How to Pay Freelancers in Turkey: Wise, Payoneer, SWIFT and Invoices

To pay a freelancer in Turkey, send money to their Turkish bank account by Wise or SWIFT, pay their Payoneer request, or use a contractor platform such as Remote ($29 a month) or Deel ($49 a month). PayPal does not work in Turkey. Ask for an e-SMM receipt or an e-invoice for every payment.

Checked October 2026. This page is for a US or German founder or hiring manager paying one or more freelancers in Turkey. It covers the payer side. For the freelancer’s side (which accounts they can open, what they pay to withdraw), see getting paid in Turkey with Wise, Payoneer or SWIFT. It is general information, not legal or tax advice.

Which payment method should you use?

Fees from each provider’s own page. Where a provider shows the fee only in a live calculator, we say so instead of guessing a number.

Ways to pay a freelancer in Turkey (checked 7 October 2026)

Method	What you pay	Speed	What the freelancer needs	Source
Wise transfer to a Turkish bank	Variable fee plus mid-market rate, shown in the calculator before you pay (not verified for this page)	“Typically arrives in seconds” (Wise’s average)	A Turkish bank account (IBAN); receives lira	wise.com
SWIFT bank transfer (USD or EUR)	Your bank’s outgoing wire fee plus any correspondent charge; varies by bank	Varies by bank; ask yours	A Turkish foreign-currency account (döviz hesabı)	Your bank’s fee list
Payoneer payment request, paid by bank	1% (US ACH or EU/UK bank account)	Not stated on the fee page	A Payoneer account	payoneer.com/fees
Payoneer payment request, paid by card	Up to 3.99% + $0.49	Not stated on the fee page	A Payoneer account	payoneer.com/fees
Payoneer to Payoneer	Free	Not stated on the fee page	Both sides on Payoneer	payoneer.com/fees
Remote Contractor Management	$29 per contractor a month ($99 with the Plus plan)	Depends on payout method	An account on Remote	remote.com/pricing
Deel contractors	$49 per contractor a month	Depends on payout method	An account on Deel	deel.com/pricing
PayPal	Does not work		Not possible for Turkey accounts since 6 June 2016	TechCrunch, n24

Payoneer’s fee page says fees depend on sender and recipient locations, so the freelancer may pay more on their side when they withdraw. That is their cost, but it can push up the rate they ask you for.

A rough rule:

• One freelancer, paid monthly: Wise or SWIFT. No platform fee.
• Freelancer already on Payoneer: pay their request by bank transfer, not card.
• Three or more contractors: a platform pays for itself in admin time. Remote and Deel also hold the contract and the invoices in one place.
• Large one-off payments: SWIFT in USD or EUR. The bank fee is fixed, so it is a small share of a large amount.

Does Wise work for paying someone in Turkey?

Yes, from your side. You send from your Wise account in the US or Europe, and Wise pays the freelancer’s Turkish bank in lira from its local account.

The limit is on the freelancer’s side. A Wise account with a Turkey address cannot receive money, hold balances or get account details. So you cannot pay a Turkey-based freelancer “into Wise”. You pay their Turkish bank account. The detail is in does Wise work in Turkey.

If the freelancer wants to keep dollars or euros, Wise to their lira account is the wrong tool. Use SWIFT to their foreign-currency account instead.

Why can’t you pay a Turkish freelancer with PayPal?

PayPal stopped sending and receiving for Turkey accounts on 6 June 2016, after the banking regulator refused its licence. The Central Bank said in February 2024 that PayPal had not applied again. A freelancer living in Turkey cannot receive a PayPal payment. If your company pays all vendors through PayPal, you need a second method for Turkey. More in does PayPal work in Turkey.

What invoice should a Turkish freelancer give you?

It depends on how the freelancer is registered in Turkey.

Invoice type by freelancer status (checked 7 October 2026)

Freelancer status	Document they issue	Source
Self-employed professional (serbest meslek erbabı), e.g. developer, designer, consultant	e-Serbest Meslek Makbuzu (e-SMM), an electronic self-employment receipt. Mandatory since 1 June 2020; new registrants must join by the end of the third month after they start	GİB eBelge
Trading sole proprietorship (şahıs şirketi) or company (Ltd., A.Ş.)	e-fatura or e-arşiv fatura (e-invoice)	GİB e-document rules
Not registered for tax	Cannot issue either

GİB’s guide for self-employed professionals says the professional must issue a receipt for every payment, and the client must ask for and receive it. An e-SMM can be sent as a PDF, so a foreign client gets it by email like any invoice.

Why it matters to you:

• Your bookkeeping. Your accountant needs a document for each payment. A registered freelancer can produce one in minutes.
• A sign of a real business. A freelancer who cannot issue an e-SMM or e-invoice is not registered. That is a risk for them, and it can make the arrangement look less like independent contracting. See contractor vs employee in Turkey.
• Their tax deal. Registered freelancers who sell services abroad can often deduct 100% of that income from their tax base in 2026. Many expect clients to pay in foreign currency into a Turkish bank, because that is what the deduction requires. See Turkey’s service-export tax deduction.

What to put in your contract: the freelancer’s full name or company name, Turkish tax number (vergi kimlik numarası), tax office, and that they will issue an e-SMM or e-invoice for every payment.

Should you pay in USD, EUR or lira?

Agree the rate in USD or EUR. Wise’s page showed 1 USD = 49.19 TRY on 7 October 2026, and the lira has lost value against the dollar year after year. A rate set in lira shrinks in real terms within months and leads to constant renegotiation.

How to pay a USD or EUR rate:

• SWIFT in USD or EUR to the freelancer’s foreign-currency account. They convert when they choose. This is what most Turkish freelancers prefer.
• Wise in lira at the day’s rate. Cheaper for you on small amounts, but the freelancer takes the lira the same day.
• A platform (Remote, Deel) pays out per its own rules; ask which currencies it can send to Turkey and whether there is an FX markup.

Agree in writing which side pays the transfer fees. “OUR” on a SWIFT transfer means you pay all fees and the freelancer gets the full amount.

Do you have to withhold Turkish tax?

A company with no presence in Turkey generally is not a Turkish withholding agent. The freelancer declares and pays their own Turkish tax. Your side has its own rules: a US company usually collects a W-8BEN from a foreign contractor, and a German company has its own reporting duties. Check with your accountant.

If the freelancer works only for you, on your hours, under your management, a payment method will not fix that. Turkish labour law can treat them as an employee. The options are an employer of record or your own Turkish company; the full cost comparison is in Turkey payroll: employer cost.

Checklist before the first payment

• Freelancer’s Turkish tax number and registration type (self-employed or company).
• Which document they will issue: e-SMM or e-invoice.
• Rate in USD or EUR, and who pays transfer fees.
• Bank details: IBAN for lira, and the IBAN of the foreign-currency account if paying USD or EUR.
• Or their Payoneer email, if they prefer Payoneer.
• For rates by seniority, see Turkish developer salaries. For a full team, see outsourcing to Turkey.

No provider paid to be listed here. Fees change; we recheck this page monthly.