Recruitment agency in Istanbul. Engineers and specialists for international companies.
As a recruitment agency in Istanbul we fill engineering, robotics, aviation and industry roles for international companies with sites in Turkey: we search candidates directly, screen them technically and present a shortlist, in English, Turkish or German. We have been a private employment agency licensed by İŞKUR since 2011 (licence no. 507), and our fee is due only once you hire.
- Fee only on hire
- İŞKUR-licensed since 2011
- Reply within one working day
Companies that trust us
Why technical hiring in Istanbul takes time
Istanbul hosts 428 of the 1,365 R&D centres in Turkey, with Kocaeli (137) and Bursa (134) close behind; 237 of these centres belong to companies with a foreign partner. The engineering pool is large, but automotive, white goods, defense, energy and software companies compete for the same people. An experienced PLC programmer, commissioning engineer or project manager rarely answers a job ad. International employers also need candidates who work in English and fit a matrix organisation with headquarters abroad.
Your advantages
- Fast shortlistFirst suitable profiles usually within two weeks.
- Technical screeningTechnical interviews; you only see profiles that fit.
- Three languagesEnglish, Turkish and German, for local and international companies.
Job portal, generalist agency or specialist recruiter
Who fills a technical role, and how, decides how long it takes and how well it works.
The usual way
- A pile of applicationsHundreds of applications, most of them off target. Screening takes your HR team weeks, and experienced candidates are not in the pile.
- Generalist agencySales one day, accounting the next. Nobody asks technical questions; CVs are forwarded unfiltered.
- Retainer up frontA fee is due at the start of the search; if no candidate fits, the money is gone.
- Unclear licenceWho is placing candidates, under which licence, and how personal data is handled stays unclear.
How we work
- Direct searchWe approach experienced candidates who are not looking.
- Specialist fieldsIndustry, robotics, aviation and engineering; we are not a generalist.
- No retainerThe fee is due only once you hire.
- Licensed and transparentİŞKUR-licensed since 2011, data handled under KVKK.
Four fields we specialise in
Few fields, deep knowledge: in technical roles we speak the candidate’s language.
Recruiting in Istanbul: what international companies should know
Licence, process, costs and the Istanbul market, as of 2026.
Why the İŞKUR licence matters
In Turkey, matching job seekers with employers is reserved for private employment agencies licensed by the Turkish Employment Agency (İŞKUR). In 2025, 829 licensed private agencies placed 47,859 people in Turkey and abroad.
DEKRA Arbeit Türkei has worked under this licence since 2011. Our current certificate is no. 507, issued by the İŞKUR Istanbul Provincial Directorate. A licensed agency may not charge candidates; the employer pays. Before you work with a recruiter in Turkey, ask for the licence certificate.
Quellen: Turkish Employment Agency (İŞKUR) · İŞKUR figures 2025 (TRT Haber, 22 Mar 2026)
The process: from role to first day
For a technical role the process usually has four steps:
- Role analysis: tasks, must-have and nice-to-have skills, salary range, team and location, reporting lines to headquarters.
- Direct search: targeted search through our network, industry events and professional networks; ads only support it.
- Technical screening: technical interview, reference and expectation check, an English-language shortlist with reasons.
- Offer and start: interview scheduling, offer and counter-offer handling, follow-up until the first working day.
The technical workforce in Istanbul and the Marmara region
Turkey’s industrial belt surrounds Istanbul: Kocaeli and Bursa are the centres of the automotive industry and its suppliers, Tekirdağ and Sakarya host many plants. Many candidates live in Istanbul and work in these provinces, so we search across the whole Marmara region.
In robotics, Turkey installed 3,194 new industrial robots in 2025 and its operational stock reached a record 30,990. Robot density is 52 per 10,000 employees in manufacturing and 374 in automotive, so demand for robot programmers and commissioning engineers keeps rising.
Quellen: R&D centres in Türkiye reach 1,365 (AA, 23 Oct 2026) · IFR robot figures (Hürriyet Daily News, 4 Oct 2026)
For international companies in Istanbul
Istanbul is home to more than 530,000 foreigners with a residence permit, and 8,665 companies with German capital alone are registered in Turkey. Most international employers look for engineers and managers who work in English and fit a headquarters abroad. We interview in Turkish and English, write assessments in English or German on request and explain local salary levels and notice periods before you make an offer.
If you have no company in Turkey yet, you can employ your first people through our Employer of Record in Turkey; for payroll see our payroll service.
Quellen: Foreign residents in Türkiye (Turkish Minute, 9 Apr 2025) · German Federal Foreign Office: Germany and Türkiye
Notice periods and timing
Under the Turkish Labour Act No. 4857 statutory notice periods depend on length of service, from two weeks for less than six months to eight weeks for more than three years. Experienced candidates therefore often start six to ten weeks after signing. Plan the search with this in mind, and expect counter-offers from current employers for scarce profiles.
Defense, aerospace and aviation roles
For defense and aerospace companies in Turkey we have a separate specialism: embedded, RF, systems and quality roles in Ankara and Istanbul, see defense and aerospace recruitment in Turkey. For B1 and B2 licensed aircraft maintenance technicians see aviation recruitment in Turkey.
In four steps
Fees and model
We work on success: the fee is invoiced when the candidate starts, based on the annual gross salary. No retainer up front, no fee for candidates.
- Success feeOnly once a hire is made, depending on the role and the annual gross salary.
- Free for candidatesAs an İŞKUR-licensed private employment agency we never charge candidates.
- Several rolesOne offer for a new team or a new site.
Lücke: Honorarsatz und Garantiezeit Personalvermittlung Türkei
Frequently asked questions
What does a recruitment agency in Istanbul charge?
We work on success: the fee is invoiced only when the candidate starts, based on the role and the annual gross salary. We do not ask for a retainer. You receive a concrete offer after the first call.
Are you licensed to recruit in Turkey?
Yes. DEKRA Arbeit Türkei has been a private employment agency licensed by İŞKUR since 2011; the current certificate is no. 507 of the İŞKUR Istanbul Provincial Directorate.
Which roles do you fill?
Specialist, engineering and management roles in industry and manufacturing, robotics and automation, aviation, and engineering and R&D.
Do you work in English?
Yes. We work in English, Turkish and German and write shortlists and assessments in English on request.
Do you only recruit for Istanbul?
No. Our office is in Istanbul; we also run roles in Kocaeli, Bursa, Ankara and Izmir from here.
Do candidates pay for the service?
No. As an İŞKUR-licensed private employment agency we never charge candidates; the employer pays the fee.
Which role are you filling?
Tell us the role, the location and the start date. Within 1 working day at the latest we reply with the market situation and a search plan.
The right person, first time.
In a first call we clarify the role, the salary range and the search plan.
