A few months ago, news had been disseminated among those interested in real estates in Turkey that the government in Turkey was discussing a regulation that decreases the quantitative limit when purchasing a real state as a condition for obtaining the Turkish citizenship from 1 million to (300,000) USD.

At that time we explained that the regulation being discussed was under study and not finalized yet or had been postponed. After Turkish early election (Snap election) which incurred in 2018 due to the expectation of real estate’s experts that the early elections would have the positive effect on the future of the real estate sector. It seemed for those interested in real estates in Turkey that such decision may take longer time or may be canceled until the real estate sector was back to the front especially after Turkey’s currency crises and its effects on the economy of Turkey.

Apparently, the Turkish government was preparing a comprehensive plan to break the crisis cycle through a package of decisions and actions on the economy level and Turkey’s real estate sector in particular. And as a result, the most strongest and daring action taken was the decision issued in September 2018 about dropping the minimum requirement in real estate investment for obtaining the Turkish citizenship from 1 million to (250,000) USD.

This decision was published without further details, therefore many people had a lot of questions in details about this decision, and as we promised you to provide you with answers to all your questions regarding granting Turkish citizenship by purchasing a real estate in Turkey with minimum value of (250,000) USD in one comprehensive, accurate article, Turkish experts and lawyers with knowledge and experience in the new Turkish law were used to answer your questions.

Please be aware that even though you will see a detailed answer, it might be not clear for some of you, or you need more details. So do not hesitate to contact us, and we will be your real estate consultant (Advisor) that you can rely on in all needed procedures starting from real estate selection till you receive the Turkish passport.

What is the truth about the decision of granting Turkish citizenship by purchasing a real estate with a minimum value of (250,000) USD?

The decision was made by the Turkish government, then approved by the president of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan dated 18/9/2018, No 106 which adds the article no 42 to the Turkish nationality law no 590.

Has the new Turkish citizenship program entered into force and is it valid now?

The executive regulation concerning this “Regulation” was issued (Regulations concerning the amendment of the executive Regulations on the implementing of the Turkish Nationality Law) on 19/9/2018 and it entered into force and became valid and effective starting from the date of publishing.

Where has the “Regulation” been published officially?

The “Regulation” was published in the Official Gazette dated, September 19, 2018.

Is the Turkish citizenship granted only to the buyer of the real estate with a value of (250,000) USD? Or to him and his family?

Any person purchase a real estate in Turkey with a minimum value of (250,000) USD will obtain the Turkish citizenship with his family members (spouse and children), children age less than 18 years. And this real estate in Turkey can be inherited in the future.

Can the foreigner who purchased a real estate value of (250,000) USD before this law is issued to apply for Turkish citizenship?

The real estate ownership must be after the “Regulation” entered into force and became valid on 19/9/2018 since the purpose of this new law is to get more foreign currency and make new investments.

Can the Turkish citizenship be granted by buying a real estate in installments with a value of (250,000) USD?

No, the “Regulation” states that buying a real estate or multiple real estates in Turkey with a minimum total value of (250,000) must be done in a one-off payment.

Is it obligatory to buy one real estate with a minimum value of (250,000) USD to get the Turkish citizenship, or it can be several real estates with the same total?

The “Regulation” law stated that buying a real state with a minimum value of (250,000) USD must be formally registered in the Ministry of Environment and Urban Planning in order to apply for the Turkish citizenship. But what should be noted is that all real estates purchased at least in a total of (250,000) USD must be purchased after 19/9/2018; the date of “Regulation” issuance, and it is expected that its implementing would go in this way.

If a foreigner invested less than (250,000) USD and he intends to increase the investments in order to have total investments of (250,000) USD, then can he apply – at that moment- to the Turkish citizenship?

Persons are qualified to the Turkish citizenship when they buy more than one real estate at different times and the total amount is at least (250,000) USD. The only point is that all those purchases must be after 19/9/2018 as we explained above, so any real estate purchased before 19/9/2018 will not be calculated from this amount (250,000) USD.

If there is a real estate investment of (250,000) USD under construction, and there is no way to add the annotating sale ban to land register, so can the foreigner investor apply for the Turkish citizenship or he has to wait till the construction is completed and the annotation is added?

The “Regulation” did not define the property being possessed, only specified the quantity “a real state of 250,000 USD”. In this case, the real state might be a house, Business facility, Building land, Agricultural Land, etc. but it is worth to mention that in order to add the annotation sale ban to the real estate register, the real estate must have been sold and the ownership was transferred to the new owner. What is important is to ensure the easement of real rights and payment is done for the relevant real estate. Regardless of the construction completeness level or the right/permission to use.

And this means that this kind of sales cannot be done especially in houses and flats sales when the floor/ story easement or multi-story ownership and possession right is not transferred yet. And it seems that also the promise to sell contract which is organized in such cases cannot meet the terms and conditions stipulated in the “Regulation” to apply for the Turkish citizenship. Because it is a must to add the annotation to the real estate land registry which bans the real estate sale for 3 years, The purpose of which is to oblige the owner not to sell the property and transfer ownership during this period.

Even if an annotation has been made under the promise to sell contract, the applicant for citizenship may not be able to possess and own the property and even if could own it then he can sell it after transfer of ownership in the absence of such an annotation which will result in uncertainty of meeting the terms and conditions that the legislator provided. In addition to that, the employee responsible to organize and check the documentation is not responsible for checking the validity of the promise to sell contracts.

When buying a real estate, can the foreigner apply for Turkish citizenship immediately or after three years? And how long does it take?

You do not have to wait 3 years to apply for the citizenship, because one of the conditions stipulated in the “Regulation” is to buy a real state in Turkey and annotating a sale ban in the land registry. And this is why adding the annotation of sale ban for 3 years in the real estate registry fulfills the legal requirements. And the annotation is recorded in the land registry.

In terms of the time required to obtain Turkish citizenship, it depends on the buyer himself and his legal status in Turkey.

Which of real estate purchases are applicable for this “Regulation”? For example do the real estate within the city organizational chart or Hotels are part of this “Regulation”?

All immovable property and defined in the law as a property such as land, hotels, and house shall be within the scope of this “Regulation”. The “Regulation” did not define the property being possessed, only specified the quantity “a real state of 250,000 USD”. In this case, the real state might be a house, Business facility, Building land, Agricultural Land, etc. but is worth to mention that in order to add the annotation sale ban to the real estate register, the real estate must have been sold and the ownership was transferred to the new owner. What is important is to ensure the easement of real rights and payment is done for the relevant real estate. Regardless of the construction completeness level or the right/permission to use.

And this means that this kind of sales cannot be done especially in houses and flats sales when the floor/ story easement or multi-story ownership and possession right is not transferred yet. And it seems that also the promise to sell contract which is organized in such cases cannot meet the terms and conditions stipulated in the “Regulation” to apply for the Turkish citizenship. Because it is a must to add the annotation to the real estate land registry which ban the real estate sale for 3 years, The purpose of which is to oblige the owner not to sell the property and transfer ownership during this period.

Even if an annotation has been made under the promise to sell contract, the applicant for citizenship may not be able to possess and own the property and even if could own it then he can sell it after transfer of ownership in the absence of such an annotation which will result in uncertainty of meeting the terms and conditions that the legislator provided. In addition to that, the employee responsible to organize and check the documentation is not responsible for checking the validity of the promise to sell contracts.

Is it possible to accept the building with different properties as one property? Can the purchaser for such property apply for the citizenship?

According to the above provisions, if the real estate is with a minimum value of (250,000) USD, then the terms and conditions to be met are fulfilled.

Can I sell the property after the application for citizenship through the real estate investment with a value of (250,000) USD?

No, you cannot sell the real estate before 3 years, because one of the conditions to apply for the Turkish citizenship is to have a property deed with an annotation of sale ban for at least 3 years in the land registry.

Is granting the Turkish citizenship by purchasing a real state of (250,000) USD applicable for Syrians?

This “Regulation” is not applicable to Syrians, because Syrians and number of other countries are not allowed to possess/own property in Turkey due to old decisions concern both countries. And in case a Syrian own areal state through establishing a company in Turkey and he registered this real state for the company, then it is also not in the scope of this “Regulation” because of the nationality law concern individuals, not companies. But in the details of the recent amendments on the investment law in general and not only for real estate investment, there other amendments such like establishing a company with a capital value of (500,000) USD and provide work opportunities for at least 50 Turkish citizens, this might be applicable for Syrians. So the real estate investment as a condition to get the Turkish citizenship is not applicable for Syrians.

What are the procedures and steps must be followed to get the Turkish citizenship through the real estate investment?

Any foreigner has a formal residency permission and buys a real estate with a minimum value of (250,000) USD provided that there is an annotation of sale ban for 3 years on the property deed will have the right to apply for the Turkish citizenship.

By decision of the Council of Ministers on the proposal of the relevant Ministry and in accordance with the provisions of Article 12, Paragraph 1 / B and under Articles 6 and 2, provided that the determination of the financial value of the property is determined at (250,000) USD based on the effective exchange rate of the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey.

Procedures for obtaining Turkish citizenship by purchasing real estate are as follows

• The foreigner must be a natural person and citizen of the countries specified by the council of ministries.

• Obtain the approval of the military authorities that there is no obstacle and issue for the sale of this property to foreigners.

• Provide the Property financial valuation report by an officially certified evaluation expert.

• Pledge not to sell the property for a period of not less than 3 years in the form of an annotation added to the land registry.

• Obtain a property deed for a real estate with a value of (250,000) USD, or any other equivalent currency.

• Apply for the Turkish citizenship.

Where and how to apply for the Turkish citizenship by purchasing a (250,000) USD property?

The application is made through designated and pre-selected centers by the Turkish government for the foreign investors in accordance with the above procedures.

These were the most frequently asked questions, and if you have any question not mentioned in this article then you can leave it for us as a comment, or contact our real estate consultants directly. And don’t forget to follow us to get the updates regarding those questions and the newsletter about real estate in Turkey.