As stated in the title of this article, we will examine who can be registered under Bağ-Kur. Before describing who qualifies for Bağ-Kur, it is useful to share a few details about Bağ-Kur itself.
What It Means to Be a Bağ-Kur Member
Bağ-Kur can be defined as a pension and social security scheme for self-employed individuals or those working in private-sector enterprises that are not linked to the state. Under Bağ-Kur, participants pay social security contributions in their own name in order to obtain insured status. Like other insured workers, those covered by Bağ-Kur are required to pay a set amount of contribution premiums. Typically these contributions must continue for roughly 15–25 years. Once an individual has continued payments and reached the required age, they become eligible to retire and receive a Bağ-Kur pension. The period that counts toward your Bağ-Kur retirement begins from the date you first join Bağ-Kur.
Advantages of Being a Bağ-Kur Member
Bağ-Kur is important for accessing the benefits of being insured. Your healthcare costs can be covered by the state, and you can receive prescription drugs with a small copayment. In addition, once you retire under Bağ-Kur, you begin to receive a monthly pension, which provides an income so you are not required to work after a certain age.
Required Documents to Register for Bağ-Kur
To register for Bağ-Kur, you must be a citizen of the Republic of Turkey. Those who want to benefit from Bağ-Kur and make contribution payments can apply at Bağ-Kur Provincial Directorates.
The declaration form obtained from the Bağ-Kur Provincial Directorate must be signed and approved by the relevant institutions (tax offices; if exempt from tax, chambers and registry offices), and then returned to the Bağ-Kur Provincial Directorate.
If you are applying for voluntary Bağ-Kur, you must determine the planned contribution amount, obtain and complete the entry document from the directorate, and submit it back to the directorate.
For these procedures you will need your identity card and, if you are affiliated with a business, your tax certificate and registration form.
After your application is completed, the institution will register you. As you may know, Bağ-Kur, the Pension Fund (Emekli Sandığı) and SSK have been merged under a single umbrella as the Social Security Institution (Sosyal Güvenlik Kurumu). For this reason, you should submit your application at Social Security Institution provincial directorates. By following the same steps at SGK offices, you can quickly complete your voluntary Bağ-Kur registration.