members can use companion leave entitlements under labor and civil service rules, and the Sosyal Güvenlik Kurumu (SGK, Social Security Institution, helpline ALO 170) covers medically necessary companion bed and meal expenses under the Healthcare Implementation Communiqué (Sağlık Uygulama Tebliği) [5]. An insured patient's own applications for temporary incapacity benefit (geçici iş göremezlik ödeneği) or disability pension (malullük aylığı) are also processed through SGK provincial directorates or the e-Devlet portal [5].
   • Home Care Assistance (Evde Bakım Yardımı): For adult patients who cannot perform daily living activities (nutrition, dressing, personal hygiene, mobility) without assistance, an application for Evde Bakım Yardımı can be submitted to Provincial Directorates or Social Service Centers of the Aile ve Sosyal Hizmetler Bakanlığı (Ministry of Family and Social Services, call center ALO 183), provided an Adult Disability Medical Board Report (Erişkinler İçin Engellilik Sağlık Kurulu Raporu) from an authorized public hospital includes the designation "Fully Dependent" (Tam Bağımlı) and household income per capita is below two-thirds of the net minimum wage [6].
5. 5

   Prepare the Will, Pension/Insurance Beneficiaries, Certificate of Inheritance, and Inheritance Tax Filing

   While possessing full mental capacity, your family member can secure their estate wishes and organize key documents for the legal steps that follow a death in Turkey:

   • Official will and document file: Under the Turkish Civil Code, an official will (resmi vasiyetname) can be executed before a notary in the presence of two witnesses; notarized wills are stored confidentially in the records of the Türkiye Noterler Birliği and notified to the civil registry (nüfus müdürlüğü) [3]. Gather private life insurance and individual pension (Bireysel Emeklilik Sistemi, BES) beneficiary records, title deeds (tapu), bank contracts, and burial or religious ceremony preferences in one accessible folder.
   • Funeral allowance and survivor pensions: Following the death of an insured person, applications for the one-time funeral allowance (cenaze ödeneği) and survivor pensions (ölüm aylığı / widow's and orphan's pensions for eligible spouses and children) are submitted to Sosyal Güvenlik Kurumu (SGK, ALO 170) offices or via e-Devlet [5].
   • Certificate of Inheritance (Mirasçılık Belgesi / Veraset İlamı): Required after death to unfreeze bank accounts and transfer title deeds, the Mirasçılık Belgesi can be obtained from any notary public (via the Türkiye Noterler Birliği) if there is no civil registry obstacle, will, or foreign element, or otherwise from the Civil Court of Peace (Sulh Hukuk Mahkemesi) [3]. Powers of attorney granted during lifetime generally terminate upon death, and bank accounts remain blocked until the Mirasçılık Belgesi and tax clearance certificate (vergi ilişiksiz yazısı) are presented.
   • Inheritance and Transfer Tax Return (Veraset ve İntikal Vergisi Beyannamesi): If the death occurs in Turkey and the heirs are in Turkey, filing a Veraset ve İntikal Vergisi Beyannamesi with the Gelir İdaresi Başkanlığı (Revenue Administration, via the tax office or Digital Tax Office, Dijital Vergi Dairesi) within four months from the date of death is mandatory by law (extended to six or eight months if the death or heirs are abroad) [7].

Official Authorities & Verified Contacts

Official Sources Checked by Clarvia

1. [1]
   Home Health Services and Palliative Care Application Procedures (444 38 33) — T.C. Sağlık Bakanlığı
2. [2]
   Patient Rights Regulation - Informed Consent in Medical Intervention and Right to Refuse Treatment — T.C. Adalet Bakanlığı / Mevzuat
3. [3]
   Notarial Procedures: Certificate of Inheritance, Power of Attorney, and Will — Türkiye Noterler Birliği (TNB)
4. [4]
   Notarial Services and Powers of Attorney in Deed Form at Consular Missions Abroad — T.C. Dışişleri Bakanlığı (konsolosluk.gov.tr)
5. [5]
   Short-Term Insurance Branches, Temporary Incapacity Benefit, and Funeral Allowance — Sosyal Güvenlik Kurumu (SGK)
6. [6]
   Disability Home Care Assistance Application Requirements and Medical Board Report — T.C. Aile ve Sosyal Hizmetler Bakanlığı
7. [7]
   Inheritance and Transfer Tax Guide and Filing Deadlines — Gelir İdaresi Başkanlığı (GİB)