After years in the UK, the Netherlands, Germany or elsewhere in Europe, moving back to Turkey is often a decision made with the heart. To keep the move itself stress-free, paperwork abroad, Turkish customs rules and transport need to fit together. This guide walks you through the key steps in the right order.
1. Before you leave
Where your country of residence has a registration system, deregister before leaving and keep the certificate. In countries without one, keep documents that show your residence has ended, such as tenancy termination or utility closure letters. These help prove to Turkish customs that you have moved your residence back.
- Give notice on your tenancy and plan for the deposit refund
- Cancel energy, internet, phone and insurance contracts
- Sort out banking, pensions and tax before departure
2. Duty-free import into Turkey
Turkish citizens returning permanently can usually import used household goods duty-free if certain conditions are met, typically a minimum period of residence abroad and personal use of the goods. New goods, vehicles and commercial items follow separate rules.
| Document | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Passport | with entry and exit stamps |
| Proof of ended residence | shows you have moved back |
| Proof of residence abroad | length of stay |
| Inventory | numbered, in Turkish |
3. What to take – and what to leave
Moving back is a good time to declutter. European appliances work in Turkey (230 V, same plug type as continental Europe; UK plugs need adapters or a plug change). Built-in kitchens rarely fit Turkish homes. Flammable items, food and plants should not be packed.
4. Volume and transport type
A full home travels in a dedicated vehicle or container; small volumes by part load. Estimate your volume with the m³ calculator, remembering that packing adds about 10–20%.
5. Suggested timeline
- 3 months before: give notice, request quotes.
- 2 months before: check customs conditions, collect documents.
- 1 month before: declutter, cancel contracts, fix the loading date.
- Final week: deregistration, packing and loading.
- In Turkey: customs clearance and delivery.
6. How much does a move to Turkey cost?
The price depends mainly on the net volume in m³, the collection city in the UK, Germany or elsewhere in Europe, the delivery address in Turkey and the transport option you choose. Extras include packing materials, furniture dismantling, floors without a lift, parking permits or temporary storage. A flat price per home size therefore says little – two flats of the same size can hold very different volumes.
| Home | Typical volume | Usual transport |
|---|---|---|
| Studio / student | 8–12 m³ | Part load |
| 1–2 bedrooms | 15–27 m³ | Part load or shared truck |
| 3 bedrooms | 30–35 m³ | Dedicated truck / container |
| House | 45 m³ and more | Full articulated truck |
After a free survey, on site or by video call, you receive a written fixed-price quote: as long as the scope stays the same, the price does not change.
7. Arriving in Turkey: customs and delivery
On arrival, your household goods are cleared at the responsible customs office in Turkey. Our team submits the file prepared in advance, attends any inspection and then arranges delivery to your new address – Istanbul, Izmir, Ankara, Antalya or a small town in Anatolia. On site we place and reassemble furniture if you wish and take the packaging away.
Keep your passport and original documents to hand until clearance is complete. Some customs offices ask for an in-person signature or a power of attorney; we will let you know in good time if that applies to you.
8. Common mistakes – and how to avoid them
- Planning too late: notice periods and customs preparation take time; starting a month before often means paying rent twice.
- Taking new goods: brand-new items still in their boxes usually do not qualify for the duty-free allowance.
- Vague box labels: “miscellaneous” as contents triggers questions at inspection. Every box needs a number and clear contents.
- Valuables in the truck: jewellery, cash and key documents travel with you.
- Underestimating volume: lofts, cellars and balconies are often forgotten. Check with the m³ calculator.
9. Checklist for the final days
- Cancel or transfer utilities, internet, insurance and phone contracts
- Do the move-out inspection and record meter readings
- Set up mail redirection
- Pack hand luggage with documents, medication and chargers
- Check and sign the inventory list
10. A 12-week plan for moving back to Turkey
Moving back for good means closing one life in an orderly way and preparing another. From experience, around twelve weeks is the right lead time. The table below shows what usually happens on each side.
| When | In Europe | In Turkey |
|---|---|---|
| 12–10 weeks before | Give notice on your lease, free survey and written quote | Confirm when your new home will be ready |
| 10–8 weeks before | Talk to an adviser about bank accounts, pension and tax | Check customs conditions and required documents |
| 8–6 weeks before | Sort belongings: sell, donate, take | Arrange storage if needed |
| 6–4 weeks before | Cancel contracts, book bulky waste collection | Apply for utilities at the new address |
| 4–2 weeks before | Parking permit, deregistration appointment | Plan the delivery day |
| Final week | Packing, loading, handing back the flat | Keep documents ready |
| After the move | Follow up on your deposit refund | Customs, delivery and set-up |
You can build this plan around your own dates with our moving planner – choose “From Europe to Turkey” and every task is placed in the right week, ready to export to your calendar.
11. Handing back your home and getting your deposit
When you leave a rented home in Germany, Austria or the Netherlands, the flat is usually inspected together with the landlord or the property manager, and a handover report is signed. In Germany this is the Wohnungsübergabeprotokoll, and it largely decides how much of your deposit (Kaution) is refunded. Whether you have to repaint walls or fill drill holes depends on your tenancy agreement, so read it early. Take photos of every room and record the meter readings on the day. Deposit refunds can take a while because the final service-charge statement has to be settled; keeping your European bank account open for a few months makes it easier to receive the refund after you have left.
12. Pension, social security and tax
Many of our customers moving back are retired or close to retirement. How your years of work in Europe count towards your pension, how payments are transferred to Turkey, and what happens with health insurance and tax all depend on your personal situation and can differ considerably from one person to the next. We strongly recommend getting advice from the relevant institutions and an independent adviser before you move. Keep every document you need for these processes in your hand luggage, not in the moving boxes.
13. What goes into a Turkish customs file?
For citizens moving back permanently, the customs file for household goods usually contains:
- your passport with entry and exit stamps, and your ID card
- documents showing how long you lived abroad
- your deregistration certificate from your last European address (in Germany the Abmeldebescheinigung)
- a detailed inventory in Turkish whose numbers match the boxes
- any additional documents requested for your personal situation
Conditions and time limits can change, so our customs team always prepares your file according to the rules in force at the time of your move and tells you in advance if anything is missing.
14. Where in Europe are you moving from?
Thanks to our own branch in Germany, we can carry out on-site surveys and packing in most German cities, from North Rhine-Westphalia and Baden-Württemberg to Bavaria, Hesse, Berlin and Hamburg. We also move households back to Turkey from the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Austria, Switzerland, Scandinavia and the United Kingdom. Outside Germany the survey is usually done by video call, and on loading day our crew comes to your address according to the operations plan. Whichever country you leave from, you deal with one team from the first call to the last box.
15. If your home in Turkey is not ready yet
One of the most common situations is that the new home in Turkey is not ready on moving day: building work is still going on, the flat is being renovated, or the previous tenant has not moved out. In that case we can keep your belongings, packed and numbered, at our sister brand FlexiDepo’s secure storage in Istanbul after customs clearance. As soon as your home is ready, we deliver and set everything up. Addresses outside Istanbul are covered by our long-distance moving team within Turkey.
16. Taking your car
If you want to take your car to Turkey, separate customs rules and taxes apply to vehicles. The car’s age, engine size, how long you have owned it and your residence status abroad all affect the outcome. We recommend looking into this separately from your household move and on the basis of the current rules. If you decide not to take the car, remember to sell it and deregister it before your moving date.
17. Children and changing schools
For school-age children, enrolment and the recognition of foreign school records are important. Reports and certificates from the European school are usually needed for the equivalence process in Turkey and may require translation and certification. Planning your moving date around the school year avoids gaps in your children’s education. Keep these documents in your hand luggage. Supporting your children’s Turkish reading and writing before the move also helps them settle in faster.
18. Your first steps in Turkey
- Address registration: register your new address with the population office or via e-Devlet.
- Utilities: open electricity, water, gas and internet accounts before the delivery date.
- Health: check your health insurance status in Turkey and complete any registration.
- Bank: prepare a Turkish bank account for payments coming from Europe.
- Customs papers: keep the documents you receive after customs clearance.
- Delivery check: compare the boxes against the inventory and report anything missing or damaged in time.
19. What to do with things you leave behind
You rarely need to take everything back. Furniture and appliances in good condition can be sold online, handed over to the next tenant or donated to charity. For bulky waste, most German cities offer a collection service (Sperrmüll) by appointment; slots can fill up weeks ahead, so book early. Items you don’t want to leave behind but have no room for in Turkey yet can travel with your move and wait at FlexiDepo until you need them.
20. Three common mistakes
The first mistake we see is forgetting the notice period on the European lease and ending up paying rent twice. The second is leaving the country without the deregistration certificate and then missing a key document in the Turkish customs file. The third is shipping the goods before the date the new home in Turkey will be ready is confirmed. When we settle these three points together at the planning stage, moving back becomes far less stressful.
Moving a life you have built over many years is more than a transport job – it is a new beginning. Our crews take particular care of things with sentimental value, such as photo albums, children’s handicrafts and family heirlooms, which are packed separately with extra protection and handed to you first on delivery. Just tell us during the survey what matters most to you.
21. Why move back with FlexiLog?
Moving back to Turkey means dealing with two countries’ rules, two customs procedures and two very different delivery situations at once. Our branch in Germany and our head office in Istanbul run both ends of this route with their own crews, so the team that packs your home in Europe and the team that delivers it in Turkey share one plan, one inventory and one responsibility. You get a price based on a net m³ measurement, fast customs handled in-house, guaranteed packing with comprehensive and transit insurance, a written delivery window and a best price guarantee for the same scope. A free survey by video call takes about 15–20 minutes, and your written quote follows the same day.
Your return with FlexiLog
We handle packing, customs and delivery. If your home is not ready, we store your belongings in Istanbul through FlexiDepo. See moving back to Turkey or contact us for a free survey.