Amendment Regulation on the Implementation of the Turkish Citizenship Law

5/13/2022

The amendment regulation, which increases the monetary limit of the value of real estate to be purchased for application for Turkish Citizenship and Regulates a new way of investment to acquire Turkish Citizenship exceptionally has been published in the official gazette dated 13th 2022

Amendment Regulation (“Amendment Regulation”) which brings changes to the Regulation on The Implementation of The Turkish Citizenship Law (“Regulation”) has been published on the Official Gazette dated May 13th, 2022 and numbered 31834.

What has changed with the Amendment Regulation?

As per to the Article 20/2 (b) of the Regulation, foreign real persons who purchased real estate in Turkey, with a value of at least USD 250,000.00 could apply for Turkish citizenship. Along with the Amendment Regulation this monetary amount has been increased to USD 400,000.00-. This first article of the Amendment Regulation shall enter into force 1 (one) month after its publication date.

Before the Amendment Regulation, the Regulation envisaged 6 different ways of investment in order to acquire Turkish citizenship exceptionally. With the Amendment Regulation, a new 7th way of obtaining Turkish citizenship exceptionally is envisaged. Accordingly, a new sub-paragraph (Art. 20/2-f) has been added to Article 20 of the Regulation, by virtue of this paragraph; foreigners who have invested at least USD 500,000.00- or equivalent in foreign currency in the private pension system, on the condition that they keep their contribution in the funds determined by the Insurance and Private Pensions Regulation and Supervision Agency and remain in the system for 3 (“three”) years could apply to acquire Turkish citizenship exceptionally. This article of the Amendment Regulation entered into force as of the publication date.

To access the full text of the Amendment Regulation please click here.

MORAL & PARTNERS
Aybike Gürcan, Associate
Orhun Tezel, Trainee Lawyer

Other News

Export Restrictions Have Been Imposed on Israel

The Ministry of Trade announced that export restrictions had been imposed on fifty-four product groups exported from Turkey to Israel, effective from April 9, 2024.

News| Legal Updates

2023 Corporate Tax Reservation and Litigation Matters

In our 2023 Corporate Tax Reservation and Litigation note; we have examined the issues of "application of reduced corporate tax rate to earnings from services provided to foreigners in Türkiye (accommodation, health, etc.)" and "excess profit declared due to not subjecting the assets sold in 2023 to inflation adjustment".

News| Legal Updates

Amendments to Law Numbered 6698 on the Protection of Personal Data

Law Numbered 7499 on the Amendment of the Code of Criminal Procedure and Certain Laws introduced long-awaited amendments to the Law Numbered 6698 on the Protection of Personal Data ("KVKK"). Law Numbered 7499 was published in the Official Gazette dated March 12, 2024 and numbered 32487. The provisions amending the KVKK will enter into force as of June 1, 2024.

News| Legal Updates

Exceptions to Foreign Currency Payment Prohibition in Movable Sales Agreements Have Been Introduced

Communiqué (No: 2024-32/69) ("Communiqué") amending the Communiqué (Communiqué No: 2008-32/34) on Decree No: 32 on the Protection of the Value of the Turkish Currency was published in the Official Gazette dated February 28, 2024 and numbered 32474. The Communiqué introduced some exceptions to the prohibition of payment in foreign currency in certain agreements.

News| Legal Updates

Strategic Shift: Administrative Cancellation of Trademarks

As of 10.01.2024, the authority to cancel trademarks, which was temporarily given to the courts by Article 26 of the Industrial Property Law No. 6769 ("IPL"), which entered into force on 10.01.2017, has been given to the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office ("TPTO"), whose founding purpose is to contribute to the effective protection and commercialization of industrial property rights by increasing industrial property awareness in all segments of society.

News| Legal Updates

Amendments to the Principles and Rules to be Applied in Retail Trade

The "Regulation Amending the Regulation on Principles and Rules to be Applied in Retail Trade" ("Regulation"), which has been subject to a long period of study by the Ministry of Trade, was published in the Official Gazette dated December 14, 2023 and numbered 32399.

News| Legal Updates

Significant Amendments to the Price Label Regulation

With the amendment published in the Official Gazette on December 19, 2023, effective as of 01.01.2024, the Regulation Amending the Price Labeling Regulation ("Regulation") introduced the obligation for establishments providing food and beverage services such as restaurants, cafes, patisseries, etc. to display tariffs and price lists in places where consumers can easily see them. The primary objective of the Regulation is to ensure that consumers are informed in a correct and transparent manner.

News| Legal Updates

Amendments Introduced to Reduce Losses as a Result of the Earthquake

With the Law No. 7471 on the Amendment of the Law to the Transformation of Areas under Disaster Risk and Certain Laws and the Decree Law No. 375 (the “Law”), which was published in the Official Gazette on November 9, 2023, a number of significant amendments were made in urban transformation practices.

News| Legal Updates

The Constitutional Court Upholds Amendments to the E-Commerce Law

The decision on the annulment case filed in the Constitutional Court (“CC”) regarding the Law No. 7416, which made substantial amendments to the Law No. 6563 ("E-Commerce Law") and entered into force on 07.07.2022, has been published in the Official Gazette No. 32317 dated 22.09.2023. The CC uphold the amendments related to the provisions of the E-Commerce Law and rejected the request for annulment by a majority vote.

News| Legal Updates

The Law Introduced for Short-Term Leases

The Law on the Leasing of Residences for Tourism Purposes and Amendments to Certain Laws ("Law") published in the Official Gazette dated 02.11.2023 sets forth significant obligations for lessors, intermediaries, and intermediary service providers enabling the electronic commerce platforms promoting short-term residence leases. This legislation mandates that residences leased for periods less than 100 days must be registered with the Ministry of Culture and Tourism ("Ministry") and non-compliance with the obligations thereto will result in administrative penalties. Further, lessors are required to obtain an authorization document from the Ministry and a plaque indicating the qualification of the residence. Non-adherence to these requirements will cause to incurrence of administrative fines. The Law will come into effect on 01.01.2024.

News| Legal Updates

Matters To Be Considered For Roofed Workplace Leases

In accordance with the Turkish Code of Obligations No. 6098 ("TCO"), lease relations are categorised under three main headings: (i) general provisions, (ii) residential and roofed workplace leases, and (iii) product leases. Properties to be leased as offices, warehouses, etc. for the purpose of conducting commercial activities will be subject to the provisions of "Residential and Roofed Workplace Leases".

News| Legal Updates

Sale of Real Estate Before Notary Public Has Begun

The amendment made to the Notary Public Law numbered 1512 regulated that, real estate sale agreements, which could previously only be executed before the land registry offices, could now be executed at the offices of the notary public, as of 2023. With the public announcement made by the Union of Notaries of Turkey, the sale of real estate in the offices of the notary public has begun as of July 3rd, 2023, and actively implemented as of September.

News| Legal Updates