Unpaid leave petition for Turkey: template and rules
Unpaid leave under Turkish law exists, as a rule, only by agreement between employee and employer. An employer imposing unpaid leave unilaterally is making a material change to working conditions, which does not bind the employee without written acceptance within six business days (Labor Law Art. 22). This Turkish-language Word petition captures the request, the employer's approval and the suspension acknowledgment in one document.
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ÜCRETSİZ İZİN TALEP DİLEKÇESİ
________________________________ (İşveren unvanı) İnsan Kaynakları Birimi'ne,
____ / ____ / 20____ tarihinden ____ / ____ / 20____ tarihine kadar (toplam ____________________ gün) aşağıda belirttiğim nedenle ücretsiz izin verilmesini talep ederim.
| Adı Soyadı | ________________________________ |
| Sicil No / Bölümü | ________________________________ |
| Ücretsiz İzin Nedeni | ________________________________ |
| İzin Dönüşü İş Başı Tarihi | ____ / ____ / 20____ |
| İzin Süresince İletişim Adresi | ________________________________ |
Talebimin uygun görülmesi hâlinde, ücretsiz izin süresince iş sözleşmemin askıda kalacağını, bu süre için ücret tahakkuk etmeyeceğini ve bu günlerin Sosyal Güvenlik Kurumu'na prim ödeme gün sayısı olarak bildirilmeyeceğini (5510 sayılı Kanun m.86 kapsamında eksik gün bildirimi yapılacağını) bildiğimi beyan ederim. Gereğini arz ederim.
TALEP EDEN İŞÇİ
Ad Soyad:
Tarih:
İmza:
İŞVEREN / VEKİLİ
☐ Uygundur ☐ Uygun değildir
Tarih:
İmza:
Not: Genel nitelikte ücretsiz izin ancak tarafların anlaşmasıyla mümkündür; işverenin tek taraflı olarak işçiyi ücretsiz izne çıkarması çalışma koşullarında esaslı değişikliktir ve işçinin altı iş günü içinde yazılı kabulü olmadıkça işçiyi bağlamaz (İş Kanunu m.22). Kanunun işverene yükümlülük olarak öngördüğü ücretsiz izin hâlleri saklıdır: yıllık izinde en çok dört güne kadar ücretsiz yol izni (m.56) ve kadın işçiye doğum sonrası talebi hâlinde altı aya kadar ücretsiz izin (m.74).
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When unpaid leave is a right (Art. 56, Art. 74)
The Labor Law obliges the employer in exactly two cases: up to four days of unpaid travel leave for an employee spending annual leave away from the workplace's town, on request and with documentation (Art. 56), and up to six months of unpaid leave for a female employee after maternity leave, at her request (Art. 74). In these cases the employer cannot refuse.
Every other unpaid leave — personal affairs, study, a long trip — is unregulated and possible only by mutual agreement. The petition is the written proof of that agreement: the employee's request, the employer's approval, and the parties' shared understanding that the contract is suspended.
Can the employer impose unpaid leave? (Art. 22)
No. A period without pay is a material change in working conditions. The employer can only propose it in writing, and the change does not bind the employee unless accepted in writing within six business days (Art. 22). That is why written request and written approval are non-negotiable on both sides of an unpaid-leave arrangement.
Pay, social security and annual leave during unpaid leave
During unpaid leave the contract is treated as suspended: no work, no wage. The days are not reported to SGK as premium days, and the employer reports the missing-day reason in its monthly filings (Law No. 5510, Art. 86).
For annual-leave accrual, the periods counted as worked are enumerated in Labor Law Art. 55 — general unpaid leave is not among them. For post-maternity unpaid leave the statute says it outright: that period is not taken into account when calculating annual paid leave (Art. 74).
| General rule | Written mutual agreement. Unilateral imposition falls under Art. 22 |
| Travel leave | Up to 4 days during annual leave, on request (Art. 56) |
| Post-maternity | Up to 6 months at the employee's request (Art. 74) |
| Acceptance window | 6 business days, in writing, for material changes (Art. 22) |
| SGK reporting | No premium days, missing-day reason reported (5510 Art. 86) |
Frequently asked
No. Unpaid leave is a material change in working conditions: the employer can only propose it in writing, and without your written acceptance within six business days it does not bind you (Labor Law Art. 22). The statutory unpaid leaves — travel leave (Art. 56) and post-maternity leave (Art. 74) — work the other way: they are granted at the employee's request.
No. Since no wage accrues, the days are not reported as premium days, and the employer reports the missing-day reason in its monthly SGK filings (Law No. 5510, Art. 86). For longer unpaid leaves, check the SGK rules on continued access to health benefits separately.
No. The periods deemed worked for annual-leave purposes are listed exhaustively in Labor Law Art. 55, and general unpaid leave is not among them. For post-maternity unpaid leave, Art. 74 states explicitly that the period is not counted. Seniority-based calculations skip the suspended period.
The date range and day count, the reason, the return-to-work date, a contact address for the period, the employee's signature and an employer approval block. This template adds a suspension acknowledgment — that no wage accrues and no premium days are reported — which is the clause that prevents later disputes.
The templates and explanations on this page are for information only and are not legal advice. Adapt each document to your own situation before use and consult a lawyer where needed.