Minimum requirements for exceptional acquisition of Turkish citizenship and recent changes;

19.09.2018 According to the regulation amendment published in the Turkish Official Newspaper on 19.09.2018, conveniences have been introduced about acquiring Turkish citizenship as exceptional

With Decision No. 9601 dated 12.12.2016, certain clauses have been added to the requirements for the exceptional acquisition of Turkish citizenship. In this context, under certain amounts and conditions, those who invest in fixed capital, buy real estate, create employment, hold deposits in Turkish banks, and purchase government debt instruments can apply for Turkish citizenship as an exception.

After the relevant decision date, many applications for Turkish citizenship were processed and finalized. However, foreigners who find the minimum amount required for the application to be high have not been able to take action.

In this context, the requests were evaluated and the decision to amend the Regulation on the Implementation of the Turkish Citizenship Law was published in the Official Newspaper with Decision No. 106 dated 19.09.2018.

With the decision, the following changes were made in the investment amounts and in some circumstances below:

The requirement for a fixed capital investment of at least US $ 2,000,000 has been reduced to US $ 500,000. (the relevant investment must be determined by the Ministry of Industry and Technology.)

En az 1.000.000 Amerikan doları tutarında taşınmaz tutarı 250.000 Amerikan Doları veya karşılığı döviz/Türk Lirası’na düşürülmüştür. (Taşınmazın tapu kayıtlarına üç yıl satılmaması şerhi koyulmak şartıyla satın aldığı Çevre ve Şehircilik Bakanlığınca tespit edilmelidir.)

The requirement to create employment of at least 100 people has been reduced to 50 people. (The employment created should be determined by the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Services.)

The requirement to hold deposits of at least US $ 3,000,000 in banks operating in Turkey has been reduced to US $ 500,000. (It is necessary to keep the deposits in the relevant bank for 3 years and this situation should be determined by the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency.)

The purchase of government debt instruments amounting to at least US $ 3,000,000 was reduced to US $ 500,000. (Condition of 3 years without selling must be determined by the Ministry of Treasury and Finance.)

In addition, it has been determined that foreigners identified by the Capital Markets Board (SPK), can apply for exceptional Turkish Citizenship, provided that they purchased "real estate investment fund participation share" or "venture capital investment fund participation share" in the amount of US $ 500,000 with the condition of holding it for at least 3 years.

Başvuruları gerçekleştirmeden önce araştırmaların eksiksiz yapılması ve başvuru sonrasında işlemlerin takip edilmesi, yatırımların bilinçli olarak yapılmasını sağlayacaktır.