Citizenship is the connection between an individual and a state. Even though citizenship is thought of as an unchangeable status, many states give the right to acquire citizenship to those who meet certain conditions. Turkey, being a country with an open-door policy, provides many different methods for the acquisition of Turkish citizenship. As a result, individuals who are not eligible to acquire citizenship via birth or marriage may still acquire citizenship using these methods. The two main methods for this are the General method to acquire Turkish citizenship and the exceptional method to acquire Turkish citizenship.
Citizenship acquired through these two methods is irrevocable and grants the same status as Turkish citizens who acquire citizenship via birth. Applicants will gain the rights and obligations of an ordinary Turkish citizen and can also acquire a new Turkish name if he/she requests. The effects of a citizenship application to the applicant’s wife and children will be discussed in detail below.
General Method to Acquire Turkish Citizenship
According to the 11th Article of the Turkish Citizenship Law, people who are eligible to acquire citizenship via the general method are applicants who have decided to settle in Turkey and have resided there without interruption for the last 5 years. Accordingly, the conditions to acquire citizenship via this method are:
- To be an adult and have the capacity to act according to their national laws, and according to Turkish Law for stateless people.
- To have decided to reside in Turkey (this can be shown by buying property, making an investment, starting a business, marrying a Turkish citizen, etc.).
- To have resided in Turkey without interruption for the last 5 years.
- To not have an illness that poses a threat to national health.
- To have good morals and not to have any bad habits that contradict with societal values.
- To know sufficient Turkish to adapt to everyday life.
- To have sufficient income for both himself/herself and for those who are dependent on him/her.
- To not have any condition contradicting with national security and public policy according to the investigation conducted by the National Intelligence Service and the Turkish National Police.
As can be seen, the general conditions to acquire Turkish citizenship via the general method are to settle in and reside in Turkey for an amount of time and to adapt to life in Turkey. However there is a method to acquire Turkish citizenship without fulfilling these conditions, and that is the acquisition of Turkish citizenship via the exceptional method. With this method, applicants can acquire Turkish Citizenship by making certain investments.
Exceptional Method to Acquire Citizenship
According to the 12th Article of the Turkish Citizenship Law, foreigners who make a certain investment can acquire citizenship with a Presidential decree. The investments that grant the right for citizenship has been regulated in detail with the Communique on the Application of the Turkish Citizenship Law. Accordingly, applicants make one of these investments will be able to apply to Turkish Citizenship:
- Those who make a fixed capital investment of 500.000 USD or equivalent foreign exchange or TRY.
- Those who buy an immovable property valued at least 250.000 USD or equivalent foreign exchange or TRY and who annotate that they will not sell this immovable for at least 3 years at the land registry office or those who annotate a preliminary contract with a guarantee to not sell the property for at least 3 years for an immovable of the same value.
- Those who create employment for at least 50 people.
- Those who deposit at least 500.000 USD or equivalent foreign exchange or TRY to banks operating in Turkey conditioned to hold the deposit for at least 3 years.
- Those who buy at least 500.00 USD or equivalent foreign exchange or TRY worth of government debt securities conditioned to holding them for at least 3 years.
- Those who buy at least 500.000 USD or foreign exchange or TRY worth of real estate trust shares or venture capital fund shares conditioned to holding them for at least 3 years.
Those who make at least one of these investments can receive a certificate of conformity from the relevant ministry or authority. Applying with this certificate, applicants can acquire Turkish citizenship with a Presidential decree.
The Procedure of Application, Required Documents, and the Approval of Foreign Documents
In both application methods, the application can be conducted by both the applicant and the applicant’s representative. Citizenship applications by the general method will be made to the Governorate. Applications for citizenship acquisition through investment in Istanbul or Ankara will be made to the special offices of the General Directorate of Population and Citizenship Affairs designated for such applications. For the rest of the cities, the Governorate is authorized. The documents required while applying are:
Citizenship by General Method
- Application form (VAT-3)
- 2 biometric photographs,
- Passport or similar document showing the applicant’s nationality.
- Birth certificate or identity register copy and a document proving the connection with the applicant’s spouse and children if married.
- Marital status certificate, marriage certificate if married, a divorce certificate if divorced, certificate of death if widowed.
- A health report showing that the applicant does not have an illness that is a threat to national health.
- A work permit, tax board, guarantee, or similar document showing that the applicant has sufficient income for himself/herself and those who are dependant on him/her.
- Entrance and departure documents supplied by the local police showing that the applicant has resided in Turkey for the last 5 years without interruption.
- A residence permit that lasts at least for the time for application and the conclusion of the citizenship procedures.
- The receipt of the service fee deposited to the treasury.
Citizenship by Exceptional Method
- Application form (VAT-4)
- 2 biometric photographs,
- Passport or similar document showing the applicant’s nationality.
- Birth certificate or identity register copy and a document proving the connection with the applicant’s spouse and children if married.
- Marital status certificate, marriage certificate if married, a divorce certificate if divorced, certificate of death if widowed.
- The receipt of the service fee deposited to the treasury.
- Certificate of conformity.
Documents required for application and issued by foreign authorities have to be approved before submission. The procedure for this approval differs for countries that are a party to The Convention of The Hague and for countries that are not.
Countries Not Party to The Convention of The Hague
Documents issued in countries that are not a party to the 1964 Convention of The Hague must be approved by the Turkish Consulate of that state in order to be used in Turkey. For example, when using a birth certificate issued by a different state while applying for citizenship, it must be approved by the Turkish Consulate of that state. It is advised that applicants contact the relevant consulate beforehand.
Countries Party to The Convention of The Hague
To minimize the bureaucracy of using official documents in other countries, The Convention of The Hague was signed on 05.10.1961. As a result, documents issued in one of the contracting states to this convention will be valid in the other contracting states after being approved by the relevant authority and by an apostille. This removes the requirement of having the document approved by the general consulate. Turkey is also a party to this Convention and documents approved with an apostille in other countries can be used in Turkey. The relevant authority to issue an apostille differs from state to state, and in Tukey governors and district governors are authorized.
Comparison and Conclusion
The biggest advantage of citizenship by investment to citizenship via the general method is that applicants can acquire citizenship without residing in or even coming to Turkey. On top of that, the applicant’s children under the age of 18 and spouses can also acquire citizenship with this method. For comparison, the general method to acquire citizenship only gives the right to citizenship to the applicant’s children under 18. Finally, citizenship applications through investment conclude in 3-5 months, while applications using the general method can take much longer.
In conclusion, citizenship via investment is a more efficient and practical method. Also, the advantages of Turkish citizenship and the return applicants receive on their investments make this method more attractive for foreigners.