Government Supports Growth: Turkish Game Studios Enjoy Tax Exemption

During his presentation at PGC San Francisco, Tuğbek Ölek, Head of Advisory Board of TOGED, sheds light on Turkey’s tax incentives to support its rapidly expanding mobile gaming industry.

Here’s the speech from PGC: Zero Tax + Incentives: Turkiye’s Bold Leap Into GameDev

The Turkish mobile gaming industry thrives with big names like Dream Games, Peak, and Rollic. These studios showcase Turkey’s global gaming prowess, with half of them based in Istanbul, making it Europe’s second-largest gaming hub after London. Ankara also plays a significant role as Turkey’s second-largest gaming hub.

Are Turkish game studios exempt from paying taxes?

Investing in gaming ventures enjoys the benefit of being entirely tax-free, courtesy of Turkey’s absence of capital gains tax. Ölek elucidated that this translates to a significant advantage: in the event of a $10 million exit resulting from an investment, the entirety of that sum remains intact, untouched by taxation.

Furthermore, designers and developers working within these studios enjoy a notable perk: they are exempt from income tax obligations, further enhancing the appeal of Turkey’s gaming industry as a hub for talent and innovation.

Strategic Initiatives – Strategic Growth

Additional incentives extended to local studios encompass the government’s provision of backing for 50% of the salaries of two development staff members, capped at $50k, alongside covering up to 80% of expenses related to travel, accommodation, and booth fees at global events.

Moreover, game publishers receive governmental support in the form of platform commission reimbursement. For instance, when Apple and Google levy their standard 30% commission, the government offers a reimbursement of 50% of that amount, up to a ceiling of $100k.

Also read our article on the growing mobile gaming industry of Turkey.