How to get Citizenship

How to Get Turkish Citizenship – An Overview

Having a second citizenship is always a great option to obtain, it can ease and remove a lot of barriers that might face you with your original citizenship. Plenty of people aims to obtain a second citizenship for different procedures. There are a lot of programs across the world that grants certain people the right to obtain a second citizenship along with their original citizenship and in this article, we are going to talk about the possible options on getting a Turkish citizenship. Obtaining a Turkish Citizenship gives you the freedom to travel to more than 124 countries across the world visa free or visa on arrival, as well as having the same rights as the citizens in the country for instance right to work, right to vote and so much more. Unlike other countries where they only allow foreigners to obtain their citizenship through investment programs, Turkey have a variety way of obtaining the citizenship. Starting with the first and most knowable way is:

What are the Ways to Obtain Turkish Citizenship

1- Investment:

Like a lot of countries Turkey offers the option of obtaining it’s citizenship through investment process and this process can be classified into three main investments: (A) Through buying a property with $400,000 US Dollars and more, and this is the most famous option for investors where they have a property that will never lose it’s value plus a second citizenship. (B) Through bank deposit, and this is where investors deposit an amount of $500,000 US Dollars in Turkish bank for 5 years, along with having the interest rate.

2- Living in Turkey for a specific period of time:

Turkey has different options rather than investment where living in Turkey for (5) five years with a legal residency and without interruption may grant you the citizenship, however full-filling the requirements is not a guarantee in obtaining the citizenship and it is upon the relevant unit to check after looking whether you had a good command of Turkish, good moral and not being diagnosed with disease that is considered harmful and spreadable. Students may also be eligible to obtain the citizenship if they finished their university degree in Turkey and had a work permit for 2.5 years after graduated, they may be eligible to obtain the citizenship.

3-  Through marriage:

Another way of obtaining a Turkish Citizenship is by marriage, if you get married with your spouse who is a holder of the Turkish citizenship and have been married for at least 3 years, you are eligible for obtaining the citizenship if your marriage is stable and not going through divorce procedures.

4- Through business:

The Turkish government has always encouraged foreign investors to invest and establish their businesses within Turkey by easing the process of establishing a company and obtaining the relevant licenses opening a business in Turkey has never been easier. Any foreigners who creates a job opportunity in his business for more than 50 employer is eligible to obtain a Turkish citizenship as an appreciation of his effort and development  to the country . Requirements to obtain the Turkish Citizenship: Plenty of foreigners miss one or two documents during the process of acquiring the Turkish Citizenship which can cause them time effort and possibility of rejection, that is why it is always recommend to get a lawyer who is aware of the new updates regarding the procedures and requirements.

Documents that every foreigner should be aware of are as follows:

1. A completed preliminary examination form (VAT-4 Form)
2. 2 photographs that must have white background and must be biometric.
3. Applicant’s passport as translated and notarized.
4. Birth certificates of the applicant. If the applicant has first or second degree Turkish citizen relatives, a copy of the birth certificate of this person(s) must also be attached to the file.
5. Certificate showing applicant’s marital status such as married, divorced or widowed. In case the applicant is married, the document which proves family ties of spouse and, if existent, family ties of children must be attached to the file. If the applicant is divorced, the document proving this situation must be presented, and if the applicant is widowed, his/her spouse’s death certificate must be presented. In addition, the marriage certificate must have the date of marriage as day /month /year.
6. Valid residence permit of the applicant.
7. Certiticate of Conformity, which shows that the minimum investment requirement is met.
8. Receipt showing that the application service fee has been paid to the Financial Office.

These are the main documents every foreigner willing to apply for a citizenship needs to have.

Why should I assign a lawyer ?

Turkish procedures vary from period to period in documents requirements and for obtaining the right documents you need to be aware of all the laws and procedures update in that case it is always recommend to have a lawyer who is aware of the procedures in issuing and filing the procedures on behalf of you. We here in Serka Law Firm have a full team specialist in acquiring citizenship for foreigners, with more than 35+ application. We make sure to deliver the best service to our clients by having the right team handling your file.

Most Common Questions

1. Q) How long does the process take ?
2. A) Process can vary depending on the way your are obtaining your citizenship with, whether it was through investment or marriage or bank deposit or any of the listed above the process at it’s maximum shall take 6 months.
3. Q) What is the best way to get the citizenship?
4. A) Depending on your situation whether you are new in Turkey or willing to relocate to Turkey or not, for foreigner investors willing to relocate or obtain the Turkish Citizenship we always advice them through investing in property since property investment has always been on of the safest investments, in case you are looking for a property we always recommend to go through Turkey’s most trustable agency office Serka Law Firm .
5. Q) What happens if I have submitted a wrong or missing documents ?
6. A) These procedures are very sensitive procedures where a small mistake can cause you time and probably refusal of your application, it is always recommend to consulate a lawyer that can confirm of the validity of the papers used in the application and obtain the citizenship on behalf of you.