20.09.2025

Development of Civil Legislation

Thanks to the efforts of our Head of State, the consistent modernization of our national legislation is one of the key factors ensuring the prosperous life of our people. The progressive legal acts that embody the state policy expressed by the motto “The Motherland is the people! The State is the people!” not only strengthen unity within society but also contribute to the development of legal relations and the improvement of our citizens’ legal culture.

A clear example of this is the Civil Code of Turkmenistan, adopted in June of the Year of International Peace and Trust, published on July 30, 2025, and entering into force on January 1, 2026.

The adoption of the revised Civil Code of Turkmenistan, one of the most important legal acts in our country, holds great significance in ensuring that our national legal system keeps pace with the times.

Civil legislation defines the legal status of participants in civil turnover, the foundations for the emergence of property rights, and the procedure for their implementation. It regulates contractual and other obligations, as well as other property and related non-property relations.

As is known from the theory of state and law, the legal system represents a unified and coherent set of normative legal acts that do not contradict each other. This structure facilitates access to necessary legal norms and promotes their effective application in practice.

Civil legislation, being one of the key areas of Turkmenistan’s national legal system, plays a vital role in regulating property and non-property relations based on equality of parties, and in stabilizing economic relations. Currently, Turkmenistan’s civil legislation — including the Constitution, the Civil Code, the Housing Code, and the Family Code — regulates both property and non-property relations among citizens.

Article 1 of the Civil Code establishes fundamental principles such as the equality of participants in civil relations, the inviolability of property, freedom of contract, prohibition of arbitrary interference in private affairs, free exercise of civil rights, restoration of violated rights, and their protection through judicial means.

The Civil Code of Turkmenistan is one of the legal foundations of the economic system of the state and society. For example, Article 7 of the Civil Code states:

“If an international treaty of Turkmenistan establishes rules other than those provided by the civil legislation, the provisions of the international treaty shall prevail.”

The Code strengthens the norms governing property and non-property relations, as well as legal norms that refer to other special regulatory legal acts, reflecting the importance of civil law in public life.

The Civil Code determines the legal status of participants in civil turnover, the basis for the emergence and exercise of property rights. In addition, unless otherwise provided by special laws, it regulates family, housing, labor relations, and those connected with the use of natural resources and environmental protection.

The Code also defines that the personal law of a natural person is the law of the country of their citizenship. If a foreign citizen resides in Turkmenistan, Turkmen law applies to their civil legal relations arising within the territory of Turkmenistan. If a person has multiple citizenships or is stateless, their personal law is determined by the law of their place of residence. It further regulates matters such as a person’s legal capacity, ability to act, right to a name, the ability to engage in entrepreneurial activity, as well as norms concerning guardianship, trusteeship, and recognition of a person as missing or deceased.

It is also worth noting that, in line with Turkmenistan’s humanitarian state policy, a new chapter has been added to the Code, establishing the legal framework for charitable activities and donations made by individuals and legal entities. The adoption of the new version of the Civil Code of Turkmenistan, prepared in accordance with the Constitution, marks an important step in modernizing the legal basis of civil relations and strengthening the legal framework governing civil-law relations involving foreign persons or foreign elements.

We express our deep gratitude to our esteemed President, Hero Arkadag, for the broad opportunities created to continuously improve our national legislation. May his life be long, and may his great work for the benefit of the Motherland and the people continue to prosper!