Novation Intention and the New Obligation

Legal Article · 12 November 2026
Av. Thomas Andreas Di Constantinople

Novation extinguishes an existing obligation by creating a new one. Article 133 of the Turkish Code of Obligations requires express novation intention. Changing some terms or issuing another document therefore does not invariably remove the old debt.

In particular, a negotiable-instrument undertaking, new acknowledgment instrument, or suretyship instrument for existing debt is not novation without express intention. This distinction determines the relationship between the principal obligation and instrument-based claim. Documenting the same claim in different legal forms does not allow double collection.

Extending maturity, instalments, or changing the payment place also requires assessment of the transaction's true content. The intended result must be extinguishment of the old obligation and creation of a new one. An unclear payment plan does not automatically imply that significant consequence.

Article 134 of the Turkish Code of Obligations contains a special current-account rule. Entering items alone is not novation; closing the account and accepting its balance may have different effects. Relevant provisions also govern old security and ancillary rights. Novation must therefore be examined separately from ordinary amendment and acknowledgment.

Legal Basis: Turkish Code of Obligations No. 6098, Articles 133 and 134. Official legislative text.

This article has been prepared for general legal information purposes.