Your bank asks where the money comes from. Here is how to answer with documents, not explanations.
Under MASAK's customer due-diligence rules a Turkish bank must understand the origin of funds at account opening, when a transfer arrives from abroad, when cash is deposited and at periodic review. The letter names categories — "income documents", "documents showing the origin of the transferred amount" — and gives a deadline. You must produce specific papers, often foreign, usually with sworn translation. We translate the request into a document list, help you collect it, order the translations, and write a one-page factual cover note in Turkish that you sign.
Price — one request letter
State fees and the notarial tariff are paid by you directly to the state or to the notary. We are not a notary and receive no remuneration from any notary, bank or lawyer.
Last verified: 24.10.2026 · source: MASAK customer due-diligence — masak.hmb.gov.tr; 2026 Noterlik Ücret Tarifesi — higm.adalet.gov.trPilot prices, valid until 31.12.2026, incl. KDV. Worked example: employment letter, six payslips and a property sale contract from Russia — 5 pages translated and notarised: ₺1,500 + 5 × ₺700 + ₺400 = ₺5,400 to ROSTU; ≈ ₺4,420 to the notary.
What banks accept, by origin of money
| Origin | Documents the bank can file |
|---|---|
| Salary | Employment letter, 3–6 months of payslips, statements showing the credits |
| Business income / dividends | Company registry extract, dividend resolution, financial statements, tax returns |
| Sale of property or vehicle | Sale contract, title transfer record, statement showing the proceeds |
| Inheritance or gift | Inheritance certificate or court decision; gift declaration plus the giver's own source documents |
| Savings | Statements covering the accumulation period, tax returns |
| Pension | Award letter and statements |
| Loan | Loan agreement and disbursement proof |
| Crypto-asset sale | Exchange account statements, withdrawal records to a bank account in your name; many banks still decline this origin |
The cover note lists each document and what it shows. It is a factual index, not an opinion, and you sign it as your own statement.
How it works
Send the bank's letter
The letter, e-mail or in-app message, with the deadline. Tell us in one paragraph where the money actually comes from. Scans are fine.
Document list within one business day
We map each category in the letter to specific documents, say where each is obtained (employer, registry, foreign bank, e-Devlet), which need apostille abroad and which need sworn translation here, and in what order.
Collection, translation, ordering
You collect; we chase with you. Our contracted sworn translator translates; a notary certifies where the bank insists. We number the documents to match the cover note.
Cover note, signature, delivery
You receive the pack in Turkish with a copy in your language, sign the note, and hand it in or upload it. If the bank asks a follow-up, one revision is included.
Typical cases
- Account opened last month, first transfer of €25,000 from a parent abroad. Bank wants the giver's relationship and source: family record, the parent's statement, a gift declaration.
- Annual KYC review of a freelancer paid from abroad. Contracts with foreign clients, invoices, and the platform's payout statements, for twelve months.
- Property purchase funds arriving in tranches. Sale of property abroad as origin: contract, title transfer, bank statement of proceeds, apostilled and translated.
- Cash deposit above the bank's internal threshold. Where did the cash come from — withdrawal from another account, a sale, a loan — each with its own paper.
- Pensioner's recurring SWIFT. Pension award letter once, and a standing explanation the bank files for future credits.
What can go wrong
- Answering with a story instead of documents. The compliance officer files papers, not paragraphs. The cover note is short and the documents are many.
- Documents in a language the bank will not read. Foreign documents go to the bank in Turkish sworn translation. We tell you which pages really need translating so you do not pay for all forty.
- Gaps in the chain. Sale contract without proof that the proceeds reached your account; a gift without the giver's own source. The bank reads the chain end to end.
- Missing the deadline. Banks commonly give ten to fifteen days before restricting the account. Send the letter the day you receive it.
- A genuinely problematic origin. If the documents point to something you cannot show lawfully, we stop and say so; what to do next is a question for a lawyer you retain directly.
Questions
Why does the bank ask at all? It is my own money.
Because Law 5549 and MASAK's regulations require the bank to know its customer and the origin of funds, and the bank's correspondent banks abroad require the same of it. An account with an undocumented origin is a risk the bank will close rather than carry.
Do you write the explanation for me?
We draft a factual cover note that indexes the documents: what each one is and what it shows. You check it, correct any fact and sign it as your own statement. We do not sign, send or argue.
Must everything be notarised?
No. Most banks accept a sworn translation with the translator's stamp; some require notarial certification for specific items, typically contracts and court documents. We ask the branch first and notarise only what it asks for.
What if the bank asks for more after we deliver?
One revision is included. A second request letter on a different subject is a new pack.
Related: bank compliance reply for companies · incoming transfer pack · notarised translation · apostille errand · guide: bank compliance questions · back to banking & finance
Send the bank's letter
Opens in WhatsApp. Documents are sent through WhatsApp or e-mail during the pilot. Reply within one business hour.