Moving to Turkey in 2026: visas, costs, and the first 90 days

Turkey doesn't have a single expat visa. Instead, most foreign residents land on one of three paths: the general short-term residence permit (the de-facto retirement route), the Digital Nomad Visa, or citizenship by investment. See Turkey: every visa & residency route for the full picture.

Not sure which route matches your situation? The free route finder lets you check your own numbers against Turkey's published bars.

Turkey has no dedicated retirement visa. Retirees and other non-working residents use the short-term residence permit, which is renewed annually. There's no fixed income floor written into law — officials assess whether your means are 'sufficient and regular' on a case-by-case basis.

The working benchmark is regular monthly foreign-currency income deposited into a Turkish bank account — roughly the net minimum wage, published as about 28,075 TRY per month in 2026. A lump-sum balance sitting in an account without monthly inflows is not accepted as proof of regular income. That distinction trips up a lot of applicants.

Permits run 1–2 years and are renewable. Long-term residency opens after 8 years of continuous legal residence; citizenship eligibility arrives after 5. Spending 183 or more days in Turkey in a calendar year triggers Turkish tax residency on worldwide income — worth factoring in early.

Turkey's Digital Nomad Visa, administered through the official GoTurkiye platform, has three hard requirements: foreign-sourced income of at least $3,000 per month, an age between 21 and 55, and a university degree. The degree requirement is unusual compared to similar programs elsewhere — it's mandatory, not optional.

The process starts online with a Digital Nomad Identification Certificate, then moves to a consulate for finalization. The resulting permit is a short-term residence permit, typically valid 1–2 years and renewable. Time on this permit counts toward both the 8-year long-term residency threshold and the 5-year citizenship eligibility window.

The 183-day tax residency rule applies here too. If you're working remotely for a non-Turkish employer and staying most of the year, get tax advice before you arrive.

Turkey's citizenship by investment program is the lowest-priced tier-1 CBI passport currently available. A $400,000 real estate purchase, held for 3 years, grants full Turkish citizenship in roughly 6–12 months. There's no minimum stay, no language test, and no residency period required first.

Alternatives to real estate include a $500,000 bank deposit, fixed capital investment, or government bonds — all with a 3-year hold. Turkey permits dual citizenship, so existing nationality isn't surrendered. One notable downstream benefit: Turkish citizenship opens eligibility for the US E-2 treaty-investor visa.

Turkey sits firmly in the budget tier. A single person can live comfortably on $1,100–1,800 per month all-in, with a one-bedroom rental running $600–1,000 depending on city and neighborhood. Istanbul is the main reference point, and central neighborhoods have seen significant rent increases — budget figures reflect a wider range of locations.

The big caveat: Turkey has experienced very high local inflation, which makes prices a moving target. Foreign income denominated in dollars or euros has generally stretched further as a result, but costs in popular expat areas have climbed fast. For a side-by-side comparison with other destinations, cost of living across countries shows where Turkey sits in context.

Curious how Turkey stacks up against nearby alternatives? The Georgia vs. Turkey comparison and Turkey vs. UAE comparison lay out the trade-offs directly.

Turkey runs a public-private mix, and the standard of care — particularly in major cities — is good, with many hospitals holding JCI accreditation. The country is a significant medical-tourism destination for a reason.

The catch for new residents: non-employed foreigners cannot voluntarily enroll in the state SGK/GSS social-insurance system until they've lived in Turkey continuously for one year. Employees get SGK coverage from the date of hire through their employer, but everyone else is on their own for at least the first 12 months.

Private health insurance during that first year isn't optional — it's a formal requirement for the residence permit itself for residents under 65. Private coverage runs $50–150 per month. Once the one-year threshold passes, voluntary GSS enrollment opens, with premiums running about $180 per month in 2025–26. See how healthcare works for expats by country for a broader comparison.

The Turkey first-90-days playbook goes deeper, but here's the essential sequence.

• Get a tax number (Vergi Kimlik Numarası) first — it's needed for everything else, including bank accounts, notary transactions, utilities, and paying permit fees. Generated instantly online via the Interactive Tax Office (ivd.gib.gov.tr) with just your passport, or same-day at any tax office.
• Apply for your residence permit (İkamet izni) via the e-ikamet portal within your visa-free or visa window. Book the appointment (randevu) early — waits vary significantly by province. The application confirmation keeps your stay legal while it's pending.
• Register your address at the local Nüfus (civil registry office) within 20 working days of first-permit approval.
• Confirm your rental address is not in a closed neighborhood (kapalı mahalle) before signing a lease — the address is verified per application.
• Have private health insurance in place before filing the permit application. The policy must cover the full permit period.
• Open a Turkish bank account once you have the tax number, residence permit, and address proof (utility bill or notarized lease). Wise or Revolut can bridge the gap during the permit-waiting period.
• A foreign driver's license is valid for 6 months from entry. After that, residents convert at the civil registry with a notarized translation and health report — direct exchange applies for many countries, including the US in most cases.

The case for Turkey is real: budget-tier costs, a genuinely spectacular city, multiple legal routes for different income profiles, and a citizenship-by-investment program that's hard to beat on price. The case against is also real: high inflation, tightening residency rules, closed neighborhoods that can invalidate a lease, and a first-year healthcare gap that requires planning.

Whether one of these routes matches your situation is a question the published rules answer in part — but each application is decided by Turkish immigration authorities, not by any checklist. If Turkey makes your shortlist, the Turkey route finder is a practical next step, and the Turkey vs. Malaysia comparison is worth a read if Southeast Asia is also on your radar.