The Turkish government grants residence permits to foreigners on its territory for a set of purposes, allowing them to stay within the Turkish borders for a period exceeding the period specified on the first entry visa, and this period ranges between one and two years, and it is renewable when the conditions are met.

In this way, it is possible to identify the most important types of residence permits that are of interest to those wishing to reside in Turkey, or investors aspiring to enter the Turkish market, or those wishing to buy a property in Turkey with the aim of living and having a stable and peaceful life.

Types of Residence in Turkey 2022

Below we discuss the most prominent types of residence permits in Turkey 2022, namely:

Short term residence permit

When talking about a short-term residence permit, it is necessary to refer to the possibility of its renewal, as this type of permit is issued to foreigners who wish to stay in Turkey for a period longer than the specified visa period when entering Turkey.

Turkish law requires all foreigners who wish to stay in Turkey for a period longer than the period specified for them to apply for a short-term residence permit according to their work and purpose of residing in Turkey.

However, people who wish to stay longer than the visa period must explain and document the reasons for staying in Turkey when applying for or renewing a short-term residence permit.

Main types of short-term residence permit:

• Foreigners who own real estate in Turkey

A short-term residence permit is one of the types of permits approved by the Turkish authorities to grant foreigners the right to stay in Turkey for a certain period, and most short-term permits are residence permits issued for tourism or real estate purposes.

For an applicant to obtain a short-term residence permit by owning a property, the property must be a residence, and document it in government departments in this way. In addition, all family members registered in this residence can obtain a residence permit and renew it continuously.

• Student residency in Turkey for the purpose of completing the study:

The authorities grant a student residence permit in Turkey to foreigners who wish to study on its territory and have university admission, where it is given for one year, subject to renewal, and according to the years of study of each student, in one of the institutes or universities affiliated with the Ministry of Higher Education, in addition to that, the student residence permit can be obtained If there is a study contract with a recognized educational organization.

• Temporary residency for the purpose of treatment:

The Turkish government allows the granting of a sick stay for the purpose of treatment to patients coming to Turkey and their goal to complete the stages of their treatment, and this residency is given according to the type of disease and the report issued by the hospital.

• Temporary residency for business:

This short-term residency is given to people who want to establish their own businesses, and their goal is to stay in Turkey for work.

• Temporary residency for family

A foreign citizen has the right to obtain family residence permit in Turkey by marrying a Turkish citizen for a temporary period of 3 years, and after the expiry of this period, the foreigner is entitled to obtain Turkish citizenship, by taking advantage of the paragraph in this regard included in the Turkish law.

• Tourism residency:

A short-term residence permit, and it is the most popular type of residencies in Turkey, as the foreigner applies for it during the period of the visa (the visa) allowed to stay in the Turkish territory, by booking an appointment in the Immigration Department through the website dedicated to this.

This residency is granted to people who have entered Turkey legally, and if the entry visa expires before booking an appointment at the Immigration Department, the foreigner's presence in the country becomes illegal.

• Temporary residency for scientific research purposes:

This residency is classified among the types of short-term residences granted to scientific researchers associated with a university or a research institution recognized by the Turkish state. It is also granted to scholarship students for the purpose of scientific exchange between universities. Thus, this type of residency is linked to the type and duration of research work. This residency is often granted for one year, renewable until the purpose of the residency ends.

• Temporary residency to attend Turkish language courses:

One of the types of residence permits granted to people who wish to reside in Turkey for the purpose of learning the Turkish language.

For this type of residence permits, the student is required to register in one of the institutes specialized in teaching the Turkish language and legally licensed by the Ministry of Education.

These foreigners are given the opportunity to obtain residency in Turkey for two times at most, and if the duration of the Turkish language course is less than one year, the period of residence granted to the student usually does not exceed the duration of the course, and the institution offering the Turkish language course is obliged to inform the State Directorate of the start date of the course Foreign students who have registered in order to learn the Turkish language and its end, and the nature of their work hours and attendance.

What documents are required to apply for a short-term residence permit?

When applying for a type of short-term residency in Turkey, a set of conditions and papers must be present, namely:

• Residence permit application form in Turkey.
• A valid passport with a sufficient period for granting residence under it.
• 4 personal photos (biometric).
• Bank account statement.
• Valid health insurance according to the age group.
• A paper explaining the reason for requesting residence.

Documents required to obtain a tourist residence permit in Turkey

An applicant for a tourist residence permit must provide a set of papers and documents necessary to obtain a tourist residence permit in Turkey, namely: 

• A valid passport with a sufficient period for granting residence under it.
• Residence permit application form.
• Health insurance.
• 4 personal photos (biometric).
• Certificate of residence in Turkey issued by the municipality.
• A host sheet from the Notary, in the event of residing with a host of his or her acquaintances or relatives.

Documents required to obtain a real estate residence permit

The documents required to obtain a residence permit for a real estate investor in Turkey differ from those for a tourist, so the applicant must provide each of the following documents:

• A valid passport with a sufficient period for granting residence under it.
• Real estate residence permit application form in Turkey.
• Health insurance.
• 4 personal photos (biometric).
• A copy of the real estate title deed.
• A letter of ownership from the Land Registry Office.

Is it possible to apply for residency after the expiry of the visa?

Sometimes the conditions in which the investor lives may seem inappropriate. He may fall into the trap of delaying obtaining temporary residency without knowing that the visa period has expired. In this case, if the foreigner has completed the visa period and did not submit an application, he has an additional 10 days legally to set the date for obtaining temporary residence, where he can apply for a new residency without the need to leave Turkey by paying a delay fine for a period not exceeding 10 days, but when exceeding the additional period specified for 10 days without a real excuse, such as an accident documented, medical report or event that can be documented, here you must leave Turkey with a late fine at the airport, otherwise, the violator will be subject to the specified entry ban for a period of up to 5 years.

Edited by: Trustus Consulting^©