Nationalities prohibited from property ownership in Turkey

The Turkish Parliament issued a decision in mid-2012 allowing citizens of 183 foreign nationalities from around the world to own various types of Turkish properties.

thus cancelling the principle of reciprocity. At the same time, certain foreign nationalities were exempted from this permission for various reasons.

The prohibited nationalities from property ownership in Turkey are:

1. Syrian nationality
2. Armenian nationality
3. Greek Cypriot nationality
4. Cuban nationality
5. North Korean nationality

Please note that these restrictions were in place as of my last knowledge update in September 2021, and regulations may have changed since then.

Reasons for preventing Syrians from owning property in Turkey:

• Syrians are prohibited from owning property in Turkey for political reasons that began with the 1939 referendum and the inclusion of the Syrian Iskenderun.
• Sanjak into Turkish territory (Hatay Province today) after it was separated from French mandate rule in Syria at the time.
• The mandate government in Syria then confiscated Turkish rights in Syria, including real estate and other properties.
• In return, the Turkish government has restricted Syrians from owning Turkish properties, and this policy remains in effect to this day.
• especially following the tensions between Ankara and Damascus at the beginning of the Syrian war in 2011, which continue to this day.

Reasons for preventing Armenians from owning property in Turkey:

• There are political disputes between Turkey and Armenia dating back to World War I, and these disputes persist to this day without a real resolution or initiative for a genuine solution.
• This has led Turkish authorities to continue preventing citizens of Armenia from owning property in Turkey.

Reasons for preventing Greek Cypriots from owning property in Turkey:

• The essence of the dispute between Turkey and the Republic of Cyprus revolves around the rights of Turkish Cypriots.
• Turkey recognizes their state, “Northern Cyprus,” or what is known as “Turkish Cyprus.” The origins of the disputes can be traced back to 1925
• but the conflict escalated significantly in 1974 when the Turkish army entered northern Cyprus to protect the rights of Turkish Cypriots.
• Since that time, the crisis has continued between the two sides.

Reasons for prohibiting Cubans from owning property in Turkey:

• Turkey adheres to international sanctions imposed on Cuba due to its policies deemed contrary to the principles of the United Nations.
• as viewed by Western societies and American policymakers. Among these sanctions is the deprivation of Cuban citizens from property ownership.
• For this reason, Turkey prohibits Cubans from owning property within its borders.

Reasons for prohibiting North Koreans from owning property in Turkey:

• North Korea is a nuclear-armed state with unique laws and customs that diverge significantly from international norms.
• This has led major world powers to impose sanctions on North Korea, including restrictions on property ownership in foreign countries.
• Turkey complies with the enforcement of these sanctions on its territory, which includes prohibiting North Koreans from owning property in Turkey.

Cases that allow these nationalities to own property in Turkey:

Individuals of nationalities prohibited from property ownership in Turkey can legally pursue one of two options to enjoy full property rights:

1. Obtaining Turkish citizenship through any means, where the foreign nationality is disregarded in government transactions, and they are treated as Turkish citizens.
2. Establishing a company, purchasing property, and registering it under the company’s name (for business purposes).
3. It’s important to note that this doesn’t automatically grant the property owner Turkish citizenship since, for the Turkish state, the owner is the company itself.
4. not an individual eligible for Turkish citizenship.

For nationalities not mentioned, citizens of various Arab, Western, Asian, African, and American nationalities have the right to own property in Turkey.

provided they meet the conditions and laws outlined for foreign property ownership in Turkey.