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Practice area

Foreigners and Citizenship Law

Foreigners and citizenship law governs the entry of foreigners into Türkiye, their stay and work here, their deportation and the acquisition of Turkish citizenship. People who want to obtain a residence or work permit, who are subject to a deportation or administrative detention decision, or whose citizenship application has been rejected look for legal support in this area.

What we handle in this area

  • Residence permits: Applications for and extensions of short-term, family and student residence permits.
  • Work permits: Work permit applications and advice for employers (Law No. 6735).
  • Deportation: Lawsuits before the administrative court against deportation decisions.
  • Administrative detention: Applications to the criminal judgeship of peace against administrative detention decisions.
  • Entry bans: Applications concerning restriction codes and entry bans.
  • Turkish citizenship: General and exceptional citizenship applications and lawsuits against rejection decisions (Law No. 5901).

How does the process work?

1. Application. Residence permit, work permit and citizenship applications are made to the relevant authority; the documents required for the type of application are prepared.

2. Objection and lawsuit. Lawsuits are filed with the administrative court against the authority’s rejection, deportation or entry ban decisions. For deportation decisions the time limit is seven days from notification (Law No. 6458, Art. 53); for other administrative acts the general limit for filing a lawsuit is 60 days (Administrative Procedure Law, Art. 7). Applications against administrative detention decisions are made to the criminal judgeship of peace (Law No. 6458, Art. 57).

3. Appeals. In the cases provided by law, decisions of the administrative court can be appealed and taken to cassation.

Because time limits can be very short, it is important to record the date and content of any decision served on you immediately.

Frequently asked questions

How long do I have to file a lawsuit against a deportation decision?

The foreigner, their legal representative or their lawyer can apply to the administrative court within seven days from the notification of the decision (Law on Foreigners and International Protection No. 6458, Art. 53).

How can an administrative detention decision be challenged?

The person placed under administrative detention, their legal representative or their lawyer can apply to the criminal judgeship of peace against the decision. The application does not stop the detention (Law No. 6458, Art. 57).

What can be done if a citizenship application is rejected?

An annulment action can be filed with the administrative court within 60 days from notification of the rejection decision (Administrative Procedure Law, Art. 7).

Sources
  1. Law on Foreigners and International Protection No. 6458, Art. 30 et seq., Arts. 52–60
  2. Turkish Citizenship Law No. 5901
  3. International Labor Force Law No. 6735
  4. Administrative Procedure Law No. 2577, Art. 7
  5. Legislation (in Turkish): mevzuat.gov.tr

This page is for general information only and does not constitute legal advice or opinion. Last reviewed: .

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