Entry to Türkiye

Depending on nationality and bi-national agreements, there is more than one entry option available. These are:

Visa exemption
E-visa
Consular visa

If your nationality requires a consular visa, we recommend you start the visa process two months before your arrival to be on the safe side.

»Even if you are eligible to enter Türkiye with your national ID card, you must enter with a passport because it is a requirement for a residence permit application which you will have to do after your arrival if you are a student, staff, researcher or intern. We advise that your passport duration covers your entire period at Koç University.

For Students

If your nationality is eligible to arrive with a visa exemption or an e-visa as a tourist, we recommend this instead of applying for a consular visa as it will allow you to travel outside Türkiye while waiting on your residence permit.

Students under the age of 18 are strongly advised to arrive with a student consular visa even if they are exempt from obtaining a visa. If not, they must arrive with the documents listed here in order to stay in Türkiye legally.

Upon your arrival, if you will be staying for one semester or longer, you will be applying for a residence permit that will allow you to live in Türkiye legally for the rest of your stay at KU regardless of your visa/visa exemption period. ICO will be providing detailed information on this matter upon arrival.

Steps to Determine Visa Eligibility/Necessity

STEP 1: Visit the official website of the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Find your country in the A-Z list for the visa information.

STEP 2: Take action regarding the information listed below. Depending on the situations given below, we have written the corresponding action you must take.

“Ordinary and official passport holders are exempted from visa for their travels up to 90 days.”	Enter Türkiye with your valid passport. NO visa required.
“Ordinary, Special, and Service passport holders are required to have visa to enter Türkiye. These passport holders with a valid Schengen members or USA, UK, Ireland visa or residence permit may get their single entry e-Visas valid for one month e-Visas via the website evisa.gov.tr, provided that they meet certain conditions.”	If you meet the mentioned requirements, you can simply enter with an e-visa. If you do not meet the given criteria for e-visa, make a pre-visa application appointment and obtain a consular visa.
“Ordinary passport holders are required to have visa to enter Türkiye. They can obtain three-month multiple entry e-Visas via the website evisa.gov.tr.”	Visit evisa.gov.tr and obtain your e-visa, pay online, print it, and travel to Türkiye.

e-Visa

International students and non-students can also enter Türkiye with an e-Visa. An e-Visa is a tourist visa that anyone can use to enter Türkiye and does not require an in-person visa application at a consulate. The e-Visa module also provides information about whether someone is exempt from a tourist visa and if they can enter Türkiye with a valid passport.

Student Consular Visa

You must apply for a student consular visa if this is written on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs website for your nationality:

“Ordinary and official passport holders are required to have visa to enter Türkiye.”

»International students who are under 18 years old are strongly advised to obtain a student visaat a Turkish consulate or embassy in their respective countries regardless of their nationality. If not, they must arrive with the documents listed here in order to stay in Türkiye legally.

The only official website for the Turkish visa application is www.konsolosluk.gov.tr. Please visit this website and begin your visa application process. The process may take up to 2 months, please start the process diligently.

If you are a degree-seeking undergraduate, graduate or post-graduate student, you will need to present your Koç University acceptance letter that contains a “YÖK Acceptance Number/Kabul Numarası” for your student visa application. (Graduate/post-graduate students should request it from their graduate school.)
If you are an exchange student, you should contact us on the ICO Trackit system to receive a Visa Support Letter. In the email you should mention:
- Your full name (as written in your passport)
- Your passport number
- The consulate/embassy you are applying to
- Your visa application number (if applicable)

Please note that the visa application is your responsibility. We do not otherwise communicate with consulates for visa applications. You must constantly track your application and provide accurate and necessary documents. KU cannot do anything if your application is late or denied.

Important Notes

Even though the visa website mentioned states, “Please note that e-visa is only valid when the purpose of travel is tourism or commerce. For other purposes, such as work and study, visas are given by Turkish Embassies or Consulates”, international students admitted to a higher education program are officially eligible for a tourist visa or passport entry if either of these options is available for their country.
Since each incoming international student, faculty, staff, intern, researcher, and visitors are required to apply for a residence permit in Türkiye and must travel with a VALID PASSPORT. The Migration Directorate does not accept any other travel document for the residence permit application.
For students, passports must be valid at least 60 days longer than the duration of the study period.
Those with Turkish citizenship or holding a Blue Card are not required to seek a visa or residence permit to Türkiye. Entry with a valid passport is recommended, yet valid Turkish ID’s are also accepted.

Please note: We have answers for all your visa/residence permit-related questions therefore you do not need to seek this information elsewhere. Feel free to reach out to us by creating a Trackit request through Dean of Students Trackit / ICO Requests with your questions.