WAYS OF OBTAINING A RESIDENCE PERMIT IN TURKEY FOR UKRAINIANS DURING MILITARY STATE

According to various estimates, Turkey is among the TOP-10 countries where Ukrainian refugees feel comfortable. Indeed, long before the full-scale war, Ukrainians often went to work in Turkey, working there in the tourism and hotel and restaurant industries. So now, when a full-scale war has come to our country, it is quite natural that many Ukrainians have decided to seek protection and a peaceful life in Turkey.

On the one hand, this is positive in a psychological sense, because the residents there are known for their hospitality and friendly attitude towards Ukrainians. On the other hand, Turkey is not a member of the EU, so the temporary protection status common in Europe does not apply there. Therefore, you need to focus on the local legislation and its possibilities.

What are the options for living in Turkey?

The most common reasons for this are:

• tourist residence permit;
• humanitarian residence permit;
• international protection status.

Let's consider each of these options in more detail.

Tourist card

Such a certificate was quite common even in pre-war times. It is worth noting that under the visa-free regime, citizens of Ukraine can stay in Turkey for up to 90 days. Then you can get a tourist residence permit, which will be valid for 2 years. Let's consider what can be done with such a certificate. So, it gives an opportunity:

• live and travel in Turkey;
• to be treated in local medical facilities, provided additional insurance is purchased;
• buy a car and even get a driver's license;
• purchase real estate on the terms of a mortgage;
• conduct business activities.

However, such a certificate does not provide for the possibility of employment. Such a permit should be obtained separately, and for this your future employer must submit your documents to the relevant relevant ministry.

In order to obtain such a certificate, you need to prepare a whole list of documents - starting with a valid biometric passport and ending with insurance and a questionnaire filled out on the website of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

A tourist permit allows you to freely travel to and from Turkey during the period of validity of this document. It can suit many people who want to stay in the country for more than 90 days. This is a good option for those who wish to travel without hindrance and have sufficient savings and own income that is not dependent on further employment in Turkey. For example, it may be about remote work. In other cases, when you have a request for employment or do not have the funds to complete all the necessary documents, you should take care of other options for living in Turkey.

Humanitarian certificate

To a certain extent, such a permit can be called similar to a tourist permit, but the terms are different. It is not issued for 2 years, but for one year. Since it was already mentioned above that a lot of documents are required to issue a tourist permit, a humanitarian permit becomes a compromise option, since its issuance is more loyal.

Let's compare these certificates in the context of a common situation. Imagine a mother who wants to leave Ukraine with her child, but does not have the father's consent. One option is to seek such permission through the court, which can take a long time. Another option is to issue a humanitarian card, for which this permission is not required.

Another common situation is when a person does not have biometric documents, but wants to go to Turkey, having the scope of rights there, close to that provided by a tourist card. A humanitarian card is also suitable here.

International protection

This option is also available. In simple terms, it is about refugee status. In authentic terminology, this sounds like "secondary protection". Ukrainians can get such a status in Turkey for one year. 6 months after submitting the documents, you will be able to get a job without needing an additional permit.

A big plus of international protection is free registration, free insurance, help with housing, the opportunity to open a bank account, the opportunity for a child to receive an education in a Turkish school. Are there any downsides to this status? Yes, they are too. In particular, this is limited movement around the country (you will live within one province) and restrictions on departure. Returning to Ukraine, you will lose this status.

The company "Prykhodko and partners" is a team of specialists who will help you deal with issues of migration law and provide high-quality support for requests related to departure to Turkey.