Health insurance for a residence permit
Short answer
Almost every residence permit application needs valid health insurance (sağlık sigortası), and the cover must last for the whole permit period you ask for.[2][3] Göç İdaresi accepts one of four documents: a bilateral social security agreement document, an SGK provision document, a document showing you applied to SGK for general health insurance, or a private health insurance policy.[3][6] If you are not covered by general health insurance and ask for a permit of one year or more, the Regulation asks for a one-year private policy that is renewed at the end of the year, and Göç İdaresi’s FAQ says a “1+1 year” policy lets you ask for a two-year short-term permit.[2][4] Students who apply for general health insurance within three months of registration, and some other groups listed below, have special rules.[2]
This page explains what the official texts say. The provincial migration directorate checks your documents and decides on your application. Having insurance does not mean your permit will be issued.
The basic rule
The Implementing Regulation of Law No. 6458 sets three points for all permit types:[2]
- Your health insurance must be valid and must cover the residence permit period you request (Art. 22/13).
- If you are covered by general health insurance (genel sağlık sigortası, GSS) in Türkiye, this counts as valid health insurance (Art. 22/13).
- A policy must contain the points and wording that the rules of the relevant authorities require (Art. 22/13). The Regulation does not list them.
Göç İdaresi’s general information page repeats that the insurance must cover the requested permit period.[3] The e-İkamet document lists for short-term, family and student permits say the same thing.[6][7][8] In these lists, the health insurance item is not limited to first applications or to extensions, so it applies to both.
Accepted insurance documents
The e-İkamet document lists (PDF versions of 18 March 2025) and Göç İdaresi’s general information page name four documents. One of them is enough.[3][6]
| Document | Who issues it | What it shows |
|---|---|---|
| Bilateral social security agreement document | The provincial social security unit (il sosyal güvenlik birimi) | That you use health services in Türkiye under a bilateral social security agreement between Türkiye and your country |
| Provision document (provizyon belgesi) | The Social Security Institution (SGK) | The list names this document without further explanation; ask SGK if you are unsure which one you need |
| General health insurance application document | The Social Security Institution (SGK) | That you applied to SGK to become insured under general health insurance |
| Private health insurance policy | An insurance company | Your private cover. Bring the first page of the policy, the one with the policy number |
The first three documents must be e-signed, or signed and stamped.[3][6]
Bilateral social security agreements
If you can use health services in Türkiye under a bilateral social security agreement and you document this, no separate private or public health insurance is required.[2] The document comes from the provincial social security unit.[6] Whether an agreement covers you depends on your country and your situation; ask your provincial social security unit.
Policies from foreign insurance companies
For applications made inside Türkiye, a private health insurance policy from a foreign company is accepted only if the policy was concluded in Türkiye.[2]
Permits of one year or longer and the “1+1” policy
The Regulation has a separate rule for people who are not covered by general health insurance or have not applied to SGK. If they ask for a permit of one year or more, a one-year private health insurance policy is required, on condition that it is renewed at the end of the year (Art. 22/14).[2]
Göç İdaresi’s FAQ (question 39) answers a related question. A person wants a two-year short-term permit, but health insurance policies last one year. In short, the answer is: if the insurance company issues a “1+1 year” policy, you may ask for a two-year permit; you can also take out general health insurance for two years.[4]
The FAQ does not define a “1+1 year” policy further. Ask your insurer what their document shows, and ask the provincial migration directorate if you are unsure whether it fits the period you want. The rules for how long each permit type can last are on the permit pages linked below.
Rules by permit type
| Permit type | What the official texts ask for | Special points |
|---|---|---|
| Short-term residence permit | Valid health insurance covering the requested period (item 6 of the list)[6] | Exchange students, people coming for treatment and some others have special rules (see below)[2] |
| Family residence permit | The sponsor must have health insurance covering all family members (item 10 of the list)[1][7] | SGK provision documents must cover both the sponsor and the family members[3] |
| Student residence permit | Valid health insurance covering the requested period (item 6 of the list)[8] | Students who apply for general health insurance within three months of registration need no separate insurance[2] |
| Long-term residence permit | Valid health insurance is a legal condition (item 6 of the list)[1][9] | An application without valid insurance on the application date is refused[2] |
Short-term residence permit
The short-term list asks for valid health insurance that covers the requested permit period, using one of the four documents above.[6] The Regulation and Göç İdaresi’s permit types page add these special cases:
| Situation | What the official text says |
|---|---|
| Students on exchange programmes (for example Erasmus, Mevlana, Farabi) | The same three-month general health insurance rule as for students applies (see the student section below)[2][5] |
| Coming only for medical treatment, and you document that you pay all treatment costs | Health insurance is not required[2][5] |
| Coming for treatment, and a public body pays your housing, food or health costs during treatment | Neither proof of sufficient means nor health insurance is required[2][5] |
| Escorts (at most two people) of foreigners who come under Additional Article 14 of the Basic Law on Health Services (Law No. 3359) | Göç İdaresi says health insurance is not required[5] |
| Coming for education, research, an internship or a course through a public body that pays your housing, food or health costs | Neither proof of sufficient means nor health insurance is required[2] |
| A permit issued at the request or decision of a judicial or administrative authority | Health insurance and sufficient means may not be required[2] |
People coming for treatment under a bilateral social security agreement bring a document from the provincial social security unit showing that they are covered by the agreement.[6]
Family residence permit
Law No. 6458 makes it a condition for the sponsor (destekleyici) to have health insurance covering all family members.[1] The family document list asks for valid health insurance covering all family members, for the whole requested permit period.[7] Göç İdaresi adds that an SGK provision document for a family permit must cover both the sponsor and the family members.[3]
Student residence permit
Under the Regulation, foreign students who ask to become insured under general health insurance within three months of their first registration do not need separate health insurance.[2][5] The student document list adds that, after joining general health insurance within those three months, students must inform the migration administration.[8] Students who do not apply within three months lose this right and must take out private health insurance.[2][5]
Long-term residence permit
Valid health insurance is one of the legal conditions for a long-term residence permit.[1] The Regulation says that an application is refused if the applicant does not have valid health insurance on the application date.[2] The long-term document list asks for valid health insurance and accepts the same four documents. Unlike the other lists, it does not include the sentence about covering the requested permit period.[9]
Applicants under 18 or over 65
Göç İdaresi’s FAQ (question 12) says that, for short-term and student permits, the insurance type field on e-İkamet has an option for applicants under 18 and over 65, and that this option should be chosen for them.[4] For long-term permits, the same FAQ answer says a person over 65 may submit a document showing that they could not get insurance.[4] The Regulation’s text on long-term permits (Art. 40/6) does not mention this exception.[2] The FAQ does not say which document this is or who issues it. Ask your provincial migration directorate how this applies to you before you apply.
Humanitarian and victim of human trafficking permits
A humanitarian residence permit can be issued without the conditions required for other residence permits.[1] For the victim of human trafficking residence permit, the Regulation states that health insurance is not required.[1][2] See humanitarian and trafficking victim permits.
Other cases where the insurance condition is not applied
The Regulation lists a few more cases:[2]
- People who receive free treatment in Türkiye under an agreement, protocol or other rules of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Health, if they document this, do not need health insurance (Art. 22/16).
- Where a foreign state, directly or through its mission, states that it will pay its citizens’ health costs, health insurance may not be required (Art. 22/17).
- Where the Treasury (Hazine Müsteşarlığı, the body named in the Regulation) has stated that private health insurance cannot be taken out, applications are accepted without the insurance condition (Art. 22/15). The Regulation does not explain how an applicant shows this. Ask your provincial migration directorate before relying on it.
Göç İdaresi’s FAQ (question 36) also says that people whose housing, food or health costs are paid by a public body during the permit period do not have to prove sufficient means or hold health insurance; the hospital or public body may be asked for information about the treatment.[4]
Entering insurance details on e-İkamet
The application form asks for the type of health insurance, the insurance company, the validity date and the policy number.[10] At the appointment, bring the first page of your policy, the one showing the policy number.[6] See applying on e-İkamet for the full process.
The “insurance mismatch” error
Some applicants get an error saying the insurance details do not match. Göç İdaresi’s FAQ (question 52) suggests these steps:[4]
- Contact your insurance company and get the policy number, the company name, the renewal number and the start and end dates.
- Enter the details exactly as you received them.
- If the policy shows no renewal number, enter 0 if this is your first policy with that company, 1 if it is your second, and 2 if it is your third.
- Try entering the policy number with digits only, without the letters shown on the policy.
For more detail, the FAQ refers you to your insurance company.[4]
If your policy is shorter than the permit you ask for
The official texts require cover for the whole requested period, with the one-year renewal rule above for permits of one year or more.[2][3] The official sources we checked do not say what the directorate does when a policy ends before the requested permit period (for example, whether it issues a shorter permit or treats the documents as incomplete). Ask your provincial migration directorate before you apply. When you extend a permit, the new period also needs insurance cover; see extending a residence permit.[2]
Related pages
- Applying on e-İkamet
- Short-term residence permit
- Family residence permit
- Student residence permit
- Long-term residence permit
- Extending a residence permit
- Refusal and cancellation
- Residence permit wizard
Sources
- Yabancılar ve Uluslararası Koruma Kanunu (Kanun No. 6458), Art. 35/1-b, 43/1-ç, 46/1, 48/2. mevzuat.gov.tr, accessed .
- Yabancılar ve Uluslararası Koruma Kanununun Uygulanmasına İlişkin Yönetmelik, Art. 22/13, 22/14, 22/15, 22/16, 22/17, 28/6, 28/11, 28/12, 28/14, 35/8, 40/6, 45/4. mevzuat.gov.tr, accessed .
- İkamet Genel Bilgiler, Section 'Sağlık Sigortası Şartı'. Göç İdaresi Başkanlığı, accessed .
- İkamet (Sıkça Sorulan Sorular), Questions 12, 36, 39, 52. Göç İdaresi Başkanlığı, accessed .
- İkamet İzni Çeşitleri, Short-term: exchange students, treatment; Student: 'Öğrenci İkamet İzninde Sağlık Sigortası'. Göç İdaresi Başkanlığı, accessed .
- Kısa Dönem İkamet İzni Başvurularında İstenen Belgeler (PDF, 18.03.2025), Item 6; additional documents (f). e-İkamet, accessed .
- Aile İkamet İzni Başvurularında İstenen Belgeler (PDF, 18.03.2025), Item 10. e-İkamet, accessed .
- Öğrenci İkamet İzni Başvurularında İstenen Belgeler (PDF, 18.03.2025), Item 6; information notes. e-İkamet, accessed .
- Uzun Dönem İkamet İzni Başvurularında İstenen Belgeler (PDF, 18.03.2025), Item 6. e-İkamet, accessed .
- İkamet İzni Başvuru Formu örneği (ilk başvuru, kısa dönem), Insurance fields. e-İkamet, accessed .