Short answer
Overtime (fazla çalışma) is work exceeding forty-five hours a week, within the conditions set out in the Law. Each hour is paid at a fifty percent premium (Labour Law No. 4857, Art. 41).
An employee who claims to have worked overtime must prove it. If a signed payslip shows overtime payments, proving more generally requires a reservation or written evidence. If there are no payslips, or payments were made by bank transfer in varying amounts, any type of evidence may be used. Witnesses must know the working pattern at the workplace.
1. What is overtime?
- Definition: Work exceeding forty-five hours a week is overtime. If the contract sets weekly hours below forty-five, work beyond those hours and up to forty-five hours is called “excess-hours work” (fazla sürelerle çalışma). Each hour of overtime is paid at a fifty percent premium, and each hour of excess-hours work at a twenty-five percent premium (Art. 41).
- Balancing period (denkleştirme): Weekly hours may be distributed differently across days, provided that no day exceeds eleven hours. If the weekly average over a two-month period does not exceed normal hours, work exceeding forty-five hours in some weeks is not overtime. This period may be extended to four months by a collective agreement (Art. 63).
- Time off in lieu: Instead of the premium, the employee may, if they wish, take one hour and thirty minutes of free time for each hour of overtime.
- Limits: Overtime requires the employee’s consent. Total overtime may not exceed two hundred and seventy hours a year (Art. 41).
2. Burden of proof and the effect of the signed payslip
Court of Cassation, 9th Civil Chamber, 27.04.2026, Docket 2026/1595, Decision 2026/3812: “An employee who claims to have worked overtime must prove this claim.” The Chamber also stated that a payslip bearing the employee’s signature is conclusive evidence until proven forged. If a signed payslip shows overtime was paid and there is no reservation, the employee must prove additional overtime with written evidence. If varying payments including overtime were made by bank transfer without the employee signing payslips, work beyond the amount paid may be proven by any type of evidence.
A reservation (ihtirazi kayıt) is a note such as “my claims are reserved” written when signing the payslip. The effect of a signed payslip varies according to its specific content. Months with no overtime entry in the payslip are not assessed in the same way as months with an entry. The same rules of proof also apply to work on weekly rest days and public holidays.
3. Types of evidence and how they are assessed
| Evidence | What it shows | Point to note |
|---|---|---|
| Entry-exit records, timesheets | Actual working hours | The Court of Cassation accepts workplace records and documents showing entry to and exit from the workplace as evidence |
| Payslip | Overtime pay paid | A signed payslip with entries is strong evidence; a reservation matters |
| Bank records | Payment amounts and dates | Varying payments by bank without payslips may open the door to all types of evidence |
| E-mails, messages, internal correspondence | Assignments and work outside working hours | The sender and date should be clear |
| Shift schedules | The planned working pattern | Compared with actual practice |
| Witness | The working pattern | Statements of witnesses who do not know the workplace’s working pattern are given no weight |
| Nature of the work | Intensity and duration | The court may also investigate according to the nature of the work |
In the same decision, because it was not established that the sales receipts submitted by the employee had been issued by the employee, the calculation based on those receipts was held to be wrong. Who created a document, and in what process, directly affects its evidential value.
4. Document checklist for employees
- Employment contract and documents showing working hours
- Payslips (and whether you wrote a reservation when signing)
- Bank statements
- Shift schedules and assignment messages sent to you
- Dated notes of your working hours that you kept yourself (supporting value only)
- Details of witnesses who know the working pattern at the workplace
Overtime pay is a wage receivable and is subject to a five-year limitation period (Art. 32). Applying to a mediator before filing a lawsuit is a precondition for the lawsuit (Labour Courts Law No. 7036, Art. 3).
5. Document checklist for employers
- Keeping entry-exit system records regularly and completely
- Obtaining the employee’s consent for overtime
- Ensuring overtime entries in payslips reflect actual work, and having payslips signed
- Making payments by bank transfer with a description
- Monitoring the annual limit of two hundred and seventy hours; recording time off taken in lieu
- Where a balancing period is used, a written agreement and period calculations
6. Common mistakes
- The employee signing payslips without objection and later claiming different hours
- Naming witnesses who do not know the workplace’s working pattern
- The employer not keeping entry-exit records
- Not obtaining consent for overtime or exceeding the annual limit
- Relying on documents whose author is unclear
7. Hypothetical examples
Hypothetical example 1: W’s payslips are unsigned, and W’s wage is paid into a bank account in a different amount each month. W submits messages from a manager and witnesses who worked the same shift. In this case, overtime beyond what was paid may be proven by any type of evidence.
Hypothetical example 2: X signed payslips with overtime entries without any reservation. As a rule, claiming more overtime for those months requires written evidence.
These examples are not based on real persons or files; the outcome depends on the specific circumstances.
8. Frequently asked questions
After how many weekly hours does overtime begin?
Within the conditions set out in the Law, work exceeding forty-five hours a week is overtime. The assessment differs if a balancing period applies.
I signed my payslips; can I no longer claim overtime?
You can, but for months where the signed payslip shows overtime payments, proving more generally requires a reservation or written evidence.
Can overtime be proven by witnesses alone?
Where there is no written evidence, the court may rely on witness statements. The witness must know the working pattern at the workplace.
Can I take time off instead of overtime pay?
If you wish, you may take one hour and thirty minutes of free time for each hour of overtime. This time must be used within six months.
When does an overtime claim become time-barred?
Wage receivables are subject to a five-year limitation period.
As an employer, which records should I keep?
Entry-exit records, signed payslips, bank payment records and overtime consents may be decisive in a dispute.
9. Sources
- Labour Law No. 4857 (Turkish): Arts. 32, 41, 63
- Labour Courts Law No. 7036: Art. 3
- Court of Cassation, 9th Civil Chamber, 27.04.2026, Docket 2026/1595, Decision 2026/3812; searchable by reference on the Court of Cassation decision search system (Turkish).
This article provides general information and does not replace a review of the specific facts and documents. Current legislation and case-specific circumstances require separate assessment.