Visa policy of Turkey

Entry and exit passport stamps for the Republic of Turkey issued at Istanbul Ataturk Airport

The visa policy of Turkey deals with the requirements which a foreign national wishing to enter Turkey must meet to be permitted to travel to, enter and remain in the country.^[1]

Visitors to Turkey must obtain a visa from one of the Turkish diplomatic missions unless they come from one of the 78 visa-exempt countries and territories or one of the 42 countries and territories whose citizens are eligible for an e-Visa on arrival. Turkish visas are documents issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and its subsequent diplomatic missions abroad with the stated goal of regulating and facilitating migratory flows. e-Visas can be obtained online or via interactive kiosks placed in Turkish airports.^[2] All visitors must hold a passport valid for 6 months beyond the period of intended stay and with two blank pages. An identity document is accepted in lieu of a passport for citizens of Belgium, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Northern Cyprus, Portugal, Spain, and Switzerland.^[3]

Even though Turkey is a candidate country for the membership in the European Union, it has a more complicated visa policy than the Visa policy of the Schengen Area.^[4] Turkey requires visas from citizens of certain EU member states and Schengen Annex II countries and territories – Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bahamas, Barbados, Canada, Croatia, Cyprus, Dominica, East Timor, Grenada, Ireland, Kiribati, Malta, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Mexico, Micronesia, Norway, Netherlands, Palau, Poland, Portugal, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Spain, Taiwan, Tonga, Tuvalu, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, and Vanuatu. On the other hand, Turkey grants visa-free access to citizens of countries and territories – Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belize, Bolivia, Ecuador, Georgia, Iran, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Jordan, Lebanon, Mongolia, Morocco, Qatar, Russia, Tajikistan, Thailand, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan.

Visa policy map

Visa policy of Turkey

As of right

The following citizens do not require a visa to enter, reside, study, and work indefinitely in Turkey without any immigration requirements:

Turkish citizens  Northern Cyprus

Visa-free

Top 10 countries whose residents provided the most visits to Turkey (2014 est.) (2015 est.)^[5]'

Country	Number
Germany	5,580,792
Russia	3,649,003
United Kingdom	2,512,139
Georgia	1,911,832
Bulgaria	1,821,480
Iran	1,700,385
Netherlands	1,232,487
Iraq	1,094,144
France	847,259
United States	798,787

Holders of passports of the following 78 countries and territories do not require a visa to visit Turkey up to the specified duration per 180 days for tourism or business purposes (unless otherwise stated): An identity document is accepted in lieu of a passport for citizens of France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, and Switzerland.

90 days within 180 days  Albania^T  Andorra  Argentina  Belize  Bolivia  Bosnia and Herzegovina[6]  Brazil  Brunei  Bulgaria  Chile  Colombia  Czech Republic  Denmark  Ecuador  El Salvador  Estonia  Finland  France^ID ^1  Georgia^ID  Germany^ID ^2  Greece^ID  Guatemala  Honduras  Hong Kong  Hungary  Iceland  Iran  Israel  Italy^ID  Japan  Jordan^T  Kosovo^T  Kyrgyzstan  Lebanon^T  Liechtenstein^ID  Lithuania  Luxembourg^ID ^1  Macedonia  Malaysia  Monaco  Montenegro  Morocco  Moldova  New Zealand  Nicaragua  Panama  Paraguay  Peru  Qatar[7]^T  Romania^T  Saint Kitts and Nevis  San Marino  Serbia^T  Seychelles  Singapore  Slovakia^T  Slovenia^T  South Korea  Sweden   Switzerland^ID ^1  Trinidad and Tobago  Tunisia  Ukraine  Uruguay   Vatican City  Venezuela 60 days within 180 days  Russia^3 30 days within 180 days  Azerbaijan  Belarus  Costa Rica  Kazakhstan  Latvia  Macao  Mongolia  Tajikistan  Thailand  Turkmenistan  Uzbekistan ID - May enter with an ID card[8] T - Visa free for tourism purposes only.[9] 1 - Allowed to enter with an expired passport (up to 5 years) 2 - Allowed to enter with an expired passport or ID card (up to 1 year) 3 - Except for journalists and holders of service passports[10][11]

• Visa is also not required for holders of a "Laissez-Passer" issued by the United Nations

The visa-free regime also applies to the citizens of the following countries under certain conditions:

• Greek Cypriot Administration - provided residing in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and directly arriving from Ercan or ports of Famagusta, Kyrenia, or Karavostassi for a maximum stay of 90 days within 180 days
•  Palestine - provided holding a VIP passport
•  Syria – provided arriving by land directly from Syria to Turkey passing through official ports of entry
• Citizens of Algeria, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, China, Côte d'Ivoire, Croatia, Cuba, Djibouti, Egypt, Grenada, Guyana, Indonesia, Jamaica, Kenya, Kuwait, Maldives, Malta, Mauritania, Netherlands, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Tanzania, United Arab Emirates, Vietnam and Yemen and for holders of diplomatic passports of Afghanistan, Benin, Burkina Faso, Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gabon, Gambia, Guinea, India, Mali, Mauritius, Mexico, Niger, Nigeria, Palestine, Senegal, South Sudan, Sudan, and Uzbekistan – provided holding diplomatic, service and special passports for a maximum stay of 90 days within 180 days

E-Visa

Holders of passports of the following 42 countries and territories can obtain multiple-entry e-Visas online prior to arrival or for those arriving to Turkey without e-Visas will be able to obtain them via interactive kiosks placed in Turkish airports for a maximum stay of 90 days within 180 days (unless otherwise stated):^[12][13]

Antigua and Barbuda  Armenia^1  Australia  Austria  Bahamas  Bahrain  Barbados  Belgium^ID ^2  Canada  China^1  Croatia  Dominica  Dominican Republic Greek Cypriot Administration[14]^1  East Timor^1  Fiji^1  Grenada  Haiti Hong Kong (BN(O))  Indonesia^1  Ireland  Jamaica

Kuwait^3  Maldives  Malta^ID ^3  Mauritius^1  Mexico^1 ^3  Netherlands^ID  Norway  Oman  Poland  Portugal^ID ^2  Saint Lucia  Saint Vincent and the Grenadines  Saudi Arabia  South Africa^3  Spain^ID  Suriname^1  Taiwan^1 ^3  United Arab Emirates  United Kingdom  United States

_{ID - May enter with an ID card^[8]
1 - May apply for a single entry e-visa on which they can stay for up to 30 days.
2 - Allowed to enter with an expired passport (up to 5 years)
3 - e-Visas are issued free of charge. Fees apply to Mexican citizens who obtain e-Visas on arrival.^[15]}

Conditional e-Visa

Citizens of these countries and territories are also eligible under certain conditions to apply for a single entry e-Visa on which they can stay for up to 30 days:^[12]

Afghanistan  Algeria[16]  Angola  Bangladesh  Benin  Botswana  Burkina Faso  Burundi  Cameroon  Cape Verde CAR  Chad  Comoros  Côte d'Ivoire  DR Congo

Djibouti  Egypt  Equatorial Guinea  Eritrea  Ethiopia  Gabon  Gambia  Ghana  Guinea  Guinea-Bissau  India  Iraq[17]  Kenya  Lesotho  Liberia

Libya  Madagascar  Malawi  Mali  Mauritania  Mozambique  Namibia    Nepal  Niger  Nigeria  Pakistan  Philippines R Congo  Rwanda  São Tomé and Príncipe

Senegal  Sierra Leone  Somalia  Sri Lanka  Sudan  Swaziland  Tanzania  Togo  Uganda  Vietnam  Yemen  Zambia  Zimbabwe

Conditions:

• All citizens except for the citizens of Gabon and Zambia, must hold a valid visa or residence from one of the following countries Schengen Countries, USA, UK or Ireland (except electronic visas). Egyptian citizens who are under 20 or over 45 years old do not need to fulfill this requirement
• All citizens except for the citizens of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Egypt, India, Pakistan and Philippines must hold a return with Turkish Airlines or Pegasus Airlines.^[18] Citizens of Egypt may also travel on flights operated by Egypt Air or Onur Air.
• Must hold a hotel reservation and adequate financial means (US$50 per day)

Visa requiring Nationals

Citizens of the following countries and territories must obtain a visa in advance at one of the Turkish diplomatic missions:

Bhutan  Cambodia  Cuba  Guyana  Kiribati  Laos  Marshall Islands  Micronesia  Myanmar  Nauru  North Korea[19]

Palau  Palestine  Papua New Guinea  Samoa  Solomon Islands  South Sudan  Syria - provided arriving from a third country.[20]  Tonga  Tuvalu  Vanuatu

See also

• Visa policy in the European Union
• Visa requirements for Turkish citizens
• Visa policy of Northern Cyprus

External links

• Republic of Turkey Electronic Visa Application System
• Visa Information For Foreigners
• Turkey's Official Tourism Portal

References

1. Visa information - Turkey (TR), Timatic - IATA.
2. Visa Information For Foreigners, Republic of Turkey Ministry of Foreign Affairs
3. "Countries whose citizens are allowed to enter Turkey with their national ID's / Rep. of Turkey Ministry of Foreign Affairs". Mfa.gov.tr. Retrieved 2016-05-04.
4. Visa Information For Foreigners
5. Border Statistics 2015
6. Bosnalılara Vizesiz Kalış Süresi 90 Güne Çıkarıldı
7. Announcement / "agreement Between The Government Of The Republic Of Turkey And The Government Of The State Of Qatar On Mutual Visa Exemption For Ordinary Passport Holders" , 30.05.2016, Turkish Embassy in Doha
8. Countries whose citizens are allowed to enter Turkey with their national ID’s
9. "Visa Information For Foreigners / Rep. of Turkey Ministry of Foreign Affairs". Mfa.gov.tr. Retrieved 2016-05-04.
10. Turkey Introduces Visa Regime for Russian Journalists
11. "TÜRKİYE, HİZMET PASAPORTU HAMİLİ RUSYA... - T.C. Moskova Büyükelçiliği-Посольство Турции Москва-Turkish Embassy Moscow". Facebook. 2016-04-18. Retrieved 2016-05-04.
12. e-Visa is ready to be downloaded!
13. Electronic Visa Application System
14. Foreign ministry calls on Cypriots not to travel to Turkey in wake of visa change
15. http://www.mfa.gov.tr/data/KONSOLOSLUK/vize-harc-miktarlari-en.pdf
16. Must be below 18 or over 35 years old.
17. "تركيا تشدد شروط دخول العراقيين لأراضيها". Aljazeera.net. 2016-02-07. Retrieved 2016-05-04.
18. Are there any restrictions on airline companies to fly to Turkey?
19. May obtain visa on arrival at Istanbul Ataturk Airport if holding a valid Schengen, USA, UK or Ireland visa or residence.
20. Turkey Toughens Visa Policy Toward Syrians to Cut Illegal Migration