Long-Term Residence Permit in Türkiye
Official Turkish name: Uzun dönem ikamet izni
Short answer
A long-term residence permit (Turkish: uzun dönem ikamet izni) is a residence permit with no end date.[1] It may be given to foreigners who have lived in Türkiye on residence permits without interruption for at least eight years, or who meet conditions set by the Ministry of Interior.[1] The governorate issues it with the Ministry’s approval.[1] On the eight-year route, you also need to have received no social assistance in the last three years, have sufficient and regular income and valid health insurance, and not be a threat to public order or public security.[1] On the route based on the Ministry’s conditions, only the public order and public security condition applies.[1]
Who can apply
The Law gives two routes to a long-term residence permit.[1]
| Route | What the Law says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Eight years of residence | At least eight years in Türkiye on residence permits, without interruption, plus the other conditions in Article 43 | Law Art. 42/1, 43/1[1] |
| Conditions set by the Ministry | Foreigners who meet conditions set by the Ministry of Interior. For them, only the public order and public security condition applies. | Law Art. 42/1, 43/2[1] |
We could not find the Ministry’s current conditions for the second route in an official source. If you think this route applies to you, ask the provincial directorate of migration management.
Who cannot switch to a long-term permit
The Law does not give the right to move to a long-term residence permit to:[1][2]
- refugees and conditional refugees;
- holders of secondary protection status;
- holders of a humanitarian residence permit;
- people under temporary protection.
Conditions
Article 43 of the Law lists the conditions, and Article 40 of the Regulation explains how they are checked.[1][2]
| Condition | How it is checked | Source |
|---|---|---|
| At least eight years in Türkiye on residence permits, without interruption | See “How the eight years are counted” below | Law Art. 43/1-a[1]; Regulation Art. 40/2[2] |
| No social assistance in the last three years | Checked for the three years before the application date. If you received social assistance, the application is decided negatively. | Law Art. 43/1-b[1]; Regulation Art. 40/4[2] |
| Sufficient and regular income for yourself and your family, if any | You must be able to cover monthly expenses equal to the net minimum wage of the application year. You must also be able to cover one third of the minimum wage for each family member, yourself included, and never less than one minimum wage in total. Promises of support from other people are not accepted as income. | Law Art. 43/1-c[1]; Regulation Art. 40/5[2] |
| Valid health insurance | If you do not have valid health insurance on the application date, the application is decided negatively. | Law Art. 43/1-ç[1]; Regulation Art. 40/6[2] |
| No threat to public order or public security | This may be checked with the security units. | Law Art. 43/1-d[1]; Regulation Art. 40/7[2] |
How the eight years are counted
Which permits count
| Time spent on | How it counts | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Student residence permit | Half of the time counts | Law Art. 28/2[1] |
| Other residence permits (for example short-term or family) | All of the time counts | Law Art. 28/2[1] |
| Work permit or Work Permit Exemption Confirmation Document | Included in the total residence time | Regulation Art. 25/4[2] |
| Stateless Person Identity Document | Included in the total residence time | Law Art. 50/3[1] |
| Humanitarian residence permit | Does not count | Regulation Art. 44/4[2] |
| A permit obtained through a marriage of convenience and later cancelled | Does not count | Law Art. 37/3[1] |
| Permits held before a removal (deportation) | Do not count | Regulation Art. 40/2-d[2] |
| Permits held before an interruption | Do not count | Law Art. 28/1[1] |
Residence permits held before the Law entered into force are counted with the same method.[2]
Examples
These examples only show the arithmetic of Article 28/2. They assume there were no interruptions.[1]
| Permit history | Counted time | Eight years reached? |
|---|---|---|
| 4 years on a student permit, then 6 years on a short-term permit | 2 + 6 = 8 years | Yes |
| 8 years on a student permit | 4 years | No |
| 2 years on a student permit, then 5 years on a family permit | 1 + 5 = 6 years | No |
What counts as an interruption
The Law’s general rule: time outside Türkiye counts as an interruption of residence if it is more than six months in total within one year, or more than one year in total within the last five years.[1] Absences for compulsory public service, education and health are excluded from this rule.[1] If there is an interruption, the earlier permit periods are not counted.[1]
For the long-term permit, the Regulation explains the check step by step:[2]
- The calculation starts from the date of your application.
- Time spent outside Türkiye counts as an interruption. Time spent in Türkiye without a residence permit (for example, a gap between two permits) also counts as an interruption.
- The authorities first look for a long single absence. If at any point within the eight years you spent more than six months in one go, or in consecutive periods, outside Türkiye or in Türkiye without a permit, the application is decided negatively. In that case the year-by-year check is not done.
- Otherwise, they go back from the application date in one-year blocks. In each block, the total interruption must not be more than 180 days. This continues until eight years are covered.
- If no one-year block is over 180 days, they check whether the total interruption in the last five years is more than 365 days.
A quick self-check
Before you apply, list every exit and entry, and every period between two permits. Then ask yourself:
- Within the last eight years, was there any period of more than six months, in one go or in back-to-back periods, outside Türkiye or in Türkiye without a permit?
- Counting back from your planned application date, does any one-year block contain more than 180 days of interruption?
- Within the last five years, is the total interruption more than 365 days?
If the answer to any of these questions is yes, the Regulation’s calculation does not support an application at that date.[2] The Law excludes absences for compulsory public service, education and health from interruptions, but the Regulation’s step-by-step calculation does not repeat these exceptions.[1][2] If one of your absences was for these reasons, ask the provincial directorate of migration management. This self-check does not replace the authorities’ own calculation.
Documents
The e-İkamet list for long-term applications contains the following documents.[3] The Turkish version of the list is the official text; where the English version differs, we follow the Turkish one.
| # | Document | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Residence Permit Application Form, signed by the foreigner, a legal representative, or a lawyer with a power of attorney | |
| 2 | Copy of the passport or passport substitute document: the page with identity details and photo, and visa pages if any | Bring the original to the appointment. |
| 3 | Two biometric photos, taken in the last 6 months, white background, ICAO standard | |
| 4 | Receipt for the residence permit document fee | The list asks for the document fee only. |
| 5 | Up-to-date Document of Residence (Yerleşim Yeri Belgesi) from e-Devlet, with an electricity, water, natural gas or landline bill, or a subscription contract for new subscribers | If you stay with another person, the bill must be in the name of the person who gave you a notarised undertaking. |
| 6 | Valid health insurance. One of: a document from the provincial social security office under a bilateral social security agreement; an SGK provision document (provizyon belgesi); an SGK document showing an application for general health insurance; or a private health insurance policy (show the first page with the policy number) | |
| 7 | Criminal record certificate from the authorities of your own country and from the Turkish authorities | If you show a document that your own country cannot issue one because you have not entered or left that country, the Turkish record alone is accepted. |
| 8 | Original document showing sufficient and regular income: one third of the minimum wage for each family member including yourself, at least one minimum wage in total | Income undertakings from other people are not accepted. |
| 9 | Original document showing that you have not received social assistance in the last three years | Available from the Social Assistance and Solidarity Foundations attached to governorates and district governorates. |
| 10 | Document from a PTT central branch showing your National Electronic Notification (UETS) address | Not required under 18. |
All entries in this table come from the e-İkamet long-term list.[3]
For the criminal record certificate and the extra documents for a child, the list says: documents from Turkish authorities must be e-signed, or signed and stamped; documents from abroad need an Apostille and a notarised Turkish translation. If your country is not part of the Apostille Convention, or the document has no Apostille, it must be certified by the authorities of the country concerned (consulate or embassy certification, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or authorised Turkish authorities) and translated into Turkish by a notary.[3]
For an application made for a child, the list adds documents such as a certified birth certificate, custody or consent documents, a parent’s death certificate or a court decision of absence, a single parent document, a copy of the parents’ permits if any, and, for under-18s whose parent is abroad, a certified consent and a notarised undertaking from a person or organisation in Türkiye.[3]
The provincial directorate of migration management may ask for more information or documents.[3]
How to apply
Göç İdaresi takes residence permit applications in Türkiye through e-İkamet, followed by an appointment at the provincial directorate of migration management.[5] See Applying on e-İkamet. Note on consulates: Article 21 of the Law names the Turkish consulate in the applicant’s country as the normal place to apply.[1] Göç İdaresi states that consular applications will become possible soon and will be announced, and that until then the governorate of the province where you want to live takes applications.[5] For the long-term permit, the governorate makes the decision with the approval of the Ministry of Interior.[1] For fees, see Residence permit fees.
No extension needed
The long-term residence permit is issued without an end date.[1][2] All other residence permits are issued for a fixed period and are extended under Article 24 of the Law; the long-term permit is the exception.[2] So there is no extension application for it. If you hold another permit while you wait to qualify, keep extending that permit on time: see Extending a residence permit.
Rights
Article 44 of the Law says that long-term permit holders benefit from the rights given to Turkish citizens, with these exceptions:[1]
- the obligation to do military service;
- the right to vote and to stand for election;
- entering public service;
- importing vehicles exempt from duty;
- provisions in special laws.
Acquired social security rights are kept, and their use follows the relevant legislation.[1] The President can restrict these rights partly or fully.[1]
Cancellation
The Law gives two reasons to cancel a long-term residence permit:[1]
| Reason | Details | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Serious threat to public order or public security | Decided after taking the opinion of the relevant security units. A person whose permit is cancelled for this reason cannot apply for any type of residence permit in the Law. | Law Art. 45/1-a[1]; Regulation Art. 42/1, 42/4[2] |
| More than one year outside Türkiye without a break | Unless the reason was health, education, or compulsory public service in your own country. The Regulation also lists official duty as an exception. | Law Art. 45/1-b[1]; Regulation Art. 42/2[2] |
The governorate carries out the cancellation with the Ministry’s approval, and the decision is notified to the foreigner, their legal representative or their lawyer.[2] For what you can do after a decision, see Refusal and cancellation and Appeals.
Note the difference from other permits: for a long-term permit the time-abroad rule is about one continuous absence of more than one year, not a total of days.[1]
Applying again after a cancellation for time abroad
If your long-term permit was cancelled because you were outside Türkiye for more than one year without a break, you can apply to get it back.[1][2]
- Where: the Regulation names a Turkish consulate if you are abroad, and the governorate of the province where you are if you are in Türkiye, in person or by the procedure set by Göç İdaresi.[2] See the note on consular applications below.
- Time limit for a decision: these applications are handled with priority and decided within one month at the latest.[2]
- The eight-year rule is not required again. The other long-term conditions are checked.[2]
- No new reason needed: you do not have to give a new reason for the application.[2]
- What is assessed: your intention to settle in Türkiye, whether you have relatives in Türkiye, real estate, active work relationships, and your social, economic and cultural ties with Türkiye.[2]
- Approval: the governorate sends its assessment and opinion to the Ministry, and the Ministry decides whether to give the permit again.[2]
If you are in Türkiye when you are notified of the cancellation, you can apply within 10 days. The single entry visa fee and the residence permit fee for the time between the cancellation and the new application are then charged with one additional multiple (Turkish: “bir kat fazlasıyla”).[2] Time spent abroad is not counted in this period.[2] Ask the provincial directorate of migration management how the amount is calculated in your case.
Göç İdaresi’s page on permit types repeats the Regulation’s rule,[4] but its general information page says that residence permit applications are currently taken by governorates in Türkiye and that consular applications will be announced.[5] If you are abroad, check with the consulate or with YİMER before relying on a consular application. Göç İdaresi’s Foreigners Communication Center (YİMER) answers residence permit questions on 157 from inside Türkiye and +90 312 157 11 22 from abroad.[5]
Sources
- Yabancılar ve Uluslararası Koruma Kanunu (Law No. 6458 on Foreigners and International Protection), consolidated text, Art. 21/1, 28, 37/3, 42, 43, 44, 45, 50/3. mevzuat.gov.tr, accessed .
- Yabancılar ve Uluslararası Koruma Kanununun Uygulanmasına İlişkin Yönetmelik (Implementing Regulation), Art. 21/11, 21/12, 23/1-e, 25/4, 26/8, 40, 42, 43, 44/4. mevzuat.gov.tr, accessed .
- Uzun Dönem İkamet İzni Başvurularında İstenen Belgeler (Documents Required for Long Term Residence Permit Applications). e-İkamet, Göç İdaresi Başkanlığı, accessed .
- İkamet İzni Çeşitleri (Residence Permit Types). Göç İdaresi Başkanlığı, accessed .
- İkamet Genel Bilgiler (Residence Permits: General Information). Göç İdaresi Başkanlığı, accessed .