New Regulations to Get Citizenship Through Real Estate in 2022

By Justin Mays:

Approximately 7,000 foreigners took advantage of Turkey’s citizenship via home purchases between 2017 and 2020. As of January 6, 2022, the Turkish government has enacted minor updates to its regulations concerning granting citizenship to foreigners in return for specific investments in real estate.

Citizenship Through Real Estate

Foreign buyers who purchase property in Turkey worth at least USD 400,000 will find themselves on the path to Turkish citizenship. Buyers must hold the property for three years, and their spouse and children under the age of 18 will also be granted Turkish passports.

According to the new regulation, the foreign currency obtained from selling the property to foreigners must now be sold to the central bank through a local bank and converted into Turkish Lira. Prior to this amendment, one could invest with foreign currency or the Turkish Lira equivalent.

Benefits of the New Regulations

The new requirement will help strengthen the Lira by preventing and reversing the dollarization trend in the country. Despite the new conditions, the monetary value of real estate investment has not changed, and there is no expectation that the new regulation will slow down or create gaps in real estate transactions.

Home sales to foreigners reached an all-time high last November with a 48.4% year-over-year increase with 7, 363 units sold. Central Bank data shows that net investment in real estate reached USD 5.7 billion. Sales to foreigners exceeded the annual threshold of 50,000 for the first time ever in 2021. 

Minimum Value for Property Worth Residence Permit 

As of 5 May 2022, if you and your family need to benefit from this initiative, you must buy a property worth 75.000 USD and over. This amount is for buyers interested in the property located in one of the 30 metropolitan cities in Turkey. You can also benefit when you buy 50.000 USD worth of property in the remaining 51 smaller cities in Turkey. 

30 Metropolitan Cities in Turkey

The 30 cities that are managed by metropolitan municipalities are:

• Adana
• Ankara
• Antalya
• Aydin
• Balikesir
• Bursa
• Denizli
• Diyarbakir
• Erzurum
• Eskisehir
• Gaziantep
• Hatay
• Istanbul
• Izmir
• Kahramanmaras
• Kayseri
• Kocaeli
• Konya
• Malatya
• Manisa
• Mardin
• Mersin
• Mugla
• Ordu
• Sakarya
• Samsun
• Sanliurfa
• Terkirdag
• Trabzon
• Van 

Through this scheme, the foreign national family members can apply for a residence permit in this context if they have shared or joint ownership of the residence. The applicant’s spouse, children under the age of 18, and dependent adult child benefit through this.