What Is the Actual Expense Method on Rent in Türkiye?
Region: Türkiye
Definition
Actual Expense Method (Türkiye): Deducting the documented costs of a rented property from the rent when Turkish rental income is taxed (Income Tax Law art. 74), in Turkish gerçek gider. With the home rent exemption, the share of the costs that falls on the exempt rent cannot be deducted.
The actual expense method (gerçek gider) deducts the documented costs of a rented property in the year from the rent when Türkiye taxes rental income (Income Tax Law art. 74). It is the other choice to the flat expense. With the home rent exemption, the share of the costs on the exempt rent cannot be deducted.
Which costs count?
Keep the documents for 5 years from the next year.
- Property tax, fees and similar payments.
- Repairs, upkeep and maintenance.
- Insurance, and the lighting, heating, water and lift costs that the owner pays.
- Depreciation of the rented property.
- Interest on loans for property other than homes, such as a workplace. Since 2025, the interest on a loan for a home cannot be deducted (Law no. 7566).
- The rent of the home the owner lives in as a tenant.
The share of the exempt rent
Deductible costs = total costs × (total rent − exemption) / total rent
In the GİB guide’s example, the home rent in 2025 is 320,000 TRY and the costs are 120,000 TRY. The exemption is 47,000 TRY: 120,000 × 273,000 / 320,000 = 102,375 TRY is deducted. Costs above the rent can be deducted from the rent of the next 5 years at most. The rental income tax calculator does the sums.