Turkish Citizenship by Real Estate Investment – 400,000 USD Requirement
Obtaining Turkish Citizenship in 8 Months with a $400,000 Investment
One of the definite and guaranteed ways to obtain Turkish citizenship is to make an investment of $400,000 in Turkey. With this method, it is possible to obtain Turkish citizenship in as little as 8 months on average. The only thing to note here is that the person applying for citizenship must not have a record of any serious crimes committed in the past.
The Process of Obtaining Turkish Citizenship Through Investment
The process of obtaining Turkish citizenship by making an investment worth USD 400,000;
1️⃣ FINDING A PROPERTY TO INVEST IN: The most important issue in the process of purchasing a property in Turkey is the risk of foreign investors being offered prices above market value. Many citizenship consultancy companies and law firms operating on the internet have commission agreements with real estate companies. Therefore, the property to be purchased must be compared with comparable properties of the same quality to determine its true market value.
2️⃣ SIGNING A PROPERTY SALE AGREEMENT: An agreement must be signed for the purchase of the property. This agreement is necessary for the legal security of your investment and for money transfers. Example: You are an Azerbaijani citizen. In Azerbaijan, if you cannot show an official document stating that you will purchase a home, you cannot transfer money from Azerbaijani banks to Turkey.
3️⃣ PURCHASE OF THE PROPERTY: Purchase of the property and registration in the investor’s name. Here, before purchasing the property, the necessary checks must be made on the title deed and it must be verified whether it is eligible for citizenship. For example, citizenship cannot be obtained through the sale of a property from a foreigner to another foreigner.
4️⃣ OBTAINING THE ELIGIBILITY CERTIFICATE: Obtaining the property’s eligibility certificate for citizenship is an automatic process carried out by the land registry office upon request after the purchase. The eligibility certificate is usually issued within 2-3 weeks and sent to the investor’s email address. We have detailed the conditions for the eligibility certificate below.
5️⃣ IMMIGRATION AUTHORITY: It is mandatory for the investor and their family to obtain a residence permit in Turkey. The residence permit is obtained by going to the Immigration Authority. Up to this stage, the investor can follow up on the procedures with a lawyer without coming to Turkey, but at the stage of obtaining a residence permit, the investor and their family must come to Turkey.
6️⃣ CITIZENSHIP AND POPULATION DIRECTORATE APPLICATION STAGE: An application for Turkish citizenship must be made for the investor and their family; the investor must be in Turkey at this stage. This stage is entered after the residence permit is approved by the Immigration Administration.
7️⃣ ISSUANCE OF TURKISH CITIZENSHIP ID AND PASSPORT: The process of obtaining Turkish citizenship and issuing a passport begins when you receive the citizenship acceptance notification document. You do not need to physically receive this document. This document will be visible when you apply for your ID at the e-government portal or the population registry office.
How long does the process of obtaining Turkish citizenship take?
The citizenship acquisition process described above takes a total of 8-10 months.
Services Provided by Baltas Global Law Firm:
✅ BaltasGlobal Law Firm offers comprehensive legal advice to prospective investors aiming to obtain Turkish citizenship through investment, regarding the identification of real estate that complies with the legislation and meets the citizenship criteria. Decisions regarding the investment process are made with the legal review and guidance of our expert lawyers.
✅ Even if the client finds the real estate themselves, comprehensive support is provided throughout all legal procedures, from the purchase process to title deeds, eligibility certificates, residence permits, and citizenship applications.
✅ This is because applying for Turkish citizenship through investment is a multi-stage process that must be planned and structured correctly from a legal perspective, from the initial real estate purchase stage to the final application result.
Can I obtain Turkish citizenship without ever coming to Turkey?
No, it is not possible to obtain Turkish citizenship without coming to Turkey. If you had asked this question around 2023, the answer would have been yes. However, according to the new regulations, even if you appoint a lawyer to represent you in the Turkish citizenship application process, you must be present in person at least twice during the application process.
Situations where a person applying for Turkish citizenship cannot be represented by a lawyer, i.e., times when the person applying for citizenship must be present in person:
1- When giving fingerprints and during the residence permit application
2- During the citizenship application
Requirements for Obtaining Turkish Citizenship by Investing $400,000 USD
The conditions for obtaining Turkish citizenship by purchasing a home worth USD 400,000;
1- Conditions Regarding the Property to be Purchased
Requirements for the property to be purchased for Turkish citizenship:
1- The property to be purchased must be valued at least USD 400,000 and must not be sold for 3 years.
2- The property to be purchased cannot be bought from a foreign individual. It can be purchased from a Turkish citizen or a Turkish company.
3- The property to be purchased must not have been used in a previous citizenship application. Furthermore, the property to be purchased must not have been previously registered to any person who has acquired Turkish citizenship later in life. Even if purchased after acquiring Turkish citizenship, citizenship cannot be obtained by purchasing a property from this person.
4- The property can be purchased second-hand. Example: The property purchased for citizenship does not necessarily have to be brand new or unused.
5- An unlimited number of properties may be purchased. The important thing is that the total value of the foreign currency purchase documents for the properties exceeds USD 400,000. Example: You can purchase 4 properties, and if the total value of these properties is USD 400,000, you can obtain citizenship.
6- Nature of the Real Estate;
*Title deeds registered as independent units in the land registry (apartments with condominium ownership) or real estate classified as land; a building with the necessary permits must be located on the property.
*Timeshare properties cannot be used for citizenship acquisition.
2- Conditions Regarding the Seller
1- The real estate to be invested in cannot be purchased from a foreign natural person or foreign legal entity.
2- The real estate must not have been transferred by the first-degree relatives or in-laws of the foreign person making the investment. This refers to both the most recent transfer and any previous transfers.
3- The real estate must not be registered in the name of persons who have acquired citizenship through investment. It is also irrelevant whether the real estate was acquired after the acquisition of citizenship.
IMPORTANT WARNING – COMMISSION FRAUD
One of the most serious and irreparable risks in Turkish citizenship applications is the deliberate sale of real estate at a price significantly above market value. Purchases made without comparing with similar properties and determining the actual market value lead to heavy financial losses for the investor; in practice, it has been observed that properties worth approximately USD 300,000 can be sold for USD 500,000 due to commission relationships. To counter such manipulative sales, it is essential that the property undergoes independent legal review before the purchase stage; otherwise, irreversible financial losses may be incurred.
Family Members’ Rights in Turkish Citizenship by Investment
Can the Family of an Investor Obtain Turkish Citizenship?
If an investor makes a real estate investment of 400,000 USD in Türkiye, the following family members may acquire Turkish citizenship without any additional investment requirement:
✅ The legally married spouse
✅ Children under the age of 18 (who apply together with the investor)
Important Note: Turkish citizenship is granted subject to the approval of the Presidency of the Republic of Turkey. If your child is 17 years old at the time of application but turns 18 before the Presidential approval is issued, they will not be eligible to acquire Turkish citizenship.
The investor’s parents and children over the age of 18 are not eligible to obtain Turkish citizenship through the investor’s application.
Step-by-Step Process for Acquiring Turkish Citizenship
1- The Process of Finding a Home to Purchase in Turkey
During this process, a property to invest in is found and compared with similar properties. The comparison is made by looking at the market sale prices of properties in the same area. The properties’ features are compared, and if there are no issues regarding price or title deed, the process of purchasing the property begins.
Apart from the issue of diat, another important issue here is that the title deed of the property must be suitable for citizenship; the title deed of the property should not belong to a foreigner, even if they are a Turkish citizen, it should not belong to a person who has previously acquired citizenship, the necessary permits for the property must have been obtained, and an appraisal report must be available.
Obtaining a power of attorney:
While you are in your country, we can carry out the purchase of the property on your behalf under a power of attorney issued in your name. However, if you are in Turkey, it is also possible to carry out the purchase by accompanying you in person at the Land Registry Office.
Here, you can carry out your citizenship procedures according to your preference.
2- Obtaining the Citizenship Eligibility Certificate
The important point to note here is that the value of the property purchased for citizenship applications must exceed USD 400,000. This value must be matched by the appraisal report, the title deed, and the transferred money receipts. Even if the property appraisal report does not exactly match the transferred funds and the title deed report, it must be higher than these amounts.
Eligibility Certificate Requirements:
Documents and procedures required to obtain a certificate of eligibility from the land registry;
1- Placing a three-year non-sale restriction
2- Wet-signed money transfer receipt from the bank – The receipt description must clearly state “the property was purchased for citizenship purposes, the investor’s name and surname, passport number, address of the purchased property, and the plot and parcel numbers listed in the land registry.”
3- DAB – Foreign exchange purchase certificate. Since the foreign exchange purchase certificate will be issued by the bank, if your bank is not very inexperienced in this matter, your DAB certificate will be in line with the general template.
4- Land registry record
3- Obtaining a residence permit from the Migration Administration
After receiving the citizenship eligibility certificate from the Regional Directorate of Land Registry and Cadastre, you can apply online at https://e-ikamet.goc.gov.tr/ and go to any migration administration office to submit your application documents and provide fingerprints for all applicants over the age of 12, without waiting for an appointment date. By stating that you are there for investment purposes, you can proceed with the process without waiting in line.
Required documents for fingerprinting at the Immigration Office:
1- Residence permit application form
2- Eligibility certificate
3- Passport photocopies of individuals
After fingerprinting, go to the Cevizlibağ Citizenship and Immigration Unit in Istanbul and submit your application. Residence permit applications are usually finalized within 4-5 days.
Note: According to the new regulations, applicants must be present in person for residence permit applications. It is no longer acceptable for a lawyer to submit the documents with a power of attorney. Children under the age of 12 do not need to be present during the application.
4- Vatandaşlık Başvurusu
İkamet izniniz onaylandıktan sonra artık vatandaşlık başvurunuza devam edebilirsiniz. 5901 Sayılı Türk Vatandaşlığı Kanunununa göre kişiler Vatandaşlık başvurusu yapabilmesi için ikamet iznine sahip olmaları gerekmektedir. Vatandaşlık başvuruları Türk konsoloslukları veya büyükelçilikleri aracılığı ile yapılamaz.
Vatandaşlık başvurusu için gerekli randevu https://randevu.nvi.gov.tr/ adresinden alındıktan sonra evraklar ile birlikte vatandaşlık müdürlüğüne gidilir. Başvurucuların bizzat gitmeleri gereklidir. Türk vatandaşlığı kazanılması başvurularında başvurucunun 12 yaşından küçük çocukları başvuru sırasında hazır bulunmak zorunda değildir. Sadece evrakları olması gereklidir.
Vatandaşlık başvurunuz alındıktan sonra size başvurunuzun alındığına dair bir numara ve evrak verilir ve bu numara ile başvurunuzu takip edebilirsiniz.
5- Acquiring Turkish Citizenship and Obtaining an ID Card
After acquiring Turkish citizenship through investment, a citizenship acquisition notification document is published on the individual’s e-government portal. Once this document is published, an application for a Turkish ID card can be made at the Population Registry Office or any Turkish diplomatic mission abroad.
Lawyer Cihat BALTAŞ
Lawyer Cihat BALTAŞ graduated from Police College in 2006, Police Academy in 2010, Yalova Law Faculty in 2016 with a degree and has worked and specialised in foreign law throughout his professional life. Cihat BALTAŞ, who is currently working as a lawyer in Kadıköy, Istanbul, is the founder of BaltaşGlobal law and consultancy office.