Istanbul has imposed a ban on issuing residence permits to foreigners

Istanbul, one of the most popular cities for foreigners in Turkey, has introduced a ban on issuing residence permits. Local authorities made the decision to cope with the growing number of newcomers living in the city. According to Milliyet newspaper, there are more than one million foreigners in Istanbul.  According to the data, the issuance of residence permits for foreigners has been suspended in all districts of Istanbul.

The ban initially concerned ten districts of the city, but has now spread to all others. Students, patients undergoing treatment in Turkey and representatives of international trade are still allowed to obtain residence permits.

According to unofficial data, more than seven million foreigners currently live in Turkey. In fact, the Turkish Interior Ministry closed all districts of Istanbul back in March, but did not make an official statement about it. At the same time, Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Turkish citizens will soon see a positive result in the situation with illegal migration. 

In June, about 16 thousand illegal migrants were detained, of which more than seven thousand were deported. Daily raids on tourist ferries and other places are conducted to apprehend illegal migrants. Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said more than 23,000 people have been prevented from entering the country in a month. He emphasized that the fight against illegal migration will continue on a daily basis.

P.S. Apparently, these innovations will not affect foreigners who receive citizenship for investment/purchase of real estate, however, so far there have been no official statements from the migration service. We will keep you informed of developments.

Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)