Circular 2026 – 044
Exemption for Benefits Provided Through Employee Stock Options
In accordance with Income Tax General Circular No. 335 (Series No. 326), published in the Official Gazette No. 33300 dated July 4, 2026,, General Income Tax Circular No. 326—which contains explanations regarding the application of exemptions to benefits provided to employees through the issuance of stock options—has been updated.
As is well known, amendments were made via Law No. 7582 regarding the “exemption for benefits provided to employees through the issuance of shares,” as regulated in Article 17 of the Income Tax Law; the upper limit for the application of the exemption has been redefined as twice the gross salary for the relevant year, and the holding periods for shares acquired in this manner have been shortened.
As a result of the amendment, the amount taken into account for income tax exemption purposes regarding shares issued by tech startups to their employees has been set at twice the employee’s gross salary for the relevant year.
In addition, the deadlines for collecting taxes that were not paid on time, based on the holding periods of the shares, have been revised as follows.
Shares acquired by the service provider in this manner; from the date of acquisition two the entire tax exempted if disposed of within the same year, three Aunt Four yıl içerisinde elden çıkarılması halinde istisna edilen verginin %75’i, five Aunt six yıl içerisinde elden çıkarılması halinde istisna edilen verginin %25’i, vergi ziyaı cezası uygulanmaksızın gecikme faizi ile birlikte işverenden tahsil edilir.
The communiqué contains example explanations regarding the regulation in question, and you can access the communiqué from the following link.
Sincerely
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