Türkiye vs Germany for a software or game company
Germany has the highest combined corporate tax rate in this comparison at 29.8%, and one of the deepest engineering markets in Europe. Federal games funding covers development costs. Nothing covers user acquisition, which for a mobile studio is usually the larger number, and it is paid out of profit already taxed at close to thirty percent.
The short verdict
01Where each one wins, 6 measures to 2
Where Türkiye wins
- Corporate tax, at 25% against Germany's 29.8% once trade tax is counted.
- Marketing spend, refunded at 50% to 70% instead of paid out of taxed profit.
- Dividends to a foreign parent, 15% against 25%.
- The cost base, about 69% below Germany's.
Where Germany wins
- Engineering depth, and hiring across the EU without visa friction.
- Federal games funding for development costs, which Türkiye handles through a separate track.
- Local purchasing power, 81% higher than Türkiye's.
- The largest domestic games market in Europe to test in.
02How do Türkiye and Germany compare, line by line?
Of 9 measures, Türkiye takes 6 and Germany takes 2, with 1 level. Every figure links to its source and carries the date we last checked it.
Public money
| Measure | Türkiye | Germany |
|---|---|---|
| Cash back on ads, hosting and platform fees | better for the company50% of what you spend, rising to 70% when the customers you are targeting are in one of the twenty countries on Türkiye's target listsource | Nothing comparablesource |
| Support for development costs | Yes, through two separate programmes: TÜBİTAK, which funds defined research projects, and teknopark status, which removes corporate tax on software developed inside a technology parkBoth are applied for separately from the export refund, and a company can hold them at the same time.source | better for the companyA federal games funding programme aimed at prototype and production costssource |
What it costs to live there
| Measure | Türkiye | Germany |
|---|---|---|
| Cost of living index | better for the company40.2Numbeo index, mid-2026.source | 68.0, 69% higher than Türkiyesource |
| Rent index | better for the company12.3source | 22.0, 79% higher than Türkiyesource |
| Local purchasing power index | 71.8Salaries buy less locally, which is the other side of a low cost base.source | better for staff130.0, 81% higher than Türkiyesource |
Tax
| Measure | Türkiye | Germany |
|---|---|---|
| Corporate tax on ordinary profit | better for the company25%source | 29.8% combined, including trade taxsource |
| Tax on income from software sold abroad | better for the company0% under the IT export regimeApplies to income earned from customers outside Türkiye.source | Taxed the same as any other profitsource |
| VAT, standard rate | 20%Exported services are outside the scope, so this rate matters less to an exporter than the headline suggests.source | 19%source |
| Withholding tax on dividends to a foreign parent | better for the company15%A double tax treaty can reduce it.source | 25%source |
03What is it like to run a company in Germany?
Berlin is one hour behind Istanbul, so the working day overlaps almost completely and a shared standup is trivial. Flights take about three hours. The German games industry is concentrated in Berlin and Hamburg, both with twenty years of free-to-play operating experience, so the talent argument for staying is real in a way the tax argument is not.
04What does the Turkish programme pay back, and what are the limits?
| What you spend it on | Programme item | Paid back | Annual cap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ads and player acquisition | Digital product promotion: ads & marketing (up to 10 products/yr) | 50% to 70% | 50 000 000 ₺ ≈ $1,043,841 |
| App store and platform commissions | App store & platform commissions (up to 10 products/yr) | 50% | 20 000 000 ₺ ≈ $417,537 |
| Hosting and servers | Hosting costs | 50% | 5 000 000 ₺ ≈ $104,384 |
What Türkiye would pay back on your spending
Türkiye runs a government programme that refunds part of what a software company or game studio spends on reaching customers abroad. It covers advertising, app store and platform commissions, and hosting. The refund is paid in cash against invoices the company has already settled, so it does not depend on the company making a profit. The standard rate is 50%, and it rises to 70% when the customers being targeted are in one of the twenty countries on the Turkish Ministry of Trade's target list.
Put your own yearly figures in below. The rates and the annual caps come from the same file as our full calculator, and the total updates as you type.
05Questions we get asked
What is trade tax and why does it matter?
It is charged by the municipality on top of the federal corporate rate and it is what takes the combined rate near 30%. The exact figure depends on which city the company sits in.
Does the German games fund cover marketing?
No. It is aimed at prototype and production costs. Promotion is treated as a commercial cost you carry yourself.
Can we keep the German studio and claim in Türkiye?
Yes. That is the usual arrangement. The German company keeps developing, and a Turkish company holds the contracts and pays the invoices for the activity being claimed.
Where this comparison comes from
CyberScope Solutions is an Istanbul consultancy that manages Türkiye's IT export incentive claims for software companies and game studios. We build these comparisons because clients ask for them before deciding, and we keep the rows where the other country wins because a comparison nobody believes is worth nothing.
- Every figure is sourced. Each number links to the page it came from and carries the date we last checked it.
- These pages get rebuilt, not left. Rates and caps come from the same file as our calculator, so when one changes the page changes with it.
- You find out early if it is not for you. The first call is thirty minutes and we will say plainly if your spend pattern does not suit the programme.
Turn that number into money
Send us the rough shape of your spend. You get back what it is worth, what setting it up involves, and how fast the first claim can go in. Companies already operating here treat this as routine, and the six month window means the clock is running on invoices you have already paid.
- A reply from a person within one working day
- No mailing list, no drip sequence
- Thirty minutes, and you keep the numbers either way
Got it.
We will read it properly and reply within a working day. If you would rather get it over with now, pick a time that suits you.
Book a 30 minute call06Where these numbers come from
- https://taxsummaries.pwc.com/turkey/corporate/taxes-on-corporate-income checked 2026-08-20
- https://taxfoundation.org/data/all/eu/corporate-income-tax-rates-europe/ checked 2026-08-20
- https://cyberscope.solutions/blog/zero-percent-tax-on-it-exports/ checked 2026-08-20
- https://taxsummaries.pwc.com/quick-charts/value-added-tax-vat-rates checked 2026-08-20
- https://taxsummaries.pwc.com/turkey/corporate/withholding-taxes checked 2026-08-20
- https://taxsummaries.pwc.com/quick-charts/withholding-tax-wht-rates checked 2026-08-20
- https://cyberscope.solutions/guides/ checked 2026-08-20
- https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/rankings_by_country.jsp checked 2026-08-20