Tax-record-breaking humanities graduates

While the Bayraktar brothers and Rahmi Koç share the top spot on the 2025 Income Tax record-holders list announced by the Revenue Administration (GİB), lawyer Gönenç Gürkaynak drew attention by ranking 23rd with a tax assessment of 285.2 million TL.

Making a statement on social media, Gürkaynak said, "I leave it to you to interpret the fact that one can become a record-holder by paying 7 million USD in taxes, despite the ostentation in our country, and that I, as a lawyer, have become a tax record-holder."

Following this statement, let us write an article.

The Turkish economic structure avoids direct taxation.

It views the business of individual tax calculation, as seen in America, as unnecessary paperwork.

It solves the problem at the root by imposing astronomical taxes on a few consumer products that the entire public needs.

Instead of individual tax bases, it solves the problem the Turkish way through special consumption taxes. 

It fills its coffers with taxes on vehicles, fuel, and phones that are unparalleled anywhere in the world.

Of course, manufacturing factories pay corporate tax.

In the rankings, the VAT, withholding, consolidated, and corporate tax amounts of these production facilities are also announced.

However, recently, manufacturing firms have been at the bottom of the rankings.

They have been replaced by lawyers.

And by paying seven million dollars, at that.

What have these lawyers done or produced to start appearing at the top of tax rankings?

How much income must one declare to pay seven million dollars in taxes?

How can such high earnings be achieved with just a criminal code book and a bailiff?

Is it possible for a non-productive system, where humanities graduates have replaced mathematicians, to survive, my friends?