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Passport & Visa

As the norm, when people travel to another country, a valid travel document (Passport) or valid identity is needed (except EU countries). As Turkey is still not an EU country the entry regulations are set according to the customs and entry regulations Turkey has agreed with each individual country. Citizens of the following countries can enter Turkey with a valid passport; a visa is NOT required:

Up to 3 Months with single entry:

Argentina, Bahamas, Bahrain, Barbados, Belize, Chile, Denmark, Ecuador, Fiji, Finland, France, Granada, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (only passports of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region), Iran, Iceland, Israel, Jamaica, Japan, Kenya, Kuwait, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Malta, Mauritius, Monaco, Morocco, Norway, New Zeeland, Oman, Qatar, St. Lucia, San Marino, Switzerland, Seychelles, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Sweden, South Korea, Trinidad, Tobago, Tunisia, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, Uruguay, United Arab Emirates, Vatican City.
   
 
Up to 2 Months with single entry:

Bosnia-Herzegovina, Indonesia, Macedonia, Romania, The Republic of Croatia, The Republic of Slovenia.

Up to 1 Month with single entry:

Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Costa Rica, Kyrgyztan, El Salvador, The Republic of South Africa, Maldives.

Citizens of the following countries NEED a visa obtainable at borders of Turkey:

Up to 3 Months with single entry:

USA., Austria, Australia, Brazil, Canada, United Kingdom, Ireland, Spain, Italy, Belgium, Holland, and Portugal can obtain a sticker visa at border gates.

Up to 1 Month with single entry:

Azerbaijan, White Russia, Armenia, Jordan, Moldavia, Uzbekistan, Russia, Tajikistan, Ukraine, Hungary, Poland, The Czech Republic, Slovakia, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Georgia, Albania, Belarus, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and Taiwan can obtain a sticker visa at border gates.

Citizens of Guatemala can obtain a visa for up to 15 days at border gates.

Citizens of all other countries NEED a visa, which can be obtained from the nearest Turkish embassy or consulate.

NOTES:

All the information applies for ordinary passport holders only, unless otherwise indicated.

The citizens of Germany, Belgium, France, The Netherlands, Luxembourg, Spain, Italy, Malta, Switzerland and Greece can enter from the border gates determined by Turkey, namely, Turkey-Greece, Turkey-Bulgaria, Istanbul,Izmir, Canakkale, Mugla, Antalya, Icel, Hatay (Iskenderun) and Aydin sea ports, Istanbul Ataturk, Ankara Esenboga, Adana Sakirpasa, Antalya, Izmir A.Menderes, Mugla Dalaman, Kayseri Erkilet airports, with identity cards other than passports according to the "Agreement on the Travel of Individuals" dated 13.12.1957.

Holders of the following documents must obtain a visa from a Turkish Embassy or Consulate abroad prior to entering Turkey. These documents are: "Hire de Voyage, Reise Document, Aliens Passport, Passeport D'entranger, Fremdenpass,Laissez Passer".

Work Permit

Work Permits are either obtained from the Ministry of Labor and Social Security (Çalisma ve Sosyal Güvenlik Bakanligi) or from the Consulates of Turkish Republic abroad.

Essential documents needed are:
  • Permission from the Turkish Consulate;
  • Passport;
  • Population information duly certified by notary public;
  • Passport photos.
To receive the permission from the Ministry of Labor and Social Security, additional documents are requested. The applicant is given a two-paged document that includes the requested information. The information may be given on a separate page either typed or printed by a computer.

The declaration form requests the following information :

Name of employing company; title; head office address; whether capital is foreign or not; the address the foreigner is going to work at, the type of business the company is involved in; capital information; previous year exportation in dollars; date of establishment; recorded and paid share capital; the total number of Turkish personnel working in the Company and the name, nationality and the position the foreigner has taken part in previous companies.

In addition, the following personal information is required of the person requesting the work permit:

Passport number; name and surname; name of father and mother; date and place of birth; marital status and nationality of the wife/ husband, if married.

If a previous work permit had been issued, then the following information is also required: details of the issuing authority and the date and number of previous permit documents; name of previous company; the term of employment that the foreigner worked in that company, the position he/she held and the reason of severance (non-employment, leaving, separating etc.).

With regard to education, the following information is required:

The applicants' educational status and, the names and locations of recent schools the applicant graduated from; and the area of specialization.

If the foreigner has been in Turkey before, the following information is required:
  • Dates in Turkey, places of residence and an explanation for your presence in Turkey;
  • Names, addresses and phone numbers of the persons and the companies the applicant is using as reference;
  • Entity of the position of the applying foreigner in the company;
  • Proposed term of employment;
  • Monthly gross salary to be paid to the foreigner;
  • The reason for employing a foreigner instead of a Turkish citizen.
At the end of the declaration form, there is a date, which should be filled in. The employer and the foreign employee should put signatures at the bottom.

The following additional documents must also be attached to the declaration form:
  • Passport copies that are either certified by a notary public or the applicant's Consulate;
  • Copies of investment incentive certificates and exportation incentive certificates certified by the Foreign Capital Directorate; the activity report of the last(previous) year and the income/outcome table and balance sheet certified by the related tax directorate;
  • Bank letter supporting the last year exportation if the company is an exporting company;
  • Other documents such as a photocopy of the permit document if a previous permit exists, letters of recommendation, diploma, etc.




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