What Is an Evacuation Commitment ?
The question of what an eviction undertaking (tahliye taahhütnamesi) is has been one of the most frequently asked questions in recent years. A written declaration by a tenant residing in a leased immovable property stating that they will vacate the leased property on a specific date is called an eviction undertaking. The relevant undertaking narrows the scope of the provisions developed to protect the tenant—who is deemed the weaker party under the Turkish Code of Obligations—and grants the lessor the opportunity to terminate the lease relationship without the need for another reason and without any obligation to pay compensation.
Eviction Through an Eviction Undertaking?
Eviction through an eviction undertaking is not, by itself, a sufficient ground. It grants the right to use legal remedies to ensure the eviction of the tenant residing in the immovable property. Pursuant to Article 352 of the Turkish Code of Obligations, two different options are granted to persons who hold a valid eviction undertaking. These options are briefly as follows:
- Evicting the tenant from the immovable property by filing a lawsuit. This lawsuit is called an eviction lawsuit. As regulated by law, such lawsuits must be filed within one month starting from the date declared in the eviction undertaking for the tenant to vacate the immovable property.
- Another option is to apply for enforcement for the eviction of the immovable property. Through the enforcement office, the eviction of the tenant is ensured based on the eviction undertaking.
Both processes mentioned above are based on technical legal knowledge. For this reason, it is very important that the relevant processes be followed together with an attorney who is an expert in the field. If you have issues related to eviction lawsuits and wish to have them resolved correctly, you may contact an expert Izmir law office.
There Is an Eviction Undertaking but the Tenant Does Not Vacate — What Should Be Done?
If the tenant does not vacate the immovable property despite the existence of an eviction undertaking, there are a series of steps you should take. In residential leases, the tenant may have signed an eviction undertaking after the first lease year. Tenants who have signed such an undertaking must duly vacate the immovable property on the dates they specified. For the undertaking to be deemed valid, it must have been signed on a date subsequent to the execution of the initial lease agreement. The vacating date must be clearly stated on the undertaking, and it must contain a voluntary vacating date. On the other hand, even if a lease agreement has been signed, an eviction undertaking executed in the first year of the lease is deemed invalid. Therefore, the eviction undertaking must be signed after the date of the lease agreement.
If you ask, “There is an eviction letter prepared with all conditions and the tenant still does not vacate—what should I do?”, the answer is as follows: A lawsuit may be filed against tenants who promised to vacate but did not do so. In order to file a lawsuit or initiate enforcement proceedings, the tenant must be notified 30 days prior to the undertaking date. Enforcement proceedings and eviction requests will be initiated through law enforcement in written, verbal, or electronic form in accordance with the Turkish Code of Obligations. Subsequent expenses are borne by the debtor. The new Turkish Code of Obligations obliges tenants to pay rent. According to the relevant law, other methods are also specified for the lessor to terminate the contract. Under these methods, the landlord sends a notice 60 days in advance to a person who avoids their obligation to pay rent. If the tenant does not pay the rent during this notice period, the landlord may initiate enforcement proceedings for their receivables pursuant to the relevant laws. In enforcement proceedings filed with a request for eviction, an eviction decision will be issued as soon as possible for a tenant who does not pay the rent and for whom the eviction date specified in the lease agreement exists. Tenants faced with such a decision will be obliged to vacate the immovable property as soon as possible.
If you are facing a situation as described above, you may contact our expert attorneys to ensure that all your issues are resolved.
How Is an Eviction Undertaking Filled Out?
In some cases, a tenant may sign a blank eviction undertaking, and the vacating date specified in the contract may be determined after the tenant has signed. By law, for the eviction undertaking to be valid, the vacating date must be clearly stated. If the date is maliciously determined by the lessor after the tenant’s signature, the tenant may suffer damage. However, when we look at Court of Cassation decisions, we see that if the undertaking date is left blank and delivered to the claimant, the defendant must bear the consequences of the tenant’s actions.