Turkey has had a privileged position in international politics for long times. We are still close to the period of the Ottoman Empire which spanned more than 600 years, and the empire encompassed 29 countries, this empire expanded to include Asia Minor completely, large parts of south-eastern of Europe, western Asia, as well as north of Africa. This historical background pushed Turkey to keep on and seek for maintaining the political position that it used to have among nations, where it still holds a strong and influential position in the Middle East and the world, This position was further developed and enhanced by the rapid and ambitious economic achievements that Turkey has made, which in a few years made it one of the top 20 economies in the world.

The geographical position of Turkey as a bridge between Asia and Europe and the growing influence in many neighboring countries, both increased its political weight, this is in addition of being part of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

In order to realize the importance of Turkey currently or rather the advantages of Turkish citizenship, let us address the following points.

Turkey – European Union relations

In 1987, Turkey officially applied for the membership in the European Union as Turkey lands are connected to Europe and Turkey culture is close to the European culture. The European Union officially recognized Turkey as an official candidate for membership in 1999. Since then, there has been no progress or improvements in the negotiations between the two sides because the EU is concerned about the expected influence that Turkey might have in case it joined the EU as the population number for each member in the EU is crucial to determine the number of its parliament members, and Turkey population is in the second rank, Germany is first. On the other hand, Turkey has special economic relations with EU countries which got stronger in the form of the customs union with EU made between the two sides in 1995. This is at the economic level, if we move to the political level then we can find that Turkey’s relation with EU countries is recognized with mutual respect and appreciation.

Countries where Turkish citizens can travel without a visa

The Turkish passport is ranked 39th globally, and this rank comes as a result of the diplomatic strength of this passport, which enables the holder according to data from “Henley” index with the following:

• Travel to 72 countries around the world without a need for a visa, such countries are like Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Qatar, and others.

• Travel to about 42 other countries with a visa being issued to the Turkish citizen upon arrival in the destination country, such countries may include Kuwait, Bahrain, and South Africa.

• Apply for a visa to almost seven countries directly via the Internet (Online), countries are such like Australia and Oman.

Types of Turkish passport

There are four different types of Turkish passports:

• Ordinary (Public) passport which is issued to the individuals of Turkish citizens, and foreign investors after they got Turkish citizenship.

• Especial passport which is issued to the Turkish citizens who occupy specific job positions as retired MPs (Members of parliament) and others.

• Diplomatic passport which is issued to Turkish officials.

• The service passport which is issued to all government employees working abroad.

Citizenship and voting rights

The foreign investors would have many privileges and benefits when they get the Turkish citizenship as like the citizenship rights and voting rights in all kinds of elections, in this way they can influence the country decision making and the future of the country where they invest their money. The foreign investors will also not suffer any more for residence procedures related matters and its renewal, travel abroad, and other routine matters that you can find in every country when you want to renew your residency. The foreign investors can also invite relatives, friends that resident abroad to stay in Turkey, work, or study.

Turkish government facilities for foreign investors who seek for getting the Turkish citizenship

In 2017 the Turkish government gave a green light for foreigners to get the Turkish citizenship against a specific amount of investment to be made in the country. The following are the cases where a foreigner can apply and obtain the Turkish citizenship:

• The foreigner investors can get the Turkish citizenship if they purchase a real estate in Turkey and its value of or exceeds (250,000) USD provided that this real estate cannot be sold within 3 years after the date of purchase. And this required amount (value) is 75 % less than it was required before (before September 2018) which was 1 million dollars.

• The foreigner can also obtain the Turkish citizenship if a half million dollars is deposited into a Turkish bank while the amount was 3 million dollars before September 2018.

• Foreign investors, with a fixed capital value of (500,000) dollars are also entitled to receive Turkish citizenship, the same applies for those whose their investments provide work opportunities for at least (50) Turkish citizens.

Read the FAQ about obtaining Turkish citizenship through real estate investment.

Why it is important that a real estate company follow up the procedures and the process of the Turkish citizenship application

Getting Turkish citizenship requires many procedures and follow-up, especially for those who want to get it through real estate investment. It is important for them to contact and communicate the real estate company from which they bought their real estate (property) for documentation, and then proceed with the required steps as per procedures. Extra Property as a real estate company has a huge experience in the real estate market in Turkey which helps you from the start point of application then provide complete follow-up and support till you receive the Turkish citizenship.

Resources

turkpress.co , skynewsarabia.com