Providing parallelism in practice of international law and international law rules has a place in creating a system respecting human dignity and in preventing violations of human rights. Within this scope, foreigners in our country have various rights and obligations. Residency permits form a legal basis for the stay of foreigners in our country within the framework of these rights and obligations.
According to the Law on Foreigners and International Protection No. 6458, a residence permit document shall stand for the permit issued for the purpose of staying in Turkey. This document granted by competent authorities entitles the right to reside in a specific location in Turkey for a given period of time. Residence permit which is of great importance in terms of the provision and protection of public order shall be issued following the request
Foreigners who would stay in Turkey beyond the duration of a visa or visa exemption or longer than ninety days should obtain a residence permit. As it is envisaged by the law, it will soon be possible to lodge with the consulates in the foreigner’s country of citizenship or legal stay, and this will also be announced. Until the adoption of this procedure, applications for residence permits shall be lodged with the governorates.
Pursuant to the law in question, accompanying is no longer valid and, in addition to this, residence permit documents following their applications shall be issued separately for each foreigner. Those applications may be made in person as well as by his/her legal representative or lawyer. However, if the administration deems it necessary, it may also require foreigners to be present at the time of application.
By the Law No. 6735, the provision stating that applications may also be made through Authorized Intermediary has been included in the scope of Article 21 of the Law No. 6458. Authorized Intermediary refers to the institutions or organizations authorized by the Directorate General and their qualifications and task frameworks shall be set forth by regulation.
If the foreigners demand residence permit more than three months for this purpose, invitation letter or similar documents will be requested from the persons or companies to be contacted. Foreigners who do not work in Turkey but will make an investment within the scope and amount that shall be determined by the Council of Ministers, and their foreign spouses, his and her foreign minor children or foreign dependent children; the residence permit based on this purpose is issued five years at most. The purpose of the changes which International Labor Law numbered 6735 generated in the Law numbered 6458 is to promote the foreigners who will contribute to the national economy and provide convenience to them on residence permit processes.
The foreigner is required to fulfill the conditions stipulated in Article 32 of the Law No. 6458 to have a short-term residence permit.
Under the following cases a short-term residence permit shall not be granted, shall be canceled if has been issued, and shall not be renewed when:
In order to get a short-term residence permit, you should visit e-ikamet.goc.gov.tr in order to fill in the forms online and set up an appointment. You will be given an appointment date for an interview. You are expected to submit the documents listed below during your interview;
In order to get a long-term residence permit, foreigners should have continuously resided in Turkey for at least eight years.
For further information about submission of the long-term residence permit documents, please click here.
The Republic of Turkey has amended its law to offer citizenship to international investors!
The decree on the changes published in Turkey's Official Gazette grants citizenship to foreigners who make a fixed capital investment of at least USD 2 million, keep at least USD 3 million in a bank account for at least 3 years or create at least 100 jobs in the country.
With the new law (announced on January 12, 2017 on Official Gazette), foreign investors who bring substantial assets/capital to Turkey can obtain Turkish Citizenship. In brief, we can list how foreign investors who fulfill one of the following criteria can gain the Turkish Citizenship:
In this context, investors who request residence permit will be granted 5 years of residence permit by the Directorate of Migration Management.
