Citizenship (Immigration)

Investment

This is the fastest and easiest way to get Turkish citizenship. Investors go through a simplified program, which means that you will get a new passport in about 6 months after applying.

In addition to the speed of paperwork, this method is great because you do not need to take an exam in Turkish (you may not know it at all). You also don’t need to prove your income.

In 2022, they raised the financial threshold for investors: if before it was possible to invest $250,000 in real estate and obtain citizen’s passport, now the bar has been raised to $400,000.

However, it is still not very much compared to other countries. Even compared to Turkey itself! Before 2018, the minimum investment for obtaining Turkish citizenship was $1 million.

Official document is suitable for a variety of investment types:

This is the most popular answer to the question of how to obtain Turkish citizenship. It is enough to buy one property or several with a total value of 400 thousand dollars, and after obtaining a certificate of ownership, you can expect to receive passports. Both residential and commercial areas are suitable for the program. It is possible to buy a property in any province – there are no restrictions.

Note that the cadastral value of housing is taken into account here, but not the real market value, that is, in fact, your investment will most likely cost more than the required minimum of $400,000. But sometimes on the secondary market you can find apartments for which the delta between the cadastral and real values tends to zero. The cadastral value is established by an independent examination, and the amount is written in the document that will be issued by the appraiser, and then in the certificate of ownership.

When calculating expenses, you need to take into account all additional expenses, including a tax of 4 percent of the declared cadastral value, that is, at least $16,000. But you can resell housing bought for the sake of citizenship no earlier than 3 years after the purchase, but the money will be returned with a profit. In 2022, the return on investment is an average of 30 percent when it comes to a house in the first stages of construction.

Not every deal over $400,000 gives you the right to apply for a Turkish resident’s passport, it is only about buying real estate from a Turkish individual or legal entity, that is, from a developer or Turkish owner.

You can deposit from 500 thousand dollars into a Turkish bank and apply for a Turkish passport. This money cannot be withdrawn from the deposit within 3 years.

Units bring passive income, which is important for the investor. The minimum purchase amount is $500,000.

According to the simplified acquisition program, you need to buy a stake in a Turkish company or in your business project to provide jobs for at least 50 Turkish citizens (there is no minimum level for investment, but it is obvious that the business is rather big).

Most investors choose the first type of investment, which is the purchase of luxury real estate at a price of $400,000. Given that you can choose a liquid option and resell later, this is a double win – both citizenship and profit. You can buy not only a villa or an apartment, but also a share in a good hotel in a resort province or office space.

Under the naturalization program as an owner of a home

This method also includes the purchase of real estate, but the cost can be less than $400,000. In 2022, a lower price bar was set for real estate objects, the possession of which allows one to obtain a type B residence permit, that is, by ownership of housing. This bar is $75,000.

To apply for citizenship by naturalization, you need to live in the country for 5 years, renewing the same residence permit for owners. The period of residence is calculated by days, and you cannot spend more than 6 months in total outside Turkey in these 5 years.

There are also other requirements:

• It will be necessary to pass an interview, during which it will be assessed how well you know the Turkish language and Turkish culture, and provide a document confirming knowledge of the language. A certificate of completion of language courses cannot serve as such a document – only a certificate from the consulate or the Ministry of Education counts.
• Officials will check if the applicant poses a threat to national security.
• You need to prove your income by presenting a notarized income statement.
• You will also need a certificate of health and no criminal record.

Together with the investor, his minor children will also receive citizenship at the same time. The spouse of the investor will be able to apply for a passport not immediately, but after 3 years on the basis of marriage with a Turkish citizen.

This is not a quick way to obtain citizenship, the whole process takes from one to two years, or even more (unlike obtaining a passport for investment, where the whole procedure will take only six months).

Work Visa

It is illegal to work in Turkey with a regular residence permit. In order to hire a foreigner to work in their company, the employer requests a work visa for the future employee, that is, a work permit.

A work visa is equivalent to a residence permit, which means that after 5 years of residence in Turkey with a work permit, you can apply for a passport. This is a particular case of naturalization.

Marriage to a Turkish citizen

First, you will need to obtain a family residence permit, which will later need to be renewed. After 3 years it will be possible to apply for citizenship. The Migration Service carefully checks the marriage for fictitious.

The peculiarity of this method is that it is not necessary to live in Turkey. However, if you live in a foreign country, you need to live there with your spouse.

For special merit

These are rare cases, however, it is possible to obtain a Turkish passport for a special contribution to science, culture or sports.