SSI expert warns employers paying salaries in cash
Employers who pay their workers' salaries in cash face serious risks. With the new regulation, significant changes regarding payment methods have come into effect. Businesses that make cash salary payments may face both legal and financial sanctions.
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The Ministry of Labor and Social Security has updated the regulation that mandates all payments to workers, such as salaries, premiums, and bonuses, be made through banks. The change in question was published in the Official Gazette dated June 4, 2025, and officially entered into force.
THREE-PERSON LIMIT
In the previous practice, workplaces with five or fewer employees had the right to pay salaries in cash. However, with the new regulation, this number has been reduced. As of July 1, 2025, only businesses employing three or fewer workers will be able to make cash payments.
IMPORTANT WARNING FROM AN EXPERT
Social security expert Özgür Erdursun stated in his explanation regarding the new regulation that employers need to be careful. Erdursun issued an important warning to workplaces making cash payments, saying, “Very serious penalties are being applied.”
WHAT AWAITS EMPLOYERS WHO MAKE CASH PAYMENTS?
According to the new rules, the employer will be subject to an administrative fine equal to two minimum wages for each worker paid in cash for each month.
If it is revealed as a result of an audit that cash payments were made, the company's payrolls and daily ledgers will be considered invalid, and an administrative fine equal to half a minimum wage will be applied for each invalid record (not to exceed 12 minimum wages in total).
In addition, the 'Minimum Wage Support' provided to the employer during the periods when cash payments are detected will be reclaimed, and the relevant amount will be returned to the SSI along with legal interest.
The insurance premiums and taxes that the employer under-declared will have to be paid to the relevant institutions along with late interest.
Furthermore, if the worker claims that the salary was not paid, the employer may face the prospect of paying the same salary a second time.
PENALTIES ARE NOT LIMITED TO MONEY
The new system does not only cover financial sanctions. Employers who make cash payments cannot benefit from the incentives provided by the state. Additionally, if salary payments are not made through a bank, the company's accounting records are considered invalid, which can cause the employer to suffer many legal and financial rights losses.