MERSIS is the central electronic registry system operated by the Turkish Ministry of Trade where every Turkish company is registered and assigned a unique 16-digit MERSIS number.
MERSIS, short for Merkezi Sicil Kayit Sistemi (Central Registry Recording System), is the unified electronic company registry operated by the Turkish Ministry of Trade since 2013. Every joint-stock company (Anonim Sirket / A.S.), limited liability company (Limited Sirket / Ltd.
Sti.), cooperative, and most other entity types must register through the MERSIS portal, after which they receive a unique 16-digit MERSIS number that follows the entity for life.
Pre-MERSIS, Turkish company registration was a paper-based process at each provincial Ticaret Sicil Mudurlugu (Trade Registry Office); MERSIS centralizes all of that data into a single online system, though the actual signing of incorporation documents still happens before a Turkish notary or trade-registry officer.
The MERSIS number is required on every Turkish invoice, every Ticaret Sicil Gazetesi (Trade Registry Gazette) publication, every contract with public bodies, and every bank-account application for Turkish entities. Non-residents forming an Anonim Sirket or Limited Sirket interact with MERSIS through their Turkish lawyer or accountant, who has authorized access.
All major events in the company life cycle - capital increases, share transfers, address changes, director changes, mergers, dissolutions - flow through MERSIS and are simultaneously published in the Trade Registry Gazette.
Foreign founders incorporating in Turkey - whether a Limited Sirket in Istanbul, a free-zone company in Antalya or Izmir, or a holding company structure for real-estate investments tied to Turkish citizenship-by-investment - will see their MERSIS number on the trade-registry confirmation, the tax office (Vergi Dairesi) registration, and every notarized document going forward.
The system also handles online annual general meeting filings and pre-meeting director/shareholder lists.
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