Turkeyportal |
The visa policy of Turkey deals with the requirements that 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 95 visa-exempt countries and territories or one of the 22 countries and territories whose citizens are eligible to apply for an electronic visa. 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. [2] [3]
Visitors of most nationalities must hold a passport valid for no less than 150 days from the date of arrival. The passport validity requirement does not apply to citizens of Belgium, France, Luxembourg, Portugal, Spain, and Switzerland who can enter with a passport expired for less than five years, citizens of Germany who can enter with a passport or an ID card expired for less than one year, citizens of Bulgaria who are only required to have a passport valid for their period of stay. [4] An identity card is accepted instead of a passport for citizens of Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bulgaria, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Netherlands, Northern Cyprus, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland and Ukraine.
The validity period requirement also does not apply to nationals of countries whose identity cards are accepted. [5] [6] [7] [8] [9]
Even though Turkey is a candidate country for membership of the European Union, it has a more complex visa policy than the visa policy of the Schengen Area. [2] Turkey requires visas from citizens of one EU member state (the Republic of Cyprus), as well as Schengen Annex II countries and territories – Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Dominica, East Timor, Grenada, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Mexico, Micronesia, Palau, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Taiwan, Tonga and Tuvalu. However, citizens of most of these countries can obtain electronic visas. On the other hand, Turkey grants visa-free access to citizens of other countries and territories – Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belize, Bolivia, Ecuador, Indonesia, Iran, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Jordan, Lebanon, Mongolia, Morocco, Qatar, Russia, Thailand, Tunisia and Uzbekistan.
The Turkish government announced that effective from 2 March 2020, visas are not required for passport holders from the following countries: Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Ireland, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom. [10]
The Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced that effective from 23 December 2023, visas are not required for passport holders from the following countries: Bahrain, Canada, Oman, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and the United States. [11] [12]
Citizens of the following countries and territories who hold ordinary passports do not require a visa to visit Turkey for the durations described below for tourism or business purposes (unless otherwise stated). For visits of up to 90 days within 180 days, an identity card is accepted instead of a passport for citizens of some countries. [2]
Unlimited stay 90 days within any 180 days
60 days, 90 days within any 180 days
30 days, 90 days within any 180 days 30 days, 90 days within any 1 year |
ID - May enter with an ID card for a stay of up to 90 days per 180-day period.
T - Visa free for tourism purposes only.
1 - Entry with an ID card instead of a passport is allowed for citizens of Belgium, Bulgaria, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, and Spain.
2 - British citizens only. [20]
3 - Excluding journalists that are on duty. [22] [23]
90 days within 180 days [2] |
T - Only for touristic visits.
1 - Provided being under the age of 15 or above the age of 65.
2 - Provided residing in North Cyprus and directly arriving from Ercan International Airport; or seaports of Famagusta, Gemikonağı, or Kyrenia. [1]
3 - Provided being under the age of 16 or above the age of 45.
Under reciprocal agreements, holders of diplomatic or service passports or laissez-passers issued by the following jurisdictions are allowed to enter and remain in Turkey for up to 90 days in 180 days, unless otherwise noted:
D - Diplomatic passports
S - Service passports
S* - For holders of service passports, 60 days within any 180-day period.
T - Only for touristic visits.
1 - Visa-exempt in general.
2 - 30 days within any 180-day period.
3 - 30 days per visit, 90 days within any 1-year period.
4 - British citizens only.
laissez-passer holders who have blue UN travel documents shall be exempted from entry visa requirement for their official visits to Turkey for up to 90 days in 180 days if they can certify their official assignment. Otherwise, general visa provisions shall apply.
Red UN Travel Document holders, shall be exempted from entry visa and may stay in Turkey for 90 days within the preceding 180 days regardless of their purpose of visit. [28] [2]
Holders of passports from the following countries and territories can apply and obtain an electronic visa (e-Visa) for a fee before arrival. The duration of stay for these nationalities is up to 90 days (or 30 days per applications) within 180 days. [29] [30]
1 - May only apply for a single entry e-Visa on which they can stay for up to 30 days per 180-day period.
2 - e-Visas shall be issued free of charge.
Citizens of these countries and territories are eligible to apply for a single entry e-Visa on which they can stay for up to 30 days only if meeting the conditions listed below: [29] [2]
1 - e-Visas are issued free of charge.
Conditions |
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Citizens of the following countries and territories are not eligible for any of the “Visa Free Access” or “Electronic Visa” schemes. Therefore they have to obtain the appropriate type of visa for their intended visits in advance at a Turkish diplomatic mission unless they qualify for any of the “Conditional Visa Free Access” or “Conditional Electronic Visa” schemes: [2] [1] [32]
As of 15 April 2024, citizens of the 10 countries travelling to Mexico, Panama, Colombia and Venezuela via Istanbul Airport will be required to obtain an electronic airport transit visa. [33]
Turkey issued 16,199,968 electronic visas between April 2013 and January 1, 2017. The acceptance rate was 87.79% as 18,452,733 applications were filed in this period. Most visas were issued to nationals of the United Kingdom (4.6 million), Iraq (2 million) and the Netherlands (1.8 million). [34]
The visa policy of Australia deals with the requirements that a foreign national wishing to enter Australia must meet to obtain a visa, which is a permit to travel, to enter and remain in the country. A visa may also entitle the visa holder to other privileges, such as a right to work, study, etc. and may be subject to conditions.
The Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of Chinapassport is a passport issued to Chinese citizens who are permanent residents of the Chinese Special Administrative Region of Macau.
The visa policy of the Schengen Area is a component within the wider area of freedom, security and justice policy of the European Union. It applies to the Schengen Area and to other EU member states except Ireland. The visa policy allows nationals of certain countries to enter the Schengen Area via air, land or sea without a visa for up to 90 days within any 180-day period. Nationals of certain other countries are required to have a visa to enter and, in some cases, transit through the Schengen area.
A Mexican visa is a document issued by the National Institute of Migration, dependent on the Secretariat of the Interior, with the stated goal of regulating and facilitating migratory flows into the country.
Visitors to Montenegro must obtain a visa from one of the Montenegrin diplomatic missions unless they are citizens of one of the visa-exempt countries. Visa policy is regulated by Regulation on Visa Regime Act. Where there are no diplomatic or consular representations of Montenegro, visa requiring foreigners may obtain them from diplomatic or consular representations of Serbia, Bulgaria and Croatia.
Visa requirements for Turkish citizens are administrative entry obligations by the authorities of other states placed on Turkey.
Visa requirements for Indonesian citizens are administrative entry restrictions imposed on citizens of Indonesia by the authorities of other states.
Visitors to Serbia must obtain a visa from one of the Serbian diplomatic missions unless they are citizens of one of the visa-exempt countries.
Visitors to North Macedonia must obtain a visa from one of the North Macedonia diplomatic missions unless they are citizens of one of the visa-exempt countries.
The visa policy of Albania allows citizens of certain countries to enter Albania without a visa. Citizens of certain other countries must obtain a visa from one of the Albanian diplomatic missions. Alternatively, they may obtain an electronic visa.
The Government of the Republic of Moldova allows citizens of specific countries/territories to visit Moldova for tourism or business purposes without having to obtain a visa, often based on bilateral agreements. Citizens of other countries must obtain a visa from the embassy of their residence country or online eVisa. All visitors must hold a passport valid for 3 months beyond the period of intended stay.
Visitors to Bosnia and Herzegovina must obtain a visa from one of the Bosnia and Herzegovina diplomatic missions unless they are citizens of one of the visa-exempt countries.
Visitors to Peru must obtain a visa from one of the Peruvian diplomatic missions unless they are citizens of one of the visa-exempt countries.
Visitors to Colombia must obtain a visa from one of the Colombian diplomatic missions unless they come from one of the visa-exempt countries.
Visitors to Pakistan typically must obtain a visa from one of the Pakistani diplomatic missions. Pakistani missions abroad offer various categories of visas, with some travelers eligible for visa on arrival if traveling as part of a group tour, or for business.
National identity cards are issued to their citizens by the governments of most European Economic Area (EEA) member states, with the exception of Denmark and Ireland. In the European Union, identity cards have been harmonized as a new common identity card model replaced the various formats in use on 2 August 2021.
Visitors to Belize require a visa unless they are citizens of one of the visa-exempt countries.
All visitors are required to have sufficient funds, 75 USD per day and documents required for their next destination.
Visitors to East Timor must obtain a visa, unless they come from one of the visa exempt countries.
Visitors to Saudi Arabia must obtain a visa, unless they come from one of the visa exempt countries.
The British Overseas Territories maintain their own entry requirements different from the visa policy of the United Kingdom. As a general rule, British citizens do not have automatic right of abode in these territories.