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1. Visas British passport holders travelling to Turkey require visas. Visas can be obtained at the port of entry in Turkey or from the Turkish Consulate General in London or Turkish Diplomatic Missions in other countries. Sticker type visas are issued at the port of entry and allow staying in Turkey for up to 90 days. They cost £10. If there is more than one person travelling on the same passport, each individual is liable to pay the visa fee. This type of visa does not permit engagement in paid or unpaid employment. Those who wish to obtain entry visa from the Turkish Consulate in London should apply to the Consulate General. Visa fee is £40 and should be paid by postal order or cash only. A passport size picture should also be submitted during application. It is compulsory to have a minimum of three months validity on your passport from the date of your entry into Turkey. Travel document holders need to apply to the Consulate General in person with his/her travel document with a validity of at least 6 months, a passport size photo, fully filled application form, latest bank statement, a reference letter from his/her employer or school. The fee is £40. All visas for travel document holders are single entry. For more information, please contact Turkish Consulate General in London www.turkconsulate-london.com 2. Residence Residence Permits are obtained AFTER arrival in Turkey. Formal application must be made to the police authorities of the province in which you reside, or to the Aliens department of the Police in Ankara, if no fixed abode in Turkey is intended. HOWEVER, well BEFORE your departure from the UK, you should contact the Turkish Embassy in London for information on requirements for residency and for information about importation of your household goods or car. Please visit www.turkey.org/consularservices/forms/ for further details. A residence permit is an absolute necessity before you can clear any personal goods/car from turkish customs. Therefore an application for a residence permit must be made in Turkey within one month from the date of your arrival to Turkey. On first application, residence permits may be issued for a two-year period, thereafter for a maximum of five years at any one time. A 2 year, permit currently costs 740.000.000 TL plus a booklet fee of 65.000.000 TL, and a five year permit 1.820.000.000 TL, roughly equivalent to £335 and £785 respectively. 3. Employment A Work Permit is required for employment in Turkey. These permits are issued by the Ministry of the Interior in Ankara. We again strongly advise those wishing to take up employment in Turkey to contact, before travelling, the Turkish Embassy in London and/or their prospective employer in Turkey about the procedures for obtaining a Work Permit or visit the Turkish work permit website www.csgb.gov.tr Companies seeking to employ UK nationals in Turkey must first obtain approval from the Turkish Ministry of Labour and Social Security to hire foreign citizen employees. Upon approval from the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, the UK national, employment candidate must next apply for a Turkish work visa. Work visa requirements, instructions and application forms are available through the Embassy of the Republic of Turkey website at: www.turkey.org/consularservices.forms/ 4. Investment Prospective Investors, requiring information about the Manufacturing and Service Sectors may contact: British Trade International, Turkey Trade Unit, Kings Gate House, 66-74 Victoria Street, London, SW1E 6SW Tel: 44 (0) 207 215 5000 email: mick.essex@dti.gsi.gov.uk www.tradepartners.gov.uk Another usefule point of contact is The Turkish Authority responsible for foreign investment in Turkey, the General Directorate of Foreign Investment (GDFI): Hazine Mustesarligi, Yabanci Sermaye Genel Mudurlugu, Inonu Bulvari, 06510 Emek - Ankara, Tel: 90 (312) 212 8915 Fax: 90 (312) 212 8916 email: ybsweb@pm.treasury.gov.tr www.hazine.gov.tr/english/ybsweb/index.htm 5. Money Turkey's currency is the New Turkish Lira (YTL). Many shops and restaurants in the coastal resorts and big cities accept payment in foreign currency. But if you are planning to travel to other parts of the country, it is advisable to take some Turkish Lira. With a credit or debit card you can withdraw local currency from cash machines which are found in convenient locations in cities, towns and resorts. There are also cash machines in the arrivals halls at most airports. Credit cards are widely accepted in hotels, restaurants and shops. Traveller’s cheques and cash can be exchanged for TL at banks and private exchange offices in Turkey. Some useful information about new Turkish Lira
6. Currency Regulations There is no limit on the amount of foreign currency that may be brought into Turkey, but not more than $5,000 worth of Turkish currency may be brought into or taken out of the country. The exchange slips for the conversion of foreign currency into Turkish lira should be kept, since you may be required to show these when reconverting your Turkish lira back into foreign currency, and when taking souvenirs out of the country (to prove that they have been purchased with legally exchanged foreign currency). 7. Custom Regulations ON ENTRY The following items may be brought into the country duty free:
Valuable items and all items with a value of over $ 15,000 must be registered in the owner's passport upon entering Turkey, for control upon exit. Antiques brought into the country must be registered in the owner's passport to avoid difficulties on exit. Sharp instruments (including camping knives) and weapons may not be brought into the country without special permission. The bringing into the country, trade, and consumption of marijuana and all other narcotics is strictly forbidden and subject to heavy punishment. Gifts, not exceeding 500 DM in value and not for trading purposes, may be brought into the country duty free. In addition, gifts not exceeding 500 OM in value may be posted to Turkey duty free, if the date stamped by the sending post office falls one month before, or one month after the following holidays: Seker Bayrami, Kurban Bayrami, Christmas, and New Year's. Cellular Telephones entering the country must be accompanied by a certification form showing ownership. Ownership must be documented in the passport of the owner and will be checked on entry and exit. For more information contact the Ministry of Transportation, General Directorate at Tel: (312) 212 35 72 - 212 60 10, Fax: (312) 221 32 26 or write to Ulastirma Bakanligi Telsiz Gn. Md. Emek - Ankara. ON EXIT For new items of value, the person exporting it needs a proof of purchase; for old items, a certificate from a directorate of a museum is necessary. Exporting antiques from Turkey is forbidden. Valuable personal items can only be taken out of the country providing they have been registered in the owner's passport upon entry, or providing they can show they have been purchased with legally exchanged currency. Minerals may only be exported from the country with a special document obtained from the MTA (General Directorate of Mining Exploration and Research). Etüdler Dairesi 06520, Ankara, Tel: (312) 287 3430 /1622, Fax: (312) 285 42 71 8. Tax Refund Foreigners can receive a Tax Refund for the goods purchased in Turkey. Refunds will be made to travellers who do not reside in Turkey. All goods (including food and drinks) are included in the refunds with the exclusion of services rendered. The minimum amount of purchase that qualifies for refund is 5.000.000 TL. Retailers that qualify for tax refunds must be "authorised for refund." These retailers must display a permit received from their respective tax office. The retailer will make four copies of the receipt for the refund, three of which will be received by the purchaser. If photocopies of the receipt are received the retailer must sign and stamp the copies to validate them. If the purchaser prefers the refund to be made by check, a Tax-free Shopping Check for the amount to be refunded to the customer must be given along with the receipt. For the purchaser to benefit from this exemption he must leave the country within three months with the goods purchased showing them to Turkish customs officials along with the appropriate receipts and/or check. There are four ways to receive refund:
Additional information can be obtained from the Ministry of Finance and Tax Dept. General Directorate, (Maliye Bakanligi, Gelirler Genel Müdürlügü) KDV Subesi 06100, Ulus - Ankara, Tel: (312) 3103880/725 - 728 - 735, Fax: (312) 311 45 10 9. Health Regulations for Pets For those who wish to bring domestic animals into the country the following are required:
If you have an official certificate, you may bring one cat, one bird, one dog and 10 aquarium fish into the country. 10. Postal System Turkish post-offices are easily recognized by their “PTT” and “Turk Telekom” signs. Major post offices are open from 8:00 a.m. till 12:00 p.m., Monday/Saturday, and 9:00 a.m. till 7:00 p.m., Sunday. Small post-offices have the same hours as the government offices. Postal charges vary for different services depending on destination. Post restante letters should be addressed "postrestant" to the central post-office Merkez Postanesi, in the town of your choice. You have to show your identification card to collect your letters. All PTT or Turk Telekom branches have the facilities to exchange money at the current international exchange rates, as well as international postal orders and travellers' cheques. There is also an express postal service (APS) operating to 90 countries for letters, documents and small packages. A wide variety of special stamps are available in all PTT centres for philatelists. To phone from PTT telephone booths, which are extensively found in all areas; telephone cards, and tokens "jeton” in three sizes are used. Local, inter-city and international calls can be made from all PTT offices. Besides these main offices there are also mobile PTT services in the tourist areas. 11. Working Hours
During summer months, the government offices and many other establishments in the Aegean and Mediterranean Regions are closed in the afternoon. These fixed summer hours are determined by the governing bodies of the provinces. 12. Other Practical Information
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