The SGK employment start notification: when, how and with what information

Murat Bey the coffee-shop owner's Thursday phone call

Murat Bey's coffee shop is now too much for one person. Can, the new waiter, will start on Monday. The workplace's SGK (Social Security Institution) file was opened last week. On Thursday he called his mali müşavir (accountant): "Can is coming on Monday, will you do his insurance?"

The mali müşavir asked for three things: Can's identity number, his start day and what work he will do. Murat Bey said, "He's a waiter." The mali müşavir asked one more question: "Will he only serve, or will he also work the till, or stand at the stove too?" For the first time, Murat Bey thought about it: Can was in fact going to do all three.

The notification is the employee's order slip

In a coffee shop, an order doesn't go to the stove until an order slip (adisyon) is opened. The slip shows the table, the time and what was ordered. The insured employment start notification (sigortalı işe giriş bildirgesi) is SGK's order slip: "This person, from this date, at this workplace, does this work." The employee's insurance days start counting with this record.

The workplace file, that is, the SGK registration number, comes before this notification. We explained that step in the lesson Before your first employee: opening a workplace file with SGK. This lesson is about what comes after the file is opened.

When is it given?

According to Law No. 5510 art. 8 and SGK's explanations:

• General rule: The notification is given at least 1 day before the employee starts work.
• Construction, agriculture and fishing: It can be given on the day they start work at the latest.
• A workplace giving SGK a workplace notification for the first time: For people who start within one month from the date you start employing insured workers, the notification can be given within that one month. Your mali müşavir will tell you whether this extra time fits your workplace and how the days are counted; the simplest way is still to give it in advance.
• An employee who is a foreign national: The time limit is linked to the work permit; follow it together with your mali müşavir.

The notification is given electronically on e-Sigorta, SGK's screen open to employers; it is not given on paper. In most small businesses, the mali müşavir does this.

If Can starts on Monday, the notification must be given by Sunday at the latest. But there is no point leaving it to the last day. Murat Bey gave the information on Thursday, and the mali müşavir sent the notification on Friday.

What goes in the notification, and what goes to the mali müşavir?

If you will employ a retired person or a foreign national, first look at the lesson A checklist before hiring.

The occupation code: saying "waiter" may not be enough

SGK asks the employer to notify the employee's work with a code from an occupation classification. The code is chosen not by the person's job title, but by the work they actually do at the workplace. If most of Can's work is serving, the waiter code may fit; if he mostly stands at the till, another code is needed. Your mali müşavir decides which code is chosen; you describe the work to them correctly.

Duties can change over time. If Can, who started as a waiter, begins running the coffee shop on his own a year later, the code is updated too. Your mali müşavir makes the correction by applying to SGK. If a wrong code comes to light through the employee's application, a complaint or an inspection, SGK imposes an administrative fine (idari para cezası) (Law No. 5510 art. 102/1-n): for each return period, one tenth of the minimum wage per insured employee, which is 3,303 lira in 2026. According to a 2021 SGK letter, no fine is imposed when the employer asks for a retroactive correction of their own accord. That is why you should tell your mali müşavir when duties change.

Put a copy in the file

Once the notification is given, ask your mali müşavir for a copy and put it in the employee's personnel file (özlük dosyası). The employee can also see the employment start record on e-Devlet (e-Government). The days they worked, however, do not appear in their service record (hizmet dökümü) straight away; they appear after the month ends and that month's return is given. Asking Can at the end of the first week, "Have you seen your employment start record?" puts both sides at ease. If he says "My days don't show", this is the reason. What else goes in the personnel file is in the next lesson: The first day and the first week.

The start date in the notification also sets the first payroll. For an employee who starts in the middle of the month, the first payroll is prepared not on a full month, but on the days from their start until the end of the month. So don't be surprised if their first wage looks lower than a full month's wage. We explain how to read the calculation in the lesson The first payroll.

If the date is missed or entered wrongly

If you are late: Call your mali müşavir the day you notice, and have the notification given straight away. Under Law No. 5510 art. 102, there is an administrative fine for a notification not given on time. In 2026 this fine is one month's gross minimum wage per insured employee, that is, 33,030 lira. If the omission comes to light in an inspection or through information from another institution, double is applied. So if you correct it early yourself, it costs clearly less than waiting for it to be found. If a fine has been served on you, look at the payment and objection deadlines together with your mali müşavir.

If the date or information was entered wrongly: For example, the employee started not on Monday but on Wednesday. Tell your mali müşavir the same day. Your mali müşavir makes the correction on SGK's screens or through the social security centre. A wrong date will later show the employee's insurance days and your premium debt wrongly.

If the employee never came: The notification was given, but the person did not start work. Tell your mali müşavir about this straight away too; your mali müşavir applies to SGK to cancel the notification. If the record is not cancelled, that person keeps appearing at SGK as your employee. Giving an employment termination notification afterwards does not delete this record.

At the end of the call, Murat Bey left his mali müşavir one more note: "If Can moves to the till, I'll let you know." On Monday morning, as Murat Bey put it, Can's order slip had been opened.