Türkiye citizenship by investment: costs, route & status

How the route works in September 2026

The title deed is where a purchase becomes a citizenship file. The buyer names citizenship as the purpose. The deed records it, and the buyer declares a three-year hold on any sale. The Investment Office calls this citizenship by exceptional procedures, for real estate worth USD 400,000 and more. ²

From there, an apartment in Istanbul and a house on the coast follow the same path, from a Land Registry certificate through a security check to the President's decision. The timeline section below sets out each step. ^{4, 7, 6}

The rules move often. The Land Registry's citizenship page lists six amendments to the regulation that took effect between 12 January 2017 and 12 December 2023. The Land Registry's FAQ dates the valuation rules that followed in 2024. Valuation reports dated from 4 March 2024 must come from the valuation company GEDAŞ. From 13 June 2024, a confirmed value below the minimum means the application is rejected. From 9 December 2024, that value sits on an Amount Determination Certificate (TTB). ^{4, 3}

How much does Türkiye citizenship by investment cost?

The qualifying minimum is USD 400,000 in real estate. Five other routes ask for USD 500,000: fixed capital, a bank deposit, government bonds, fund shares or a private pension. A seventh counts 50 new jobs. All seven lead to the same short-term residence permit and the same citizenship application. ¹

The European Central Bank's reference rates for 11 September 2026 were TRY 56.3329 and USD 1.1592 to the euro. At those rates one dollar buys about TRY 48.60, and the USD 400,000 minimum comes to TRY 19,438,544. The legal conversion uses the effective selling rate or cross rate of the Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye on the determination date. The lira figure moves with that rate. ^{9, 7}

Across programs, the real cost of citizenship by investment puts the minimum beside the fees and holding costs around it.

What are the property requirements and thresholds?

USD 400,000 clears every minimum in the table below. Four official web pages state it: the Investment Office's property page, the Population and Citizenship Directorate's FAQ, and the Land Registry's citizenship page and FAQ. The Investment Office's guide dated 1 June 2025 says USD 400,000 in its criteria table. Its step-by-step example uses USD 250,000, the figure two question-and-answer entries on the Land Registry's citizenship page date to purchases from 19 September 2018 until 13 June 2022. ^{2, 6, 4, 3, 7}

The Land Registry's citizenship page dates the minimum two ways. Its regulation summary puts USD 400,000 on property bought after 19 September 2018. Two question-and-answer entries on the same page put USD 250,000 on purchases from that date and USD 400,000 on purchases from 13 June 2022. The page disagrees with itself on when USD 400,000 took effect and leaves both versions standing. For a whole property bought today, every part of it gives USD 400,000. ⁴

What counts toward the minimum

• Built property: since 12 December 2023, farmland and empty plots are excluded. A land parcel needs a building on it. ⁴
• Whole ownership: property acquired as a share after 1 February 2023 cannot be used for citizenship. The Land Registry's FAQ rules out one property bought by two or more foreigners in shared ownership, and accepts one foreigner buying the whole of it. ^{4, 3}
• Price and payments: the sale price declared on the deed and the total of the payments must each reach USD 400,000, and the TTB confirms both. ⁴
• Several purchases: any number of properties bought by sale count toward the total. They can be bought at different times. ³
• One promise-of-sale contract: on that route, the whole amount sits in one contract. Files built on two or more are set aside. After 1 February 2023, a promise-of-sale contract cannot fill a gap left by completed purchases. ^{3, 4}
• The confirmed value: the TTB comes from a GEDAŞ valuation report and must reach the minimum. ^{4, 3}

What's the holding restriction and timeline?

Three years is the number that shapes the plan. The property's three-year restriction goes on the title deed at signing. The deposit, bond, fund and pension routes carry the same three-year hold. For those years, the money stays in the asset. ^{4, 1}

Two groups can file on this track. One holds a short-term residence permit under Article 31(1)(j) of Law No. 6458. The other holds a Turquoise Card. On the property route, the first six steps below condense the Land Registry's ten-step roadmap to the investment certificate, and the last two carry the file to the President's decision. ^{6, 4, 7}

1. 01

   Agree the purchase

   The Land Registry's roadmap starts here. The property, or several bought by sale, must reach USD 400,000 in total. ^{4, 3}

2. 02

   Get the valuation and the TTB

   The valuation report is requested through the Land Registry's WEBTAPU system and prepared by GEDAŞ. It supports the Amount Determination Certificate (TTB). ^{4, 3}

3. 03

   Move the money through a bank

   Since 24 January 2022, a foreign buyer sells foreign currency to the Central Bank through a bank. The bank issues a foreign-exchange purchase certificate (DAB), and the price on the deed is the lira amount on that certificate. A citizenship purchase also needs the bank receipt for the payment to the seller. ^{5, 3}

4. 04

   Apply to the Land Registry Directorate

   The Directorate checks the DAB, the contract and the receipts against the Regulation and the TTB. Then it texts the title-deed and revolving-fund fees. ⁴

5. 05

   Pay and sign

   The fees are paid, and the deed is drawn up and signed. The three-year restriction is recorded on it. ⁴

6. 06

   Receive the property investment certificate

   The Land Registry's General or Regional Directorate runs final checks and issues the Real Estate Investment Determination Certificate. An official letter sends it to the Population and Citizenship Directorate and the Presidency of Migration Management. The buyer gets a copy by e-mail. ⁴

7. 07

   Apply for the short-term residence permit

   With the certificate issued, the applicant applies to the provincial office of the Presidency of Migration Management for residence, and collects the permit card. ^{4, 6}

8. 08

   File for citizenship

   The citizenship application goes to the provincial office of the Population and Citizenship Directorate. The Directorate runs an archive check for national-security impediments. A clear file goes to the Minister's office, then to the President's office, and the President decides. ^{4, 7, 6}

Documents on the Land Registry Directorate's list

• The title deed, or the property's registry details
• A passport or national identity card that shows nationality, translated where needed
• The Amount Determination Certificate (TTB)
• A property value certificate (emlak rayiç değeri belgesi) from the municipality, where the municipality still issues one
• The compulsory earthquake insurance policy, for a building
• An identity information form, with a 6x4 photograph taken within the last six months ⁴
• The foreign identity number, or a tax number when the migration system returns no answer ⁴
• A bank-approved payment receipt
• A sworn interpreter for any party who does not speak Turkish
• A document showing representation when someone acts for a party; a power of attorney made abroad must meet the conditions of circular 2015/5 ⁴

Each transfer toward the minimum leaves a paper trail the Land Registry reads. Receipts from before the foreign-exchange certificate is issued are in foreign currency, and receipts from after it are in Turkish lira. One row per transfer, with its currency and rate, keeps the file in order. Tracking spending in several currencies covers the method. ³

Should you buy a home to use or a property to hold?

Decide what the building is for before the first viewing. A base in Istanbul for the working months, or a house on the coast for the summers, is a home. An apartment held for the file and little else is an asset. The three-year hold and the valuation rules apply to both. Daily life, from the commute to the noise at night, matters for the home. ^{4, 3}

A home earns its place through use. Spend time in the neighborhood in more than one season. Check the building's condition and management, and add the yearly property tax to the running costs. For the city and the country around it, start with the Türkiye travel guide.

An asset held for the application needs an exit plan. For three years the note on the deed keeps the money in the building. When those years end, selling is a new transaction at the Land Registry, with fees of its own. Cash the household needs within those years stays outside the property. ^{2, 4}

Foreign ownership also has two ceilings. One foreign individual can own up to 30 hectares across Türkiye. All foreign individuals together can hold up to 10% of a district's area where private property is allowed. A popular district can reach that ceiling whatever one buyer's budget. ²

What are the investment routes beyond property?

Six other routes reach the same citizenship file. Each has its own certifying authority, and the process starts with that authority's certificate of conformity. ^{1, 6}

The right route follows what the household is ready to own or run.

• A home the family will use: real estate, with the built-property rule and the confirmed valuation. ^{4, 3}
• Money kept out of buildings: a bank deposit, government bonds, fund shares or a private pension, each at USD 500,000 for three years. ¹
• A business run in Türkiye: USD 500,000 of fixed capital or 50 jobs, each certified by its ministry. ¹
• A Turquoise Card already held: citizenship by presidential resolution, separate from the investment minimums. ²

The Turquoise Card starts with a three-year transitional period. It gives the holder's spouse and dependent children a right of residence. At least 180 days before the period ends, the holder applies to remove the transitional record. Missing that window invalidates the card. ¹¹

What independent checks do you need before investing?

Each check below ends in a paper the buyer can keep. A lawyer who works for the buyer, paid by the buyer, gathers those papers before any deposit leaves the account.

• The parcel matches the contract. The Land Registry's public parcel lookup finds a property by city, district, quarter or village, map section and plot. It shows the basic status and keeps the owner's details private. ²
• The property is built. Farmland and empty plots left the route on 12 December 2023. ⁴
• The TTB value reaches the minimum and comes from a GEDAŞ report. It is under six months old when the transaction is applied for. ³
• The price on the deed and the payments to the seller each reach USD 400,000. ⁴
• The payment trail is complete: the foreign-exchange purchase certificate, plus the bank receipt for the payment to the seller. ⁵
• A promise-of-sale purchase rests on one contract for the full amount. ³
• Each buyer's country is on the purchase list. The Land Registry's FAQ counts 185 countries under Decision No. 2012/3504. The Directorate's FAQ counts 183 countries with no reciprocity requirement. ^{3, 6}

The property route also names one nationality rule. The Population and Citizenship Directorate's FAQ states that Syrian nationals cannot apply for citizenship through real estate. The reason it gives: the Treasury has seized Syrian-owned real estate in Türkiye under Reciprocity Law No. 1062. The same FAQ sets no general nationality restriction on the investment route. ⁶

Three years in the asset means three years with that money out of reach, so a separate cash reserve has to cover the roof that leaks or the file that runs late. Emergency funds for a global life sets out how to size one. ²

How do residence, work and tax rules apply separately?

Residence, work and tax each run on their own paperwork, as citizenship, residency and tax residency explains.

The line between being allowed in and being allowed to work is drawn in tourist entry vs remote-work permission. ¹¹

A family that splits its year between Istanbul and another country needs a tax adviser in each, and both need the same plain facts: where each person lives and earns, and which passports each one holds. ¹⁰