Acquisition of Turkish Citizenship by Decision of the Competent Authority:
An alien who wishes to acquire Turkish citizenship can acquire Turkish citizenship by a decision of the competent authority provided he/she fulfils the conditions laid down in the Turkish Citizenship Law No.5091. However fulfillment of the conditions stated in the Law does not grant that person an absolute right in the acquisition of citizenship. The competent authority is Turkish Ministry of Internal Affairs.
There are mainly four types of applications for acquisition of Turkish Citizenship by decision of Turkish Ministry of Internal Affairs:
a) General applications
b) Exceptional applications
c) Applications for re-acquisition of Turkish citizenship
d) Applications for acquisition of Turkish citizenship by marriage.
In general applications and applications for acquisition of Turkish citizenship by marriage applicants’ fulfillment of citizenship conditions is evaluated by The Citizenship Application Examination Commission. According to the Art. 18 of the Turkish Citizenship Law “The determination of whether aliens who wish to acquire Turkish citizenship fulfill the conditions for application in accordance with Articles 11 and 16 shall be made by the citizenship application examination commissions formed in the provinces. The formation and the working principles of the commissions shall be prescribed by a by-law.
a) Conditions for General Application:
The competent authority (Ministry) decision on the acquisition of Turkish Citizenship is made upon fulfillment of the following criteria. However it is clearly indicated in the law that fulfillment of the conditions does not grant a person an absolute right in acquisition of Turkish citizenship. These criteria are stated in the Art. 11 of Turkish Citizenship Law No.5091.
An alien who wishes to acquire Turkish citizenship shall;
a) be in the age of majority and have the capacity to act either according to his/her own national law or, if he/she is stateless, according to Turkish law,
b) have been resident in Turkey without interruption for five years preceding the date of his/her application,
c) verify his/her determination to settle down in Turkey with his/her manners,
d) have no disease constituting an obstacle in respect of public health,
e) be of good moral character,
f) be able to speak a sufficient level of Turkish,
g) have income or profession to provide for maintenance for himself/herself and his/her dependants in Turkey,
h) have no quality constituting an obstacle in respect of national security and public order.
In order to verify his/her determination to settle down in Turkey an alien should provide one or more requirements stated below:
• Acquiring a real estate in Turkey,
• Establishing a business in Turkey,
• Investing in Turkey,
• Working in Turkey with work permit,
• Marry with a Turkish citizen,
• To apply for Turkish citizenship with whole family,
• To have mother, father, sibling or child who acquire Turkish citizenship previously,
• To complete his/her education in Turkey.
Calculation of residence: An alien who applies for the acquisition of Turkish citizenship may stay abroad without exceeding six months within the residence period required for the application. The period spent abroad shall be evaluated within the residence period. The person who wants to apply for Turkish citizenship can make his7her application through the governorship of his/her residential area. In addition to governorships, the applicants who are abroad can apply to foreign delegations of Turkey.
The required documents for application:
• The request form,
• Passport,
• Birth certification or identity register copy,
• Marital status document,
• The identity register copy of the father, mother, sibling or child who is a Turkish citizen.