Individual Application to Turkey’s Constitutional Court and the European Court of Human Rights: Law No. 6216, Property and Fair Trial Rights, the Compensation Commission and Remedies for Foreign Investors

When Turkish administrative and judicial remedies have been exhausted, an investor whose fundamental rights have been violated by public authority may apply to the Constitutional Court. The rights covered are those protected by both the Constitution and the European Convention on Human Rights, notably the right to property and the right to a fair trial (Constitution Art. 148(3); Law No. 6216 Art. 45(1)). The application must be made within thirty days of exhaustion. A further fifteen days are allowed after a justified excuse ends (Law No. 6216 Art. 47(5)). Foreign natural and legal persons may apply, except about rights reserved to Turkish citizens. Private-law legal persons may complain only of violations of their own rights, and public legal persons cannot apply at all (Art. 46). If the Court finds a violation caused by a court decision, the file is sent back for retrial or compensation is awarded (Art. 50(2)). Since 2024, complaints about the length of proceedings go first to the Compensation Commission under Law No. 6384. That application is made during the proceedings or within one month of learning of the final decision (Arts. 2(3)(a) and 5/A). After domestic remedies, an application may be lodged with the European Court of Human Rights within four months of the final decision (Convention Art. 35(1)). A finding of violation there allows a civil judgment to be reopened within three months (Code of Civil Procedure Arts. 375(1)(i) and 377(1)(e)). This guide explains these routes for foreign institutional investors. It reflects the legislation in force as at 26 October 2026.

Why rights-based remedies matter after the 2026 measures

The 2026 fund and market manipulation cases have produced many measures by public authority that affect investors. They include SPK trading bans and measures concerning funds, seizures of assets in criminal investigations, decisions of administrative and civil courts, and legislation addressing the funds. Most of these can be challenged before the ordinary administrative or civil courts, as explained in our guides to suing Turkey’s Capital Markets Board and how a securities lawsuit proceeds in Turkey.

Where those remedies have been used and the investor still considers that its property or fair trial rights have been violated, two further routes exist. One is an individual application to the Turkish Constitutional Court. The other is an application to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. Both are subsidiary: they do not re-examine the case as an appeal court would, but ask whether a fundamental right has been violated. Both have short time limits and strict formal requirements, so they need to be planned before the last domestic decision is given.

The legal framework

Under the Constitution, where international human rights treaties duly in force and laws conflict on the same matter, the treaty provisions prevail (Art. 90(5)). Fundamental rights may be restricted only by law, for the reasons stated in the relevant article of the Constitution, without touching their essence and in accordance with proportionality (Art. 13). Everyone has the rights of property and inheritance, which may be limited by law only in the public interest (Art. 35). Everyone has the right to a fair trial (Art. 36).

Who may apply

Victim status. An individual application may be made only by a person whose current and personal right is directly affected by the act, action or omission complained of (Law No. 6216 Art. 46(1)).

Legal persons. Public legal persons cannot make individual applications. Private-law legal persons may apply only on the ground that rights belonging to the legal person itself have been violated (Art. 46(2)).

Foreigners. Foreigners cannot apply about rights recognised only for Turkish citizens (Art. 46(3)). The rights to property and to a fair trial are not limited to citizens. Foreign companies and funds with legal personality can therefore, in principle, rely on them.

State-owned and public investors. The exclusion of public legal persons in Turkish law, and the Convention’s limitation of individual applications to persons, non-governmental organisations and groups of individuals (Convention Art. 34), need to be considered at the outset for investors owned or controlled by a State. In Strasbourg, the question is decided case by case, by looking at the entity’s legal status, its functions and its independence from the State. For example, in Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines v. Turkey (2007), a State-owned shipping company was treated as a non-governmental organisation. The answer for a particular investor depends on its own legal form and functions and should be assessed before any filing.

What can be complained of

The rights. Anyone may apply to the Constitutional Court alleging that public authority has violated a fundamental right or freedom guaranteed in the Constitution that falls within the European Convention on Human Rights and the additional protocols to which Türkiye is a party (Constitution Art. 148(3); Law No. 6216 Art. 45(1)). For investors, the relevant rights are usually the right to property (Constitution Art. 35; Protocol No. 1 Art. 1) and the right to a fair trial, including trial within a reasonable time (Constitution Art. 36; Convention Art. 6).

What cannot be challenged directly. Legislative acts and regulatory administrative acts cannot be challenged directly by individual application. Decisions of the Constitutional Court and acts excluded from judicial review by the Constitution cannot be challenged at all (Law No. 6216 Art. 45(3)). A law or a regulation therefore has to be applied to the investor by an individual act or decision, which is then challenged through the ordinary remedies and, after exhaustion, by individual application.

Not a fourth instance. Where the application concerns a court decision, the examination is limited to whether a fundamental right has been violated and how the violation should be remedied. Matters that are for the appeal courts cannot be examined (Art. 49(6)). Disagreement with the assessment of evidence or the interpretation of ordinary law is not enough. The complaint must be framed as a violation of a right, for example an interference with property that lacked a legal basis or was disproportionate, or proceedings that were unfair or unreasonably long.

How interferences with property are assessed

The questions asked. The Constitution allows fundamental rights to be restricted only by law, for the reasons stated in the Constitution, without touching their essence and in accordance with proportionality (Art. 13). It allows the right of property to be limited by law only in the public interest (Art. 35). Article 1 of Protocol No. 1 permits deprivation of possessions in the public interest and subject to the conditions provided by law, and control of use in accordance with the general interest. An application concerning an investment therefore usually turns on three questions. Did the interference have a clear and foreseeable legal basis? Did it pursue a legitimate public interest aim? Did it strike a fair balance between that aim and the investor’s rights, taking into account procedural safeguards, compensation and duration?

Procedural safeguards. In property cases, whether the investor had a genuine opportunity to challenge the measure before an independent court is part of the proportionality assessment. Lengthy measures with no effective review, or the absence of any compensation mechanism, weigh against the State. A record built in the domestic proceedings, showing what was argued and how the courts responded, is therefore central to any later application.

Compensation for criminal measures. The Criminal Procedure Code provides for compensation for certain unlawful or unjustified protective measures in criminal proceedings. Claims are made within three months of service of the final decision and in any event within one year of it becoming final (Criminal Procedure Code Art. 142(1)). Since 2024, some categories of these claims are decided by the Compensation Commission rather than the assize court (Art. 142(2); Law No. 6384 Art. 2(3)(b)). Such statutory compensation routes are part of the remedies to be exhausted.

Fees and legal aid. The application fee is set by the Fees Law and paid to the tax offices. Requests for legal aid are decided under the general rules by the section or commission deciding admissibility (Rules Art. 62).

Exhaustion, time limit and the application

Exhaustion. All administrative and judicial remedies provided by law for the act, action or omission complained of must be exhausted before the application (Law No. 6216 Art. 45(2)).

Time limit. The application must be made within thirty days of the exhaustion of remedies or, where no remedy exists, of learning of the violation. Those who could not apply in time for a justified reason may apply within fifteen days of the reason ending, with supporting evidence (Art. 47(5); Rules of Procedure Art. 64).

Where to file. Applications may be made directly to the Court or through other courts or Turkish diplomatic missions abroad (Law No. 6216 Art. 47(1); Rules of Procedure Art. 63(1)). The date of delivery of the duly completed form with the fee receipt is the date of application (Rules Art. 63(2)). For a foreign institution, filing through a Turkish mission abroad, or through its Turkish lawyer at a Turkish court, can help meet the thirty-day limit.

Form and contents. Applications are made in the official language using the form published by the Court (Rules Art. 59(1)). The form must identify the applicant, and for a legal person its registration details and representative. It must summarise the facts in date order, explain which right was violated and why, list the stages of exhaustion and their dates, and state the claims, including any compensation (Law No. 6216 Art. 47(3); Rules Art. 59(2)). It must be accompanied by the evidence, the decisions complained of, proof of the fee and, where a lawyer acts, the power of attorney (Law No. 6216 Art. 47(3)–(4); Rules Art. 59(3)). Applications are subject to a fee (Law No. 6216 Art. 47(2)).

Deficiencies. If the application is incomplete, the applicant is given a final period of up to fifteen days to complete it. Failure without a valid excuse leads to rejection. A rejection for formal reasons may be challenged before a commission within seven days (Law No. 6216 Art. 47(6); Rules Art. 66).

How the Constitutional Court examines applications

Admissibility. The conditions in Arts. 45–47 must be met. The Court may declare inadmissible applications that have no significance for the application and interpretation of the Constitution or for determining the scope and limits of fundamental rights where the applicant has not suffered significant damage. It may also declare inadmissible applications that are manifestly ill-founded (Law No. 6216 Art. 48(1)–(2)). Commissions examine admissibility. Unanimous inadmissibility decisions are final, and other files go to the sections (Art. 48(3)–(4)).

Merits. Sections examine admissible applications on the merits. A copy is sent to the Ministry of Justice, which may submit observations (Art. 49(1)–(2)). The Court may carry out any inquiry, request information and documents, and decide on the file or hold a hearing (Art. 49(3)–(4)).

Interim measures. Sections may order measures they consider necessary to protect the applicant’s fundamental rights. If a measure is ordered, the merits must be decided within six months, or the measure lapses (Art. 49(5)). Under the Rules, measures are ordered where there is a serious danger to the applicant’s fundamental rights, in particular to life or material or moral integrity (Rules Art. 73(1)–(2), (4)). In investment disputes, interim measures are therefore exceptional.

Pilot judgments. Where an application arises from a structural problem that has led, or will lead, to other applications, a section may apply the pilot judgment procedure. It identifies the problem and the measures needed, and may adjourn similar applications so that administrative authorities resolve them in line with its principles (Rules Art. 75). Where many investors are affected by the same measure, this procedure may become relevant.

Striking out. An application may be struck out if it is withdrawn or not pursued, if the violation and its consequences have been removed, or if there is no other reason justifying continued examination. The Court may continue where respect for human rights requires it (Rules Art. 80).

Remedies: retrial and compensation

The decision. At the end of the examination, the Court decides whether the applicant’s right has been violated. If it finds a violation, it rules on what must be done to remove the violation and its consequences. It may not review expediency or make decisions that amount to administrative acts (Law No. 6216 Art. 50(1)).

Retrial. Where the violation arises from a court decision, the file is sent to the relevant court for retrial to remove the violation and its consequences. That court decides, if possible on the file, in a way that removes the violation as explained in the Constitutional Court’s decision (Art. 50(2); Rules Art. 79(1)(a)).

Compensation. Where retrial would serve no legal interest, the Court may award compensation, or may indicate that an action should be brought in the general courts where the amount requires detailed examination (Law No. 6216 Art. 50(2); Rules Art. 79(1)(b)–(c)). Decisions are served on the parties and the Ministry of Justice and published on the Court’s website (Law No. 6216 Art. 50(3)). The Court’s decisions bind all public authorities and persons (Constitution Art. 153).

Length of proceedings and the Compensation Commission

The 2024 reform. Law No. 7499 of 2024 extended the jurisdiction of the Compensation Commission set up under Law No. 6384. It now also hears claims made directly to it for non-pecuniary damages for failure to conclude criminal investigations and prosecutions, and civil and administrative proceedings, within a reasonable time. It also hears claims for compensation for protective measures under Criminal Procedure Code Art. 142(2) (Law No. 6384 Art. 2(3)). Applications arising from administrative investigations are outside its scope (Art. 2(4)).

Time and form. A length claim is made during the investigation, prosecution or proceedings, or at the latest within one month of learning that they ended with a final decision. Those prevented by a justified excuse may apply within fifteen days of the excuse ending. The petition states the applicant’s identity and address, the proceedings concerned and the nature and extent of the damage, with supporting documents (Art. 5/A(1)–(2)). Applications may be made through public prosecutors’ offices or electronically, and are exempt from stamp duty and fees (Arts. 5(4)–(6) and 5/A(4)).

Decision and review. The Commission decides with reasons, taking into account the case law of the Constitutional Court and the European Court of Human Rights (Art. 7(2)). An objection to its decision may be filed within fifteen days with the Ankara Regional Administrative Court, which decides within three months, and its decision is final. Compensation awarded is paid by the Ministry of Justice within three months of becoming final (Art. 7(4)–(5)). If the proceedings concerned are still pending, the authority conducting them must conclude them promptly (Art. 8(2)).

Transitional rules. Individual applications on length of proceedings that were pending before the Constitutional Court when the reform entered into force, or that the Court struck out, may be brought before the Commission within three months, under the conditions of Provisional Art. 3 (Law No. 6384 Provisional Art. 3(1)).

The European Court of Human Rights

Who and when. The Court may receive applications from any person, non-governmental organisation or group of individuals claiming to be the victim of a violation by a State party (Convention Art. 34). It may deal with a matter only after all domestic remedies have been exhausted, and within four months of the final domestic decision (Art. 35(1)). The four-month limit replaced the earlier six-month limit under Protocol No. 15. The Court has treated the individual application to the Turkish Constitutional Court as a domestic remedy that must normally be used first. It may also declare inadmissible applications where the applicant has not suffered a significant disadvantage (Art. 35(3)(b)).

Property and fair trial. Article 1 of Protocol No. 1 protects the peaceful enjoyment of possessions, including shares and other investments, and permits deprivation and control of use only under the conditions it sets. Article 6 guarantees a fair hearing within a reasonable time. Article 13 requires an effective domestic remedy.

Outcome. If the Court finds a violation, it may award just satisfaction (Art. 41), and States undertake to abide by its final judgments (Art. 46). A civil judgment found by a final Strasbourg judgment to have been given in violation of the Convention or its Protocols may be reopened. The same applies where a case is struck out after a friendly settlement or unilateral declaration. The request must be made within three months of service of the final Strasbourg decision (Code of Civil Procedure Arts. 375(1)(i) and 377(1)(e)).

Challenging a law in pending proceedings

An investor cannot challenge a law directly by individual application (Law No. 6216 Art. 45(3)). In pending proceedings, however, if the court considers that a law or Presidential decree it must apply is unconstitutional, or finds serious a party’s claim to that effect, it stays the case and refers the question to the Constitutional Court. The Court must decide within five months, failing which the trial court proceeds under the law in force. If the trial court does not find the claim serious, the appeal court decides the point together with the merits (Constitution Art. 152).

Annulment decisions take effect when published in the Official Gazette or, where the Court so decides, at a later date of up to one year. They do not have retroactive effect (Art. 153). For investors affected by legislation adopted in response to the 2026 events, raising unconstitutionality in the pending case is the route to constitutional review of the law itself.

Points for foreign institutional investors

Build the record early. Rights-based arguments must have been raised, in substance, before the domestic courts. Arguments on legal basis, proportionality and the length of proceedings should be made at first instance and on appeal, not only at the end.

Settle standing first. Confirm whether the investor is a private-law legal person, a public legal person or an entity whose status under the Convention needs analysis (Law No. 6216 Art. 46; Convention Art. 34).

Prepare documents in advance. Powers of attorney executed abroad need notarisation and apostille or legalisation, and translation. With a thirty-day limit, they should be ready before the final domestic decision is served. Service of that decision on the investor’s Turkish lawyer starts the clock, as explained in our guide to service of documents in Turkish proceedings.

Keep the routes consistent. Positions taken in the civil, administrative and criminal proceedings, and in any arbitration, should be consistent with the rights-based case that may follow. A complaint that an interference lacked a legal basis is weakened if the investor accepted the measure without objection in the domestic proceedings.

Use the Commission for delay. Where the complaint is the length of proceedings, the Compensation Commission is the first route, and it can be used while proceedings are still pending (Law No. 6384 Art. 5/A).

Frequently asked questions

Can a foreign company apply to the Turkish Constitutional Court?

Yes, except about rights reserved to Turkish citizens. Private-law legal persons may complain only of violations of their own rights (Law No. 6216 Art. 46).

Can public legal persons apply?

No. Public legal persons cannot make individual applications (Art. 46(2)).

What is the time limit?

Thirty days from the exhaustion of remedies, with fifteen days after a justified excuse ends (Art. 47(5)).

Must all remedies be exhausted first?

Yes. All administrative and judicial remedies provided by law must be exhausted (Art. 45(2)).

Can a law be challenged by individual application?

Not directly. Legislative and regulatory acts cannot be challenged directly; the act applying them is challenged instead (Art. 45(3)).

Which rights matter most for investors?

The right to property and the right to a fair trial, including trial within a reasonable time (Constitution Arts. 35 and 36; Protocol No. 1 Art. 1; Convention Art. 6).

Does the Constitutional Court re-examine the evidence?

No. It examines only whether a fundamental right was violated and cannot review matters for the appeal courts (Law No. 6216 Art. 49(6)).

Can the Court order interim measures?

Yes, but under its Rules mainly where there is a serious danger to life or material or moral integrity; the merits must then be decided within six months (Art. 49(5); Rules Art. 73).

What happens if a violation is found?

Where a court decision caused it, the case is retried; otherwise compensation may be awarded or the general courts indicated (Art. 50(2); Rules Art. 79).

Where do length-of-proceedings complaints go?

To the Compensation Commission under Law No. 6384, during the proceedings or within one month of learning of the final decision (Arts. 2(3)(a) and 5/A).

Can Commission decisions be challenged?

Yes, within fifteen days before the Ankara Regional Administrative Court, whose decision is final (Law No. 6384 Art. 7(4)).

Can an application be filed from abroad?

Yes, through Turkish diplomatic missions abroad or Turkish courts, as well as directly (Law No. 6216 Art. 47(1); Rules Art. 63).

What is the Strasbourg time limit?

Four months from the final domestic decision (Convention Art. 35(1)).

Can a Turkish judgment be reopened after a Strasbourg ruling?

Yes, a civil judgment can be reopened within three months of service of the final Strasbourg judgment (Code of Civil Procedure Arts. 375(1)(i) and 377(1)(e)).

Can unconstitutionality be raised in a pending case?

Yes. If the court finds the claim serious, it refers the question to the Constitutional Court (Constitution Art. 152).

Related guides

• Turkey’s 2026 Fund and Market Manipulation Crisis: Legal Guide for Foreign Institutional Investors — the entry point to this series
• MSCI’s Turkey Index Freeze and the Legal Response
• Lease Certificates (Sukuk) in Turkey
• Inflation Accounting in Turkey: TMS 29 and the Tax Books
• Suing Turkey’s Capital Markets Board (SPK)
• How a Securities Lawsuit Proceeds in Turkey
• Freezing Assets in Turkey for Investor Claims
• Joining a Criminal Case in Turkey as a Foreign Investor
• Suing in Turkey or Abroad
• Limitation Periods for Investor Claims in Turkey
• Service of Documents in Turkish Proceedings
• Enforcing a Money Judgment in Turkey
• State-Controlled Listed Companies in Turkey