In line with the authority given in the Land Registry Law, the citizens of the countries determined by the President can acquire real estate and limited real rights within the legal limitations.
As stated in the Law on Foreigners and International Protection, “foreigners who own real estate in Turkey” can obtain a short-term residence permit. In pursuant of the same article, “Those who do not work in Turkey but will invest within the scope and amount to be determined by the President, and their foreign spouses, minor or dependent foreign children of themselves and their spouses” can also obtain a short-term residence permit.
With the Regulation on the Implementation of the Turkish Citizenship Law, the limit regarding the real estate value in acquiring citizenship by purchasing real estate has been increased from 250,000 USD to 400,000 USD. As of 13.06.2022, according to the mentioned regulation, people who do not work in Turkey but acquire real estate by investing 400,000 USD, can have more than a short-term residence permit and acquire Turkish citizenship if other conditions specified in the legislation are fulfilled.
In order to acquire Turkish citizenship by real estate acquisition, first of all, 400,000 USD worth of real estate acquisition is required. However, it is necessary to prepare a report from the Valuation Specialist, who is in the list of certified firms according to the Capital Market Institution.
This report, which shows the market value of the real estate, is requested by the relevant land registry office when a foreigner buys or sells real estate. The valuation reports prepared are valid for 3 months from the date of issue and can be used in all sales transactions of the real estate in question during this period.
The transfer of ownership is possible with the official title deed to be signed at the Land Registry Offices and registration with the Land Registry. There must be an annotation in the Land Registry which provides that the real estate will not be sold for 3 years. To the declarations section in the Land Registry; “There is a commitment that it will not be sold within three years from the date of acquisition within the scope of Article 20 of the Regulation on the Implementation of the Turkish Citizenship Law.” indication is made.
CRITERIAS FOR ACQUIRING TURKISH CITIZENSHIP
Foreigners who want to own a real estate, to the land registry office of the region where the real estate is located:
1) Title deed document,
2) ID or passport,
3) “Real estate declaration value certificate” obtained from the municipality,
4) Compulsory earthquake insurance policy for buildings,
5) Photograph of buyer and seller,
6) If there is a proxy, they apply by adding a power of attorney. If one of the parties does not speak Turkish, a sworn translator must be brought during the title deed transactions of property sales to foreigners.
It is necessary to apply to the Ministry of Environment and Urbanization with the report prepared by the licensed appraiser from the CMI and the documents requested in the legislation. After these procedures are done, the situation is reported to the Ministry of Environment and Urbanization.
With the approval obtained from the Ministry of Environment and Urbanization and the General Directorate of Land Registry and Cadastre, the application will be distributed to General Directorate of Population and Citizenship With this process, all procedures will have been acomplished.
As a result, with the above mentioned process, General Directorate of Population and Citizenship Affairs will submit the Turkish citizen identity to the applicant.
It is possible to acquire Turkish citizenship by following the sequence in “Scheme 1”. However, in order to manage the process correctly and to get results as soon as possible, it is recommended that the procedures be carried out by a lawyer who is expert in this matter.
This article contains general information. All procedures to acquire Turkish citizenship require official correspondences and every legal action is taxed. Accordingly, to avoid forfeiture, carrying out the process with a law firm is recommended.
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Atty..Ece Kızıldağ
Atty.Harun Ümit Eren
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