Major amendment regarding Turkish Citizenship by Investment

The Circular No. 2019/5 amendment of the Turkish Citizenship Law’s Implementation Regulation has brought significant changes to the implementation of the law, effective February, 1st, 2023. The following changes have been made:

• CHANGES REGARDING THE PRELIMINARY SALES AGREEMENT

 It is now mandated that all transactions based on the preliminary sales agreement for the sale of real estate must be made with a single contract. This means that if a preliminary sales agreement is signed for multiple properties, citizenship cannot be applied for even if the total value exceeds $400,000.

Real estate purchased under a preliminary sales agreement cannot be combined with another property to meet the $400,000 threshold.

• CHANGES REGARDING SHARED PROPERTIES

 Joint ownership of properties will not qualify for citizenship application. For example, if two foreign individuals jointly own a property worth $900,000, they will not be able to apply for citizenship. Only one foreign individual can be the sole owner of a property and only that person can apply for citizenship.

• CHANGES REGARDING FOREIGN CURRENCY PURCHASE DOCUMENTS

The preliminary sales agreement now requires a foreign currency purchase document to be issued for the minimum amount paid on or before the contract date.

Properties subject to sale or a preliminary sales agreement should not have been transferred to a Turkish citizen or company by a foreign individual in the last three years.

Our team is dedicated to providing our clients with result-oriented and effective solutions. Our mission is to serve our clients with quality legal service. You can contact our Turkish Citizenship by Investment Lawyers to start your process.