Russians have encountered problems when obtaining or extending residence permits in Turkey. 90% of applicants are rejected. The situation is massive, writes The Moscow Times.
“Practically in all regions, the percentage of refusals in residence permits began to rise sharply, and the extension of residence became the most painful issue for the majority of Russians who moved to Turkey,” the publication notes.
Local administrations require many more documents to renew a residence permit, for example, statements from Turkish banks with monthly receipts in the account. At the same time, the income for a family of three must be at least $2,000 per month. Previously, in order to obtain a tourist residence permit, it was enough to show a housing rental agreement and a local insurance policy.
As a Turkish visa consultant told journalists, now the problem has become massive and is observed in all major cities of Turkey, although each city may have its own requirements for documents. Currently, many Russians are trying to get around the problem by issuing a different type of residence permit instead of a tourist permit, for example, through the purchase of real estate.
However, such options are not available to everyone. Many Russians who live permanently in Turkey complain about being forced to return to Russia or the need to move to other countries.
“Last year, Russians became the largest buyers of real estate in Turkey among foreigners, occupying a quarter of this market. They purchased more than 16,000 properties in Turkey – three times more than the year before. The number of residence permits issued to Russians amounted to 153 thousand, which is also a record among all foreign citizens in Turkey,” the publication writes.
The Saeima in the final reading approved amendments to the Immigration Law, which tighten the conditions for extending residence permits for Russian citizens, as well as introducing a de facto ban on issuing visas to Russian citizens in connection with work in Latvia or staying in Latvia while working remotely.
