Kinematic constraints on faults with slow slip rates often diverge, obscuring their neotectonic significance and seismic hazards. The Tuz Gölü Fault Zone (TGFZ) is a slow-moving fault accommodating intraplate deformation within central Anatolia, for which long-term geological and short-term geodetic deformation rates disagree. Here, the Pleistocene–Recent kinematic evolution of the TGFZ is determined by dating dissected lava flows of the Hasandağ stratocone. Combined zircon U-Th and (U-Th)/He ages indicate emplacement between 151 ± 6 ka and 38.8 ± 2.0 ka (2σ uncertainties). Restoring flow levees as tie points across fault scarps yields vertical displacement rates of 0.90 ± 0.06 mm/a for the most reliable projection, whereas only negligible dextral strike-slip at 0.01 ± 0.08 mm/a is permitted. Predominantly normal faulting along the TGFZ since the Middle–Late Pleistocene argues against tectonic models involving N-S directed shortening, and instead supports E-W directed extension of Central Anatolia as it escapes westward.