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What Are The Documents Required in an Employee’s Personnel File in Turkey?

Employers need to retain some information about the employees who work for them. The file where this information is stored is called the “employee’s personnel file“. This information is legally required to be in possession of the employer. So, what documents should be in the employee’s personnel file? Here are the details…

Employee’s personnel file is within the scope of mandatory files to be kept per Labor Law No. 4827. It is the employer’s responsibility to keep the documents included in the personnel file. There is no legal basis defining how the personnel file is kept. The important thing is that the documents specified in the law are kept and filled in separately for each personnel.

For employers, the obligation to prepare and keep personnel files is mandated by the Labor Law. Article 75 of the Labor Law No. 4827 states:

“The documents specified must be kept from the beginning of the work to the end of the employment contract of the workers.“

Penal sanctions are imposed on companies whose personnel file documents are missing or who do not properly record the employee’s personnel file. The content information of the personnel files are handled within the framework of the Labor Law. The employer is responsible for the obligations of keeping personnel files and declaring them at the request of the competent authorities.

There has yet to be a definite date provision in the Labor Law regarding the storage of personnel files. In accordance with Social Security Institution (SSI) legislation, employers and business owners are obliged to keep their files for ten years, as the year they create is considered the beginning. For public administrations, this period has been determined as 30 years. During this period, when the competent authorities request the declaration of personnel documents, employers must submit the relevant file within 15 days.

The documents that must be included in the “Employee’s Personnel File” during employment in Turkey are as follows;

• Copy of the birth certificate,
• Copy of the ID card,
• Certificate of residence,
• Copy of the graduation certificate,
• Medical report,
• Blood type information,
• Criminal record,
• Two copies of portrait,
• Family condition document,
• Military service state document,
• Employment contract,
• SSI job entry declaration.

Medical Report: Workplace physicians should provide it following the Occupational Health and Safety legislation. For workplaces with less than 50 employees and that are less dangerous, health reports can also be obtained from state hospitals and family medicine practices.

Military Service State Document: This document can be obtained via e-Devlet (the Turkish Government’s electronic portal) and submitted to the employer. Those who have not completed their military service and/or have postponed it should receive this document personally by applying to the relevant Military Service Branch near them.

Statement of Employment: State of employment must be made no later than one day before starting work. Declarations are given online; after the process, the barcoded printout should be taken and stored in the employee’s file.

According to the characteristics of the employee and the nature of the work, the documents that should be included in the employee’s personnel file are as follows;

• Incentive Certificate,
• Disability Report (taken from public hospitals that the Ministry of Health considers full-fledged authorized to issue),
• Disabled Discount Report,
• Family Approval Certificate and Health Certificate of Suitability for workers under the age of 18,
• A valid work permit document for foreign nationals.

In addition, it should be noted that the employee’s personnel files not only consist of the documents requested at the time of employment but also must be updated during the employee’s employment. It also covers the permits, reports, official documents, defenses, warnings, or disciplinary penalties taken by the employee during working hours. Every new update about the personnel is processed in the personnel file. Documents that must be included in the employee’s personnel file that continues to work;

• Annual leave, unpaid leave, excuse leave, and similar permit documents,
• Maternity leave and breastfeeding permission documents,
• Minutes about the worker, incident detection forms, defense of the worker, and warnings given to the worker,
• Sick leave and failure to work documents,
• Signed payslips / wage compasses,
• If there is a fee deduction penalty, documents showing the reason,
• Salary increases, promotions, and transfer notifications,
• Performance evaluation forms,
• Information documents on occupational risks, necessary precautions, legal rights, and responsibilities regarding the occupational health and safety of workers,
• Work accident reports,
• A document showing the consent of the employee to be temporarily transferred to another workplace,
• Petition of the woman who gave birth to request six months of unpaid leave,
• All official correspondence about the worker.

The documents contained in the personnel file must be kept during the period of employment and the continuation of the employment contract. The content of the personnel file will also be expanded and updated with several documents that must be added upon leaving work. In case of leaving work, the following documents should be added to the employee’s personnel file;

• SSI declaration of retirement from work,
• Acquittance,
• Working Certificate / Service Certificate,
• Notice of termination,
• Petition for resignation,
• Severance and notice compensation payrolls,
• If there is a justified termination, documents proving this situation,
• Notifications made to the employee by a notary,
• Dunning Letter.

Related Article: Severance and Notice Pay Rights of Foreigners Based on Their Employment in Turkey.

Along with the termination of the employment contract, the personnel documents that must be attached regarding leaving the job are important in terms of the termination results. It will be in the interests of the parties to keep the payrolls and other personnel documents for five years, which is the minimum statute of limitations, in case of possible disputes.

Conclusion

The personnel file of the worker, regulated in article 75 of Labor Law No. 4857, is a file for each employee regarding the beginning, continuation, and termination of the employment relationship. This file is prepared separately for each employee employed by the employer. Preparing a personnel file for all workplaces covered by the Labor Law and for all workers subject to the Labor Law is obligatory. As an exception, the obligation to keep the file is not foreseen for the workers who work in discontinuous jobs. If the employees’ personnel files are not submitted, the competent authorities impose a fine on the employer within the scope of the relevant law.

We want to emphasize that since these documents, which the employer provides within the scope of creating the personnel file, contain the employee’s personal data of special nature, the employee should be presented with a disclosure statement. Their signature should be requested, and at the same time, the express consent statement should be obtained in the same way when necessary. These documents must also be kept in the personnel file.

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