Rule of Law :

Foreigners in Turkey: entry, residence, travel

by Murat Demir & İbrahim Yüce

International law does not oblige any state to permit foreigners to enter its territory, nor does it contain any principle which favours refusing entry. Every state has the right to designate the conditions under which foreigners may enter the country. Permission for the entry of a foreigner and permission for residence are two separate issues, and allowing a foreigner entry puts a state under no obligation to issue a residence permit.

Documents for entry

Turkish citizens and foreigners alike may enter Turkey only through border gates located at the borders of the Republic of Turkey and designated by the Council of Ministers. The obligation to enter via a border gate is not a matter of foreigners’ law: no distinction is made between nationals and foreigners. Any person who wants to leave or enter Turkey, whether a foreigner or a Turkish citizen, is also obliged to present a passport or a document equivalent to a passport. The only difference between foreigners and Turkish nationals who enter Turkey without a passport appears when the former are deported from Turkey after the application of fines and prison sentences. The documents other than a passport which may be used are defined in the Passport Act. Documents such as the “laissez-passer” or similar document issued for use in border areas, the “seaman’s book” provided to crew of ships travelling outside Turkish territorial waters, the “air crew certificate” provided to crew of aircraft and the “railway personnel identification card” carried by staff of railway vehicles may be used as documents equivalent to a passport for the purposes of entering and leaving Turkey, provided that they are counter-stamped by the competent authorities.    

Turkish citizens who want to enter Turkey without a passport have to present their ID cards and prove that these ID cards belong to them.  Citizens who wish to enter Turkey without a passport and who present any document or evidence other than their ID cards are required to wait at the nearest administrative centre until the police have completed the necessary enquiries. If these persons are unable to prove their Turkish citizenship, they are turned back. Foreigners who arrive at border gates without passports or valid passports or documents are turned back. The admission of refugees and of foreigners who want to settle in Turkey, whether they carry passports or not, is subject to the approval of the Ministry of the Interior. Where permission is given in the absence of a passport, the permit in question takes the place of a passports or equivalent document.

Issuing visas

With some exceptions, foreigners who want to enter Turkey are obliged to obtain an entry visa. The entry visa is valid only for entry, and confers no right of residence. In order to reside in the country, a foreigner must obtain a residence permit. Some exceptional visas may provide for a certain period of residence. Where a period of residence is stated on the entrance visa, the foreigner is no longer obliged to obtain a separate residence permit is eliminated for that foreigner. The following may enter Turkey without a visa: Turkish nationals; foreigners holding A-type stamped passports, citizens of states with which Turkey has a visa agreement, persons travelling individually or with a group for tourism purposes (where the local security authorities permit, these may travel and stay overnight within the sea or air ports or within the city in question) and persons in transit or with connecting flights who do not leave the airport.

The authorities which issue visas may vary depending on the type of passport. In the case of diplomatic passport holders and persons who hold passports equivalent to Turkish “special” and “service”-stamped passports, visas may be issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, provincial governor’s offices, embassies of the Republic of Turkey or in places where there is no embassy consulates of the Republic of Turkey. In the case of ordinary passports, visa authority rests with provincial governor’s offices - or police directorates and district governors acting with their permission - and in foreign countries with the consulates of the Republic of Turkey.

Entry visas can be given in the form of single entry visas, multiple entry visas, transit visas or uncharged tourist visas. Persons arriving in Turkey without a visa are obliged to pay double the amount of the normal visa fee, unless they are exempted.

Refusal of entry

Citizens can enter the country at any time. In accordance with international custom, states may impose certain requirements for the persons they are prepared to admit into their country. The Passport Act contains some restrictions with respect to public order, public security and public health. According to this legislation, beggars and vagrants, persons due for extradition, persons who are insane or carry contagious diseases, prostitutes and persons who incite prostitution, woman traders and smugglers, persons who are deemed to have arrived with the intention of disturbing the security and public order of The Republic of Turkey, persons who do not appear able to support themselves during their stay in Turkey and who have nobody to take care of them or who cannot prove that are going to acquire an occupation of a kind which is not forbidden to foreigners may be refused entry to Turkey.

Staying longer

Once foreigners have entered Turkey, they can reside and travel within the country in line with conditions and rules set forth in the Laws and Regulations. These conditions are set out in the Law on Foreigners Residence and Travel. For foreigners who are to stay in Turkey for less than a certain period, no further procedure is required beyond the procedures foreseen for entry. However, foreigners who are to stay for more than one month are obliged to obtain a residence permit from the competent authorities prior to the expiration of such period. Residence permits are issued by the authorised police department of the place where the foreigner stays. Foreigners who want to work in Turkey must obtain a residence permit in advance, before they start to work.

The maximum period of a residence permit is two years. Applications made within this period are treated in line with the laws, regulations and agreements. The residence permit issued to a foreigner can be individual or joint. Married couples and children under the age of 18 can obtain joint residence permits. Foreigners wishing to go on residing in Turkey have to apply for the renewal of their residence permits within 15 days of its expiry. With the renewal, a period of 15 days extra is given to the applicant. Foreigners holding residence permits have to report changes of address within forty-eight hours. For stays in temporary overnight accommodation, the responsibility for notification rests with the enterprise in question.

Temporary stays

In some circumstances, foreigners are exempted from obtaining a residence permit, subject to certain conditions, for a given period of time. According to the Law, foreigners who have entered Turkey on a joint passport for the purpose of travel may remain without obtaining a residence permit for two months. In case of necessity this period can be extended for another two months. Foreigners who have come to Turkey on tourists visas for purposes such as attending national or international historical, cultural or artistic celebrations, festivals, sports events, conferences, exhibitions or fairs, or with a view to obtaining health cures or a change of air in places designated by the Council of Ministers can stay in Turkey for four months without obtaining a residence permit, if no period of stay is stated on their visas. Additionally the foreigners who travel with triptyque documents, with the certification of International Tourism and Automobile Union, can also stay in Turkey for four months without obtaining a residence permit.

Further, Article 1 of the European Agreement on Regulations governing the Movement of Persons between Member States of the Council of Europe absolves the nationals of the member states from any formality in the case of entries and exits lasting up to three months. In cases where states which are a party to the convention in question have adapted their laws and regulations in line with this article, their citizens can enter each others’ countries without a passport.

Grounds for refusing residence

The Law has set out a number of circumstances in which a foreigner who has entered Turkey will not be provided with a residence permit. These circumstances are broadly-defined and leave scope for discretional extension. A foreigner is refused a residence permit in cases where:

a) the field of work in which he or she has come to work is reserved for Turkish citizens;

b) his or her behaviour, acts or activities are contrary to Turkish laws and regulations, customs and traditions or politically inappropriate;

c) he or she not possess legitimate resources for his or her material requirements for the proposed period of stay;

d) he or she has somehow entered Turkey even though banned from entry under the Passport Act;

e) he or she exhibits behaviour while in Turkey that is liable to disturb the peace and public order.

In cases where a foreigner applies for a residence permit but is rejected, he or she must leave the country once the period he or she has been allowed to stay under the Law or agreements has expired.

Forbidden areas

The places where foreigners are not permitted to reside are set out by law. Otherwise, foreigners can reside wherever they like. According to the Villages Act, permission is needed for foreigners to reside in villages. The Law on Military Forbidden Zones states that foreigners cannot normally enter first-degree zones and cannot reside in second-degree zones. Additionally, the Council of Ministers is authorised to ban foreigners from residing or travelling in certain places, either individually or as a group.

( DIPLOMAT  -  February 2006  -  Ankara )