Turkish citizenship through property investment
Since 2017, Turkey has run a citizenship-by-investment program for foreign nationals. Real estate is the most commonly chosen route, because the entry threshold is comparatively low and the investment is a tangible, usable asset rather than a passive deposit.
Investment options and thresholds
| Investment type | Minimum amount | Holding period |
|---|---|---|
| Real estate (residential / commercial / land) | USD 400,000 | 3 years |
| Bank deposit | USD 500,000 | 3 years |
| Government bonds | USD 500,000 | 3 years |
| Venture capital / real estate investment fund | USD 500,000 | 3 years |
| Business formation / employment | Minimum 50 jobs created | — |
How the process runs
Purchase Turkish property worth at least USD 400,000 — either a single property or several that together reach the threshold.
An official valuation body (GEDAŞ) issues a report. The price paid, the valuation, and the declared value at the land registry must all stay at or above the USD 400,000 threshold.
The title deed is registered, a residence permit is issued, and the citizenship file is submitted to the Directorate of Migration Management / Ministry of Interior. This typically takes 3–7 months; there is no language test or residency requirement.
The property used for citizenship must be held for at least 3 years — a sales restriction is recorded on the title deed to enforce this.
Once citizenship is approved, the applicant and immediate family (spouse, children under 18) receive Turkish passports.
Points worth knowing before you commit
- Parents and siblings are not covered by the program — only a spouse and children under 18 are included.
- Children over 18 with a documented physical or mental disability are an exception to the age limit.
- Citizens of certain countries may be excluded from the program on security grounds — eligibility should be confirmed before any purchase.
- Some properties — in restricted zones, or already purchased from another foreign owner — may not qualify.
What the numbers actually look like
These are illustrative figures based on publicly available market data, not investment advice. Past performance does not guarantee future results — currency risk, rental variability, and market swings can meaningfully change real returns.
Rental yield
Gross rental yield across Turkey averaged around 7.32% in the first quarter of 2026. Istanbul varies by district, typically 5–9%; Ankara runs closer to 8.10%, Antalya around 6.14%.
Price appreciation
Appreciation looks very different in lira (nominal) terms versus dollar (real, foreign-investor) terms. The lira has lost roughly 21% of its value against the dollar over the past 12 months — which, in practice, gives foreign buyers paying in hard currency a 15–20% "discount" relative to historic prices, meaning the same budget reaches further than it did a few years ago.
For 2026, disinflation scenarios point to roughly 5–10% real annual price growth, while more cautious scenarios expect real growth close to zero. Five-year projections for Istanbul discuss nominal lira-denominated growth of 2–3.5x — but that figure is driven heavily by inflation and currency movement, and the dollar-denominated gain is considerably more modest.
Example: a USD 400,000 Istanbul apartment
For a unit that meets the citizenship threshold, held for the mandatory 3 years, here is roughly what three different scenarios produce — rental income and capital gain shown separately.
| Scenario | 3-yr net rental income | 3-yr capital gain (USD) | Total return (~) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative (currency / inflation pressure persists) | $48,000 (4% net) | $0 – $20,000 (0–5%) | $48,000 – $68,000 (12–17%) |
| Moderate (partial stability) | $60,000 (5% net) | $40,000 – $60,000 (10–15%) | $100,000 – $120,000 (25–30%) |
| Optimistic (lira stability + demand growth) | $72,000 (6% net) | $80,000 – $120,000 (20–30%) | $152,000 – $192,000 (38–48%) |
The road to a U.S. E‑2 investor visa
Some nationalities cannot apply for a U.S. E‑2 visa directly, because their country has no treaty of commerce with the United States. China is a well-known example. Turkish citizenship can open that door — the U.S.–Turkey Treaty of Commerce and Navigation (1990) lets Turkish citizens apply for the E‑2.
Core E-2 requirements
- Hold citizenship of a treaty country (Turkey qualifies).
- Make a substantial investment in a real, operating U.S. business — there's no fixed minimum; it must be enough to run the business successfully.
- At least 50% of the business must be owned by treaty-country nationals.
- The investor must intend to actively develop and direct the business — passive investment does not qualify.
What the E-2 visa provides
- The right to live in the U.S. for the investor, spouse, and children under 21.
- Spouses can obtain unrestricted U.S. work authorization.
- Indefinitely renewable as long as the business continues and conditions are met.
- Non-Turkish spouses or children can hold derivative E‑2 status through the main applicant's Turkish citizenship.
What a Turkish passport adds beyond the U.S. angle
The comparison below uses a Chinese passport as a concrete reference point — a useful benchmark since it's one of the more restrictive major passports for global mobility.
| Criterion | Chinese passport | Turkish passport |
|---|---|---|
| Visa-free / visa-on-arrival access | ~81–85 countries (Henley 2026) | ~138 countries (2026) |
| Henley global ranking | ~59th–62nd | ~51st–54th |
| EU (Schengen) access | Advance visa required, short stay | Multi-entry C-2 visa up to 5 years |
| U.S. tourist visa | Restricted, short validity | B1/B2 visa up to 10 years possible |
| U.S. investor visa (E-2) | No treaty — cannot apply | Possible via the U.S.–Turkey treaty |
| Dual citizenship | Not officially recognized | Freely permitted on the Turkish side |
Other everyday advantages
- Unrestricted right to live, work, and own property in Turkey.
- Citizen-level access to the healthcare system and public services.
- Access to schooling for children under domestic rather than foreign-student terms.
- Practical ease with business formation and banking that comes with EU-adjacent, G20-member citizenship.
- Dual citizenship is permitted on Turkey's side — no requirement to renounce an existing nationality (though the other country's rules on dual citizenship still apply).
- Spouse and children under 18 can be included in the same citizenship application.
Two separate stages, each with its own process
This is a two-stage path: (1) obtain Turkish citizenship through property investment, and (2) separately apply for the U.S. E‑2 investor visa using that citizenship. Each stage has its own application, documentation, and compliance requirements.
Who to bring in before you start
- U.S. immigration attorneySpecialized in E‑2 visa applications and treaty-investor cases — needed once you move to the U.S. side of the process.
- Cross-border financial advisorComfortable with international transfers and foreign-exchange regulation.