ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF TURKISH CITIZENSHIP BY INVESTMENT

As a RCBI “Residency / Citizenship by Investment” advisor I often help investors find good properties while they are exploring the Dual Citizenship or the Residency via investment, not everyone is ok to go through contribution/donation option, especially when it comes for Portugal, Greece and or Türkiye.

In this article, I'd like to give a little overview of the Citizenship by investment in Türkiy, a program that is undermined by most of the high net-worth individual investors and falsely promoted by many of the so called RCBI experts. Even though the investment options to qualify for Turkish citizenship start at USD 400,000 it is still beneficial for families consisted of four and above, if you're future grandchildren don't have their children in these islands, then the citizenship just essentially cancels itself for the next generation. When you buy a Turkish citizen. It's a generational whether your children or their children are born in Türkiy or not.

Obtaining citizenship in Türkiye is a very simple, and straight forward process, where one can opt it by choosing and investing in one of the seven approved investment options such as;

1. REAL ESTATE

The purchase of real estate property with a minimum value of USD 400,000 or equivalent.

2. FIXED CAPITAL INVESTMENT

Making a minimum fixed capital investment of USD 500,000 or equivalent foreign currency, as attested by the Ministry of Industry & Technology.

3. JOB CREATION

Creating jobs for at least 50 people, as attested by the Ministry of Labor and Social Security.

4. BANK DEPOSIT

Depositing a minimum of USD 500,000 or equivalent foreign currency in banks operating in Türkiye.

5. GOVERNMENT BONDS

Depositing a minimum of USD 500,000 or equivalent foreign currency or Turkish lira into government bonds.

6. VENTURE CAPITAL INVESTMENT FUND SHARE

Depositing a minimum of USD 500,000 or equivalent foreign currency or Turkish lira into real estate investment fund share or venture capital investment fund share.

7. PRIVATE PENSION SYSTEM

Depositing a minimum of USD 500,000 or equivalent foreign currency or Turkish lira into a private pension system for a minimum holding period of three years.

Out of the above, four are considered to be most opted options, such as the Real-estate option, where one can purchase a property (or multiple properties) of a minimum value starting at USD 400,000 for some the amount may seem a bit a lot (compared to earlier that was USD 250,000) but in Türkiye and especially in ?stanbul you can find a very good property that can generate a handsome return on your investment which by the way is can be a good passive income during the holding period of three years, if you see the historical statistics real-estate market in Türkiye is on an upward trend and is not going to stop most likely anytime soon. Second most opted option since the rise on minimum investment value on real-estate is a bank deposit option where you as an investor/applicant has to put USD 500,000 into the Turkish bank and do not touch it for three upcoming years (non-interest or low interest bearing), on third it will be choosing a job creation by providing 50 permanent jobs for Turkish citizens, for many industrialist or entrepreneurs it may sound a best option but keep in mind that there are additional cost involved such as the tax (corporate or on personal income generated in Türkiye) that you need to pay, social security, the health insurance, and much more.

WHO CAN OBTAIN TURKISH CITIZENSHIP

Principle applicant over 18 years of age, with no criminal record or prosecution, who can prove the source of funds are earned through legitimate source, who is in good health, from any nationality around the world may apply (I got clients from China, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Palestine, Russia, and many more who look at Turkish citizenship as a perfect plan B for them).

Türkiye does not explicitly restrict citizens of any nationality. However, as per current geopolitical situation citizens of Armenia, Cuba, Nigeria, and North Korea cannot apply for Turkish Citizenship by Investment program, (Syrians may not be qualified for property investments).

ADVANTEGS OF TURKISH CITIZENSHIP.

- The applicant (and or their dependent family members) does not need travel to Türkiye to complete the citizenship process, and this can be done remotely by a special POA “power of attorney” obtained by the Turkish embassy / consulate in the country of your current citizenship / residence.

- There is no residency requirement.

- Visa-free access to more than 110 countries, including Singapore, Japan, Qatar, Thailand, South America, South Korea, Iraq, Iran, Syria and others, which may not be available with all the Caribbean passports.

- Turkish people are very welcoming, and Türkiye is a wonderful place to live with its historical and heritage sites, to wonderful seaside.

- Türkiye provides pretty good private healthcare.

- Türkiye allows Dual Citizenship.

- Whole process from signing up with until you receive your residence card to citizenship and passports can be completed in almost four months, and you can obtain your residence card and passports from any of the Turkish embassy / consulate in the country of your current citizenship / residence.

- Türkiye is A 19th largest economy in the world and is one of the most important players in the development of the region especially across Central Asia. It has great positioning for logistics.

- Turkish citizens are eligible for C2 Shangan non visa valid for five years, this visa permits you to stay in the Schengen area for up to at 90 days with a 180 days’ time frame.

- Turkish citizenship offers entrepreneurial advantages that opens up in various avenues of for business owners and investors which allows them to operate any business inside the country, Türkiy hosts 18 free trade zones designed to stimulate export oriented investment and production. Investors who establish their companies within these zones enjoy benefits such as tax waivers and other incentives. For instance, no property taxes levied on buildings. The land within these free zones.

- Türkiye also have double taxation agreements with 82 countries, including Pakistan, India and China, and this means if you're a citizen of one of these countries and also a Turkish citizen, you won't be obligated to pay taxes to both countries.

- The cost of living in Turkey is relatively low compared to many European countries, and it's the most economical country (on average of one can live a comfortable life in Türkiy for USD 1,000 to $1,500 per month).

DISADVANTEGS OF TURKISH CITIZENSHIP.

- Dependent parents, siblings, and children age 18 years and above cannot not be part of your application (even if they are fully financially dependent on you). However, the investor may purchase another property at USD 400,000 or select one of the seven investment options and become a sponsor for their dependent children of age 18 and or above.

- Military services, anyone who holds a Turkish passport is obligated to the military service. However, there are ways to avoid it by proving you don’t live in Türkiye.

- Turkish passport holders can not travel to Europe / Schengen zone, or the UK visa free (however one can visit Singapore, Japan, Qatar, Thailand, South America, South Korea, Iraq, Iran, Syria and others, which may not be available with all the Caribbean passports).

- US citizens who want to renounce their US citizenship and consider the E2 treaty as citizens of Türkiye now have to prove that their domicile in Türkiye for at least three years since December 2022, (Grenada, Türkiye, and Montenegro are three of the countries among the E2 treaty countries that provide Citizenship by investment, to access the complete list of treaty countries you may visit the official website by clicking the link https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/visa-information-resources/fees/treaty.html).

- Turkish lira is unpredictable and unstable.

- Embassies and consulates all over the world, even very remote places have Turkish diplomatic representation.

CONCLUSION

Citizenship of Türkiye is pretty much as strong as European citizenship minus the travel mobility; however, it does offer visa free travel to many destinations which may not be available with all the Caribbean passports.

Feel free and reach out to the author or one of our expert advisors should you wish to know more about Turkish citizenship by investment, or alternative RCBI ‘Residency / Citizenship by Investment’ programs such as from Caribbean, Canada, Greece, Spain, Malta, UAE and other.