Immigration and Citizenship Law

The matters we handle within the framework of the Law No. 6458 on Foreigners and International Protection, the Turkish Citizenship Law No. 5901 and the International Labour Force Law No. 6735:

• Short-term, family, student and long-term residence permits
• Actions for the annulment of refused residence permit applications
• Work permit applications, extensions and independent work permits
• Turquoise Card and qualified workforce applications
• Objections and annulment actions against deportation decisions
• Administrative detention decisions and remedies against them
• Entry bans and requests for the removal of restriction codes
• International protection and temporary protection applications
• Proceedings concerning refugee and conditional refugee status
• Acquisition of immovable property by foreigners and military restricted zone review
• Acquisition of Turkish citizenship by decision of the competent authority
• Exceptional citizenship through property acquisition or investment
• Remedies against the refusal of citizenship applications
• Loss of Turkish citizenship, renunciation permits and Blue Card procedures
• Establishment of companies in Türkiye by foreign nationals and shareholding transactions

In our work in this field, the Law No. 6458 on Foreigners and International Protection, the Turkish Citizenship Law No. 5901, the International Labour Force Law No. 6735 and the relevant legislation are taken into account. Passport and identity records, entry and exit movements, current residence or work status, family relationships, previous applications, notifications and administrative decisions are examined together, since the information submitted to different authorities must be consistent.

We provide legal support in determining the appropriate type of residence permit, including short-term, family, student, long-term and humanitarian residence permits, checking application documents, arranging the legalisation and translation of documents issued abroad, responding to deficiency notices and identifying the remedy against refusal decisions. A residence permit application may be conducted through a lawyer, although the administration may require the foreign national to attend in person.

For foreign nationals and employers, we assess work permit and work permit exemption applications, extensions, independent work permits and Turquoise Card procedures. The employer's field of activity, capital and employment structure, and the foreign national's profession, education, position and salary level are reviewed before the application, as certain professions are closed to foreign nationals or subject to special authorisation.

Actions against deportation decisions, applications against administrative detention and alternative obligations, the examination of entry bans and restriction codes, and international and temporary protection proceedings fall within our field of practice. In international protection matters, support is provided in preparation, interviews, the submission of documents and remedies against refusal or inadmissibility decisions.

We also handle the acquisition of Turkish citizenship through the general procedure, by marriage and on an exceptional basis through investment, remedies against refused citizenship applications, reacquisition, loss and renunciation permits, and Blue Card procedures. The acquisition of immovable property by foreign nationals, company formation and share transfers, and the recognition, enforcement or civil registration of foreign court decisions are assessed together with the foreign national's overall status.

Among the disputes most frequently encountered in practice are the refusal, cancellation or non-extension of residence permits, refused or cancelled work permits, deportation and administrative detention decisions, entry bans and refused citizenship applications. Inconsistencies between the purpose of stay, passport validity, address registration, health insurance and financial documents frequently lead to refusals or deficiency notices.

A deportation decision may, in addition to removal from Türkiye, result in an entry ban for a certain period. An action may be brought before the administrative court within seven days of notification of the decision and, as a rule, where the action is brought in time the foreign national is not deported until the proceedings are concluded. Given this short period, the notification date, the decision and the documents at the removal centre must be obtained immediately, and family ties, health, children, settled life in Türkiye and the risks in the country of return are examined.

Administrative detention is a separate act from deportation, and an application against it may be made to the criminal judgeship of peace, with a further application possible where the conditions of detention change. Work permit decisions of the Ministry may be objected to within thirty days of notification; where the deficiency can be remedied, a new application may be more effective, while unlawful acts are assessed for an annulment action following the administrative objection.

Marriage to a Turkish citizen does not automatically confer citizenship; an application may be made by a foreign national who has been married to a Turkish citizen for at least three years and whose marriage continues, subject to conditions such as living in family unity. Fulfilment of the statutory conditions does not guarantee acceptance, and in investment-based applications the investment amounts and technical conditions may change through regulatory acts, so the requirements in force must be verified before any payment is made.

The process begins with the determination of the foreign national's current legal status and period of stay. The passport, entry and exit records and previous applications are compared, the date of notification and the remaining application period are checked, and the consistency of the reasons for refusal with the documents on file is examined.

Since refusal decisions concerning residence, work permits, citizenship, entry bans and international protection are not subject to the same time limits or remedies, the notification date, the reasoning and the remedy indicated in the decision are checked separately. The options of a new application, an administrative objection or an annulment action are then compared.

Where a missing document or a material error can be remedied by a new application, a faster administrative solution may be possible. However, where an administrative application does not suspend the period for bringing an action, merely awaiting the administration's response may lead to a loss of rights; the effect of family, employment, education or investment relationships on the decision is also assessed.

Documents issued abroad, such as marriage, birth, divorce or custody documents and powers of attorney, are reviewed in terms of apostille, consular legalisation, notarised translation and, where necessary, recognition, enforcement or civil registration. As a citizenship application does not replace an existing residence or work permit, the maintenance of lawful status until the application is concluded is also monitored.

Where necessary, requests for interim judicial protection are made and the implementation of the decision is followed. The client is regularly informed about the stages of the process, the possible risks and the legal remedies that may be pursued.