Applying for a Turquoise Card is not like applying for a work permit. There is no employer to sponsor the application, no fixed threshold to meet, and no checklist that guarantees an outcome. What there is instead is a points-based assessment against criteria that are republished twice a year, and a three-year period afterwards during which the card can be lost. This article sets out the process end to end.
Before applying: assess candidacy honestly
The first task is not preparing documents but deciding whether the application is viable. Assessment is against criteria published by the Directorate General of International Labour Force, reviewed in six-month periods, covering matters such as education, professional experience, contribution to science and technology, and the effect of the applicant's activity or investment on the national economy and employment.
An honest assessment asks: is this profile unusual, and is it documented? An investor with a business employing forty people, five years of tax and social security records and audited accounts has a case. An investor with a recently formed company and a plan does not yet.
Because the criteria are republished, the version current at the time of application governs. Any specific scoring threshold quoted in an article — including any that may appear in older guidance — should be verified rather than relied upon.
The application itself
Applications are made electronically through the Ministry of Labour and Social Security's system. In outline:
- the applicant, or a representative acting under a power of attorney, creates the application and enters the required information;
- supporting documents are uploaded, with foreign documents apostilled and translated by a sworn translator;
- the file is assessed against the published criteria;
- additional documents may be requested, and the response time to such requests matters;
- a decision is issued.
Where the applicant is in Türkiye on a valid residence permit, the application can be made from within the country. Where they are abroad, an application may be routed through a Turkish consulate. The details of the route should be confirmed for the applicant's circumstances rather than assumed.
Evidence, by category
Investors. Company registration documents; capital and its payment; audited financial statements; tax records; social security records showing employment numbers over time; export figures where applicable; evidence of technology or know-how brought into Türkiye; contracts and customer base. The theme is continuity: figures across years carry more weight than a snapshot.
Scientists and researchers. Qualifications with apostille; publication list with citation metrics; positions held; grants; patents; peer recognition; invitations and collaborations; evidence of the work's international standing.
Culture, art and sport. Competition results; national team selection; exhibitions and their venues; reviews in recognised publications; prizes; contracts with established institutions; evidence of promoting Türkiye internationally where relevant.
Highly qualified professionals. Qualifications; employment history with specifics of responsibility; salary as evidence of standing; specialist skills evidenced by certification; publications or professional recognition.
Across every category, the distinction that matters is between assertion and evidence. "Leading expert" is an assertion. A named position at a named institution, evidenced by an apostilled document, is not.
The three-year transition period
A granted card carries a three-year transition period during which compliance with the conditions of grant, and with any undertakings given, is monitored by an expert assigned by the Directorate General.
In practice this means:
- the activity on which the card was granted should continue — the business operating, the research continuing, the professional practice maintained;
- where employment figures formed part of the case, they should be maintained and documented;
- tax and social security compliance should be clean throughout;
- records should be kept as the period runs, not assembled at its end.
Before the transition period expires, an application is made for the card to become unconditional. Failing to apply, or applying with an activity that has lapsed, puts the card at risk.
Family members
The holder's spouse and dependent children are granted a document functioning as a residence permit, obtained on the strength of the card. Family civil status documents must be apostilled and translated, and — as with every application involving families — that legalisation is usually the slowest element.
Where the spouse intends to work, that requires the applicable permission in their own right; the family document provides residence rather than work authorisation.
If the application is refused
A refusal is an administrative act, challengeable by an annulment action before the administrative court within sixty days of notification.
Whether litigation is the right response depends on the reason. Where the refusal reflects an assessment that the profile does not meet the criteria, a court is unlikely to substitute its own view of merit — and the better course is often to strengthen the profile and reapply in a later period, particularly where the criteria have been republished in the meantime. Where the refusal rests on a factual error or a failure to consider evidence properly submitted, that is a different case and a stronger one.
Alternatives worth considering first
For many applicants the Turquoise Card is not the most efficient route, and saying so early saves months:
- Employer-sponsored work permit. Faster, criteria-based, and adequate for most qualified professionals.
- Citizenship by investment. For an investor with capital, threshold-based and largely predictable — a passport rather than a card.
- Long-term residence permit. After eight years of continuous residence, indefinite and without a language requirement.
- Ordinary naturalisation. After five years of continuous residence, with a language requirement.
The card earns its place where the applicant's contribution is genuinely exceptional and where the absence of an employer sponsor matters — an independent researcher, an artist, an investor who does not want to be tied to a single company.
Frequently asked questions
Is there an investment threshold? No fixed figure. Assessment is of profile and contribution.
Can I apply from abroad? Routes exist through consulates; confirm the position for your circumstances.
Can a lawyer apply on my behalf? Yes, under a power of attorney with appropriate authority.
How long does assessment take? Variable, and heavily dependent on documentation completeness.
What happens if my business declines during the transition? The card is at risk. Take advice before the position deteriorates rather than after.
Does the card lead to citizenship? Not directly. Naturalisation has its own conditions.
Can I reapply after a refusal? Yes, and where the profile has strengthened and the criteria have been republished, that is often better than litigating.
Preparing properly
Turquoise Card applications reward preparation over persistence. A file assembled over months, with apostilled evidence of a documented profile, has a real prospect. A file assembled in a fortnight from what happened to be available does not, and a refusal makes the next attempt harder.
Dural Hukuk assesses candidacy against the current criteria, assembles and legalises the supporting evidence, prepares the application, and advises on the transition period obligations that follow a grant. Call +90 535 260 74 54 or use the contact form on this site.
This article is general information on Turkish law as at August 2026 and is not legal advice. Criteria are revised in six-month periods; verify the current version before applying.