Türkiye has suspended the issuance of a residence permit in Istanbul for foreigners

Due to the growing migration, the Turkish authorities have suspended the issuance of residence permits for foreigners in Istanbul

The Turkish authorities have banned the issuance of residence permits to foreigners in all districts of Istanbul, Milliyet reports. According to the publication, the issuance of a residence permit in Istanbul, where there are more than one million 294 thousand foreign citizens, will remain only if necessary.

Starting from October 2022, local authorities began to gradually close some areas of Istanbul and other cities popular among foreigners for obtaining a primary residence permit due to the fact that the share of foreigners in them exceeded 20%. Initially, the decision was made for 10 districts of Istanbul, but later it was extended to all other areas of the city. Exceptions are allowed for those who came for the purpose of education, medical care or international trade.

According to unofficial data, more than 7 million foreigners currently live in Turkey. The newspaper also claims that the Turkish Ministry of Internal Affairs in March actually declared all districts of Istanbul closed. However, there were no official statements from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Department of Migration on this topic. The list of closed areas has also not changed recently.

However, back in January it was reported that the Turkish authorities have tightened the checks of foreigners’ applications for a tourist residence permit. Now the card is not issued without proof of being in the country as a tourist. This led to massive refusals to issue a primary tourist residence permit or to extend an existing one for Russian citizens.