Inheritance Law Law
This section addresses certificates of inheritance, wills, reduction (tenkis) and testator-collusion actions, and the partition of estates under the Turkish Civil Code.
Disinheritance: Grounds and Procedure
Depriving a forced heir of the inheritance under TMK arts.510-513
On what grounds is disinheritance possible and how is it effected? Punitive disinheritance and protective disinheritance compared.
Disinheritance is the act by which the testator, by testamentary disposition, deprives a forced heir of the inheritance. While the Turkish Civil Code generally protects the reserved share, it grants this right to the testator in limited cases.
Punitive (Ordinary) Disinheritance
TMK art.510 lists the grounds for punitive disinheritance exhaustively: (i) the heir has committed a serious offence against the testator or against a member of the testator's close family, and (ii) the heir has substantially failed to perform obligations arising under family law towards the testator or members of his or her family.
These grounds are exhaustive; disinheritance may not be based on any other ground. Disinheritance is effected by a testamentary disposition (a will or a succession contract) and the ground must be expressly stated (TMK art.512).
Protective Disinheritance
Under TMK art.513, where one of the testator's descendants has been declared insolvent, the testator may disinherit that descendant in respect of one-half of the reserved share. That half must be allocated to the existing and future children of the disinherited descendant.
Unlike punitive disinheritance, protective disinheritance does not rest on misconduct by the heir but on the need to protect the inheritance from creditors. A certificate of insolvency or equivalent document is required.
Objection and Burden of Proof
TMK art.512/3 contains an important rule: the burden of proving the existence of the ground for disinheritance rests on the heir who benefits from it. The disinherited heir may seek annulment of the disposition by contending that the stated ground is untrue.
Where the ground is not proved or is not stated in the disposition, the disinheritance fails and the disinherited heir takes his or her reserved share; the disposition remains valid as to the portion exceeding the reserved share.
Practical Considerations
In inheritance disputes, the first step is to clarify the status of the heirs, the scope of the estate and any dispositions on death. Civil-registry records, certificates of inheritance, land-registry records, bank correspondence, the records of the opening of a will and any transfers made by the deceased during their lifetime should be reviewed together.
The time limits and types of action for matters such as reduction, testator collusion, renunciation of inheritance, annulment of a will and inheritance waiver differ from one another. Correctly identifying the date of knowledge, the opening of the estate, the opening of the will and the date of any renunciation declaration prevents the loss of rights.
Because intra-family transactions are often conducted without written documents, bank receipts, the values reflected in the deed, the testator's economic needs, witness accounts and patterns of actual use are particularly important. The earlier the evidence is prepared, the more soundly the legal framework of the dispute can be established.
Relevant Statutory Provisions
- TMK m.510Grounds for punitive disinheritance
Original (Turkish, official):
Madde 510- Aşağıdaki durumlarda mirasbırakan, ölüme bağlı bir tasarrufla saklı paylı mirasçısını mirasçılıktan çıkarabilir: 1. Mirasçı, mirasbırakana veya mirasbırakanın yakınlarından birine karşı ağır bir suç işlemişse, 2. Mirasçı, mirasbırakana veya mirasbırakanın ailesi üyelerine karşı aile hukukundan doğan yükümlülüklerini önemli ölçüde yerine getirmemişse.
English summary (non-binding):
Article 510- The testator may, by testamentary disposition, disinherit a forced heir in the following cases: 1. The heir has committed a serious offence against the testator or against a member of the testator's close family; 2. The heir has substantially failed to perform obligations arising under family law towards the testator or members of his or her family.
Source: mevzuat.gov.tr · last reviewed: 2026-05-12
- TMK m.511Effects of disinheritance
Original (Turkish, official):
Madde 511- Mirasçılıktan çıkarılan kimse, mirastan pay alamayacağı gibi; tenkis davası da açamaz. Mirasbırakan başka türlü tasarrufta bulunmuş olmadıkça, mirasçılıktan çıkarılan kimsenin miras payı, o kimse mirasbırakandan önce ölmüş gibi, mirasçılıktan çıkarılanın varsa altsoyuna, yoksa mirasbırakanın yasal mirasçılarına kalır. Mirasçılıktan çıkarılan kimsenin altsoyu, o kimse mirasbırakandan önce ölmüş gibi saklı payını isteyebilir.
English summary (non-binding):
Article 511- A disinherited person takes no share in the inheritance and may not bring a reduction action. Unless the testator has provided otherwise, the share of the disinherited person passes — as if that person had predeceased the testator — to his or her descendants, or, in their absence, to the statutory heirs of the testator. The descendants of the disinherited person may claim their reserved share as if that person had predeceased the testator.
Source: mevzuat.gov.tr · last reviewed: 2026-05-12
- TMK m.512Proof of disinheritance and statement of grounds
Original (Turkish, official):
Madde 512- Mirasçılıktan çıkarma, mirasbırakan ancak buna ilişkin tasarrufunda çıkarma sebebini belirtmişse geçerlidir. Mirasçılıktan çıkarılan kimse itiraz ederse, belirtilen sebebin varlığını ispat, çıkarmadan yararlanan mirasçıya veya vasiyet alacaklısına düşer. Sebebin varlığı ispat edilememiş veya çıkarma sebebi tasarrufta belirtilmemişse tasarruf, mirasçının saklı payı dışında yerine getirilir; ancak, mirasbırakan bu tasarrufu çıkarma sebebi hakkında düştüğü açık bir yanılma yüzünden yapmışsa, çıkarma geçersiz olur.
English summary (non-binding):
Article 512- Disinheritance is valid only if the testator has stated the ground in the relevant disposition. If the disinherited person objects, the burden of proving the existence of the stated ground rests on the heir or legatee who benefits from the disinheritance. Where the ground is not proved or is not stated in the disposition, the disposition is given effect outside the reserved share of the heir; however, if the testator made the disposition under a manifest error as to the ground, the disinheritance is void.
Source: mevzuat.gov.tr · last reviewed: 2026-05-12
- TMK m.513Protective (preventive) disinheritance
Original (Turkish, official):
Madde 513- Mirasbırakan, hakkında borç ödemeden aciz belgesi bulunan altsoyunu, saklı payının yarısı için mirasçılıktan çıkarabilir. Ancak, bu yarıyı mirasçılıktan çıkarılanın doğmuş ve doğacak çocuklarına özgülemesi şarttır. Miras açıldığı zaman borç ödemeden aciz belgesinin hükmü kalmamışsa veya belgenin kapsadığı borç tutarı mirasçılıktan çıkarılanın miras payının yarısını aşmıyorsa, mirasçılıktan çıkarılanın istemi üzerine çıkarma iptal olunur.
English summary (non-binding):
Article 513- The testator may disinherit a descendant in respect of whom a certificate of insolvency has been issued, in respect of one-half of that descendant's reserved share, provided that this half is allocated to the existing and future children of the disinherited descendant. Where, at the opening of the succession, the certificate of insolvency is no longer in force, or the debt covered by it does not exceed one-half of the disinherited person's share, the disinheritance is annulled on the application of the disinherited person.
Source: mevzuat.gov.tr · last reviewed: 2026-05-12
- TMK m.578Unworthiness to inherit
Original (Turkish, official):
Madde 578- Aşağıdaki kimseler, mirasçı olamayacakları gibi; ölüme bağlı tasarrufla herhangi bir hak da edinemezler: 1. Mirasbırakanı kasten ve hukuka aykırı olarak öldüren veya öldürmeye teşebbüs edenler, 2. Mirasbırakanı kasten ve hukuka aykırı olarak sürekli şekilde ölüme bağlı tasarruf yapamayacak duruma getirenler, 3. Mirasbırakanın ölüme bağlı bir tasarruf yapmasını veya böyle bir tasarruftan dönmesini aldatma, zorlama veya korkutma yoluyla sağlayanlar ve engelleyenler, 4. Mirasbırakanın artık yeniden yapamayacağı bir durumda ve zamanda ölüme bağlı bir tasarrufu kasten ve hukuka aykırı olarak ortadan kaldıranlar veya bozanlar. Mirastan yoksunluk, mirasbırakanın affıyla ortadan kalkar.
English summary (non-binding):
Article 578- The following persons cannot be heirs and cannot acquire any right under a testamentary disposition: 1. Those who intentionally and unlawfully killed the testator or attempted to do so; 2. Those who intentionally and unlawfully placed the testator in a permanent state of incapacity to make a testamentary disposition; 3. Those who, by deceit, coercion or intimidation, induced or prevented the testator's making or revoking a testamentary disposition; 4. Those who intentionally and unlawfully destroyed or altered a testamentary disposition in circumstances and at a time when the testator was no longer in a position to make it again. Unworthiness is removed by the testator's pardon.
Source: mevzuat.gov.tr · last reviewed: 2026-05-12
The statutory provisions are reproduced for information purposes only. The current and official text on mevzuat.gov.tr is authoritative.
Conclusion
Disinheritance is an exceptional remedy subject to strict requirements. If the disposition is not properly drawn, if the ground is not clearly stated, or if the ground cannot be proved, the reserved share will prevail.
This article is for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. If you would like professional assistance on a specific matter, you may request a consultation.
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