Posted from the British Consulate on 22nd December:-
Meeting on Consular Affairs
This note is to let members of the British community know what was covered at the meeting.
Turkish Visa System
In July 2010, the Turkish authorities changed visa procedures for the nationals of 54 countries, including the UK. Under the new procedures, British nationals could only stay in Turkey for a maximum of 90 days within 180 days of first entering. Following discussions between the British Ambassador and the Minister of the Interior, implementation was postponed and British nationals were once again able to enter Turkey on 90 day visas.
At the Ambassador's latest meeting with them, the Turkish MFA confirmed that no firm date has been set for implementation of the 90/180 day visa rules but the suggestion was that this was planned to take place by the end of Spring 2011. We asked to be notified 3 months in advance.
The Turkish visa stamp currently in use states that it is valid for 90 in any 180 days. But it is actually valid for 90 days only, as before. Some visitors are understandably confused, and as a result are overstaying their visas. The Ministry was asked to consider adding an expiry date stamp to reduce confusion and is currently reviewing the visa sticker for all nationalities.
Residence Permit Fees for UK Nationals
The Ambassador made the point that many British nationals living in Turkey are retired and have a limited income. We understood from Local Authorities that they nevertheless were contributing greatly to local economies as well as to community life. The increasing cost of Turkish residence permits in recent years was causing difficulty to some of our citizens, and it was difficult to budget for the unpredictable costs of the increases. The Ambassador suggested that the current fees should be reduced, and that it might be possible to consider some form of longer-term residency permit for those who had held permits without causing problems for e.g. 5 years. The Ministry agreed to consider these suggestions, and also agreed when the Ambassador asked that residence permit fees should be frozen at the current level until a decision on the future had been made.
We also conveyed the concern of UK residents in Didim that they had no local Foreigners Office. The Ministry said it would consider whether it was possible to open an office in Didim. Any decision would have to take into consideration the number of foreign residents in the community.
Healthcare
The Ambassador said that we were aware that the Universal Healthcare Scheme had caused some concerns amongst the British resident community. Some had already joined the scheme and were delighted with the healthcare cover that it offered. Others did not wish to, or could not afford to, take on the extra financial burden of contributing to the scheme, or considered that they were covered by existing insurance policies. What was the position?
The Ministry for Social Insurance representatives said that British nationals living in Turkey on a residence permit for over 1 year must contribute to the scheme. We replied that this was contrary to what we had been told by the Ministry of Health. The Turkish Ministry agreed to clarify and confirm the position.
The two sides also agreed that we would explore healthcare options for British nationals resident in Turkey on the basis of reciprocity, considering what is available to Turkish nationals legally resident in the UK.
Property
The Ambassador raised the difficulties that some British nationals have had when buying property in Turkey. We were unable to intervene in individual cases, since they had to be resolved through the Turkish legal system. The Turkish Embassy's UK website and the UK Embassy's website in Turkey already carried advice and warnings. We wanted to work with the Turkish authorities to see what we could do together to improve the situation. It was agreed that we should do this.
Conclusion
We are very grateful for the help we have had from members of the community in identifying problems and suggesting possible solutions. It is clear that the Turkish authorities value the contribution British residents and visitors make to the economy and Turkish national life, and want to tackle problems if they can. We will be following up on the points covered at this meeting.
We wish all British residents in Turkey a Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year for 2011.
