KÜHEYLAN HUKUK
What Should a Person Who Receives a Notice of Criminal Exemption for Treasury Real Estate Do? Correction Request, Discount and Cancellation Case 30-day correction period, twenty percent discount, five-year limit and precedent value defense. This guide has been prepared in accordance with the State Procurement Law No. 2886, Article 75, and the Regulation on the Administration of Treasury Real Estate, Articles 85-87, as well as the current version of the Council of State's jurisprudence as of October 2026.
A penalty notice is sent to the person who is thought to be using real estate belonging to the Treasury, General Directorate of Foundations or special budget administrations without permission. An objection may be made to the administration with a request for correction within 30 days from the notification. If no objection is made within this period, a twenty percent discount is applied, and in case of advance payment within sixty days, an additional fifteen percent discount is given. The notice may be subject to an annulment lawsuit in the administrative court, but filing a lawsuit does not automatically stop the collection. In most cases, how much the price should be is determined by experts and comparable rent research. This guide explains duration, defensive points and the most common mistakes.
1. What is Ecrimisil and from whom is it requested?
Ecrimisil is the amount requested for unauthorized occupation of real estate belonging to the Treasury or similar public administrations. According to Article 75 of the State Procurement Law No. 2886, in case of occupation of immovable properties that are privately owned or under the jurisdiction and control of the State, immovable properties of special budget administrations, immovable properties belonging to the General Directorate of Foundations and registered foundations, undue compensation is requested.
The law produces results in favor of the administration at two points. The administration does not have to suffer any damage due to the occupation. The occupier's fault is not sought. Therefore, the defense of "the property is in a place where we do not use it" or "we entered it unknowingly" does not alone show that ecrimisil is against the law. Defense mostly focuses on the existence of the occupation, its duration, area and calculation of the price.
If the use continues after the lease, easement or usage permit agreement has expired, remuneration will also come into question. If there is a provision in the contract, the transaction is carried out accordingly, otherwise, the transaction is carried out on the basis of remuneration.
2. How Does the Process Work?
Detection of occupation and report Remuneration is assessed by the price determination commission within 15 days from the determination. Regulation art.85/1
Payment 60 days from the notification (fifteen percent discount for cash payment within 60 days) Regulation article 87/1
3. What Discounts Are There, How to Lose them?
Twenty percent discount: Applied if no objection is made with a request for correction within 30 days from the notification. If an objection is made within the period and it is waived unconditionally and unconditionally, or if a lawsuit is filed within the time limit and it is waived unconditionally and within the same period, the discount is applied (Regulation Art. 86/2).
Fifteen percent cash payment discount: It is also applied in case of cash payment within the sixty-day payment period (Regulation article 87/1). The law provides for these two reductions in Article 75.
Installments: In case of written request due to difficulty in payment, at least twenty-five percent can be paid in advance and the remainder can be paid in installments within a maximum of three years. Legal interest is applied to the remaining receivable. If an installment is not paid, the remaining receivable becomes due (Art. 87/1 and 4).
If litigation is to be filed, this choice must be weighed against the risk of loss of discount.
Ecrimisil cannot exceed five years from the date of determination (Law No. 2886 Art. 75; Regulation Art. 85/1). Accrual for the period exceeding this limit is against the law. The 4th Chamber of the Council of State stated in the notice that in a file in which fines were accrued for a period of 5 years and 11 months, the part exceeding five years from the date of determination should be canceled (E.2024/1783, K.2024/4911, 23.09.2024). There are also cases in administrative courts where the administration spontaneously canceled part of the notice due to the five-year period.
In accordance with Article 85/2 of the Regulation, in the assessment of the price, the way of use of the occupation, its actual and legal status, the income obtained, comparable rental prices or penalties in the same place and location, final judicial decisions regarding these, if any, and all factors affecting the value of the real estate are taken into consideration. The Ministry is authorized to determine the minimum remuneration amounts.
The Council of State's decisions produced two results in this context. The 2nd Chamber of the Council of State overturned the annulment decision based on an expert report based on incomplete research and ignoring the fact that the same real estate was previously rented for a high price for the university, in a file in which only a part of a very large land belonging to the Treasury was occupied (E.2021/11343, K.2021/1635, 28.04.2021). The 4th Chamber of the Council of State overturned the part regarding annulment in a sports facility file in Üsküdar, stating that the expert report taken as basis by the court did not sufficiently take into consideration the lease agreement for the same real estate and the data used by the administration (E.2023/5479, K.2024/7508, 17.12.2024).
These decisions make a point clearly. When objecting to a price, saying "exorbitant" is not enough. Precedent lease agreements, objective values of the region, actual usage status of the real estate and previous ecrimisil files, if any, must be presented with concrete documents. The compliance of the expert report making the calculation with the legislation and the contracts in the file should also be checked.
6. Which case can be filed in which court?
The cancellation of the notice or the claim that the penalty is not required at all or is excessively requested is within the jurisdiction of the administrative judiciary. The 8th Civil Chamber of the Supreme Court of Appeals makes this distinction clearly. After the penalty notice is issued and notified, lawsuits for the cancellation of the notice on the grounds that no penalty is required or too much is requested are administrative in nature. On the other hand, if only the refund of the paid penalty fee or the determination of the price is requested, without requesting the cancellation of the notice, the judicial judiciary has jurisdiction (E.2018/14802, K.2018/19878, 06.12.2018; E.2015/14796, K.2018/1898, 08.02.2018).
A case filed in the wrong court may be rejected for duty reasons and time may be lost.
7. Does Filing a Lawsuit Stop the Payment?
No. Article 87/5 of the Regulation clearly states that the filing of a lawsuit by unnecessary criminals will not stop the process of pursuing and collecting the fine. Unpaid fines are followed up by tax offices in accordance with Law No. 6183 after the deadline for filing a lawsuit has passed (Art. 87/3). While filing a lawsuit, the request for stay of execution should be evaluated taking into account the consequences such as bank account and real estate seizure.
The following scenario is fictional; It has been prepared to explain a typical situation in practice.
In a fictional example, a business owner learns that the land he has been using for years belongs to the Treasury, through a notice of penalty. In the notice, a high price was accrued for a period of seven years, and the business owner thinks that he is using the real estate based on an old contract.
The first step is to determine the periods of 30 and 60 days from the date of notification. The second step is to check whether the five-year limit has been exceeded. In this example, the part of the seven-year accrual exceeding five years is unlawful. The third step is to examine whether the old contract requires the application of the contract provision instead of the reward. The last step is to object to the price calculation with precedent and contract price and, if a lawsuit is to be filed, to apply to the administrative court within 60 days.
A penalty notice has been received, what happens if I don't pay?
The fine that is not paid voluntarily within sixty days is transferred to the tax office after the deadline for filing a lawsuit has passed and is collected through compulsory pursuit, including seizure, in accordance with Law No. 6183.
Can compensation for a period older than five years be requested?
No. It cannot exceed five years from the date of determination of the penalty.
I paid extra, can I get it back?
If the request for refund is made after the fine is paid, without requesting the cancellation of the notice, it can be heard in the judicial judiciary, and if the cancellation of the notice is requested, it can be heard in the administrative judiciary. The judicial remedy should be chosen carefully according to the case file.
Confusing deadlines: The 30-day correction period and the 60-day litigation period are different. Even if a correction request is made, the duration of the lawsuit should be followed separately and, if necessary, a lawsuit should be filed in due time.
Going to the wrong court: Cancellation of the notice can be requested in the administrative court, and refund of the paid amount can be requested in the judicial judiciary.
Just saying "exorbitant": If the price objection is not supported by precedent and documents, the expert report may approach the administration's account.
Assuming that the lawsuit stops the proceedings: Collection continues even if a lawsuit is filed. The request for stay of execution should be evaluated separately.
Notification of Ecrimisil is an administrative procedure that must be evaluated quickly due to short periods of time and heavy financial consequences. Applications made without examining discount rights, five-year limit, cost calculation and judicial remedies together often lead to unnecessary losses. Küheylan Law Firm calculates the periods starting from the notification date of the notice, checks the occupation determination and price calculation with documents, and manages the correction request and the administrative court case together, when appropriate.
Important Legal Notice: The legal explanations contained in this guide have been prepared by Küheylan Law Firm for general information purposes and do not constitute legal advice. Since the unique circumstances of each file may change the outcome, it is recommended to seek support from an administrative law attorney from the beginning of the process.
KÜHEYLAN HUKUK