According to LFIP, the PDMM is the responsible authority for receiving and registering applications for international protection.[1]
Applications on the territory
Applications for international protection are made to the “Governorates” “in person”, indicating that applicants are expected to physically approach the PDMM and personally present their request.[2] A lawyer or legal representative may not make applications for international protection. However, a person can apply on behalf of accompanying family members, defined to cover the spouse, minor children and dependent adult children as per Article 3(1)(a) LFIP.[3] Where a person wishes to file an application on behalf of adult family members, the latter written approval needs to be taken.
According to the law, for applicants who are physically unable to approach the PDMM premises to make a request for an international protection request, officials from the PDMM may be directed to the applicant’s location in order to process the application.[4] In the same way, registration interviews with unaccompanied minors and other persons who are unable to report to the designated registration premises in the province may be carried out in the locations where they are.[5] There is no indication that these provisions have been applied in practice so far.
Article 65 LFIP does not impose any time limits on persons for making an application as such, whether on the territory, in detention or at the border. However, Article 65(4) appears to impose on applicants the responsibility of approaching competent authorities “within a reasonable time” as a precondition for being spared from punishment for illegal entry or stay. The assessment of whether an application has been made “within a reasonable time” is to be made on an individual basis.[6]
The LFIP states that applications for international protection shall be registered by the PDMM.[7] Applicants can request and shall be provided interpretation services for the purpose of the registration interview and later the personal interview.[8]
Access to the international protection procedure changed substantially in 2018 when the operation of RSD procedures by UNHCR were ceased. Applications for international protection are now registered solely by the PDMM in the 81 provinces. In practice, however, if the PDMM is approached by an asylum seeker and cannot receive their application, it directs the person to another city so they can register the application there. Applicants are expected to register at the PDMM of the assigned city within 15 days. Failure to appear within 15 days leads to the application being considered as withdrawn (“cancelled”). PMM does not provide assistance with transportation costs but can refer applicants to NGOs such as SGDD-ASAM for assistance. UNHCR has been supporting the registration of persons in need of international protection by working with PMM and its PDMMs.[9]
It was noted that PDMM found some new rejection causes. In the case of an Iranian residing in Türkiye with a valid residence permit who wishes to apply for international protection in October 2022, PDMM argued that the individual was a regular migrant and therefore could not apply for international protection. This was a verbal rejection from Kocaeli and Kastamonu PDMMs. They did not issue a decision but instead referred the Iranian person to another PDMM located in a small city.[10] The trend of not being able to apply for protection in case of residing in Türkiye previously with residence permit continued in 2023.
Article 69 LFIP does not lay down any time limits for the completion of registration by the PDMM, although its Implementing Regulation, the Regulation on Foreigners and International Protection (RFIP), requires applications to be recorded “within the shortest time on the institutional software system” of PMM.[11] The RFIP provides that application authorities shall notify the applicant a date for their registration interview during the application if possible, otherwise at a later stage.[12]
In practice, the takeover of the process by PMM in September 2018 resulted in obstacles to access to the asylum procedure. Issues persisted in 2023 and arbitrariness increased after the takeover of registration of non-Syrians. It is difficult to assess the overall system since there is no standardised application.[13] Accessing the application remains very difficult in 2023[14], the registration system remained the most significant barrier to accessing basic rights and services in 2023. Access to international protection registration became nearly impossible in certain provinces that were identified as closed for new applications and especially for certain groups without any specific vulnerabilities. Single women, people with serious health issues, and families, more often, were able to access the application. However, single men from Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Uzbekistan, faced significant challenges to be able to access application. The main public policy has seemed to be to leave people unregistered to push them to leave Türkiye or decrease the official numbers, except in vulnerable cases.[15]
In the case of a single mother seeking protection and a victim of gender-based violence, a protection order was issued to allow her child to enroll in school, and she was only able to receive international protection after being placed in a shelter and through the efforts of the Ministry of Family and Social Affairs.[16] For instance, Afghan women with Hazara ethnic identity, and Afghan men who served in the military in Afghanistan (if they could prove their claims) could access applications faster, however, there were some cases who held student residence permits wanted to apply for protection after the Taliban took over were not able to access the application[17].
The registration interview serves to compile information and any documents from the applicant to identify identity, flight reasons, and experiences after departure from the country of origin, travel route, mode of arrival in Türkiye, and any previous applications for international protection in another country.[18] The PDMM may carry out a body search and checks on the personal belongings of applicants in order to confirm that all documents have been presented.[19] Where an applicant is unable to present documents to establish their identity, the registration authorities shall rely on an analysis of personal data and information gathered from other research. Where such identification measures fail to provide the relevant information, the applicant’s own statements shall be accepted to be true.[20]
Where there are concerns that an applicant may have a medical condition threatening public health, he or she may be referred to a medical check.[21] Information on any special needs shall also be recorded.[22] Since the termination of UNHCR registration activities in 2018, it is unclear how this is handled by the PDMM. Nevertheless, registration is generally allowed for asylum seekers facing emergencies such as pregnancy or severe illness, who are registered in order to make sure that they get medical assistance.[23]
At the time of applying, the asylum seeker must provide a hand-written, signed statement containing information about the international protection application in a language in which he or she is able to express himself or herself. The statement shall contain specific elements including the reasons for entering Türkiye, as well as any special needs of the applicant.[24] Illiterate applicants are exempt from this requirement. Furthermore, the PDMM shall also obtain any supporting documents that the applicant may have with him or her and fill in a standard International Protection Application Notification Form, which will be delivered to the PMM Headquarters within 24 hours.
At the end of the registration interview, all the information recorded on the screen of the electronic system must be precisely read back to the applicant who will have the opportunity to make corrections.[25] A printed version of the registration form filled in electronically is also handed to the applicant.[26]
The law states that the applicant will receive an International Protection Applicant Identification Card upon completion of registration.[27] The Ministry carries out the renewal and extension of International Protection Applicant Identification Card.[28] As of 24 December 2019, the LFIP provides that this document is also issued to applicants falling under the Accelerated Procedure or the inadmissibility provisions,[29] and the obligation to renew Identification Cards every six months was abolished.[30]
Following this reform, the PDMM no longer issues a Registration Document when directing the asylum seeker to the assigned “satellite city” with a view to registering the international protection application. The only documentation the applicant receives is the International Protection Applicant Identification Card which is valid for six months after having registered the application with the PDMM at the appointed province. This means that asylum seekers are required to travel to the assigned province without being provided documentation to attest to their intention to seek international protection. In practice, people are often apprehended during police controls throughout the country and are thus at risk of being transferred to a Removal Centre[31] (see Detention of Asylum Seekers).
On 30 June 2022, PMM announced that 1,169 districts would be closed to protection seekers registrations as of 1 July 2022 except for newborn registration and family reunifications. In early 2022, the previously unconfirmed ‘satellite city’ policy was publicly confirmed with the announcement of the ‘deconcentration policy.’[32] Neighbourhoods with a 25% refugee density had been completely closed to registration, including Fatih, Esenyurt, Avcılar, Bahçelievler, Başakşehir, Bağcılar, Esenler, Küçükçekmece, Sultangazi and Zeytinburnu in İstanbul. The percentage later decreased to 20% and it is prohibited by PMM for any region or area in Türkiye to have a population of foreign nationals that is more than one-fifth of the total population. This includes both people who have made Türkiye their permanent home and those who are merely visiting the country. These disticts are disclosed to foreign nationals seeking address registrations for temporary protection, international protection, and residence permits, as well as changes to their city of residence if they are foreign nationals with residence permits or are under temporary or international protection, with the exception of newborns and instances of nuclear family reunification. Because of this, no non-Turkish national are able to select any of these 1,169 neighbourhoods in Türkiye as their registered address for official matters, nor will they be able to ask the authorities to change their address to any of these places, in 58 cities (Adana, Adiyaman, Afyon, Ağrı, Aksaray, Amasya, Ankara, Antalya, Bartın, Batman, Bilecik, Bingöl, Bolu, Burdur, Bursa, Çanakkale, Çankırı, Çorum, Diyarbakır, Düzce, Elazığ, Erzincan, Gaziantep, Giresun, Gümüşhane, Hatay, Iğdır, Isparta, İstanbul, İzmir, Kahramanmaraş, Karabük, Kastamonu, Kayseri, Kırklareli, Kırşehir, Kilis, Konya, Kütahya, Malatya, Mardin, Mersin, Muğla, Muş, Nevşehir, Niğde, Osmaniye, Rize, Sakarya, Samsun, Sinop, Sivas, Şanlıurfa, Tokat, Trabzon, Uşak, Yalova, Yozgat).[33] According to the latest notice in 2023, the number of districts remains the same, but the number of cities increased to 63 without any details of which cities are added[34].
The policy aims to transfer refugees from provinces with a high refugee density to areas with a lower density. From a legal perspective, it restricts freedom of both residence and travel, which may not be a proportional response to concerns of public order particularly as those its effects are likely to remain under temporary protection status indefinitely. Transferring people to a city where they do not know anyone may also be unreasonable. It can have particularly devastating effects on vulnerable and marginalised groups such as LGBTIQ+. In addition, some of the regulations limiting fundamental rights and freedoms, especially for Syrian nationals, are foreseen in the Temporary Protection Regulation, not by law.[35]
In 2023, the procedures varied from one city to another[36]. While the PDMM accepts applications, it refers them to satellite cities, considering factors such as the residence of family members. Recently, applicants were not referred to the cities where crossing into the EU could happen[37]. Sometimes, the PDMM in the city where the application was first registered provides a temporary ID with setting a time limit for the applicant to visit the relevant PDMM in the referred city. In such cases, applicants can often apply for protection in the referred city without any significant issues. In Istanbul[38], accessing the application process is challenging, and referrals to other provinces are sometimes done verbally without providing any official document. While there has been slight improvement over the past year, only a few cases with serious vulnerabilities, such as severe health issues or disabilities, were successfully registered in Istanbul in 2023. Some of the PDMMs[39] requires a rental contract for registration, yet undocumented individuals face fines for renting, creating a paradoxical barrier. In Izmir, applications are rarely accepted except for very vulnerable cases, with applicants directed to provinces like Afyon, Uşak, and Manisa. In Edirne and Kırklareli, accessing registration is comparatively easier and faster. In Van, registration is difficult to access, and interview appointments are scheduled far in the future. Similar to other provinces, in Ağrı access to registration was nearly impossible due to the capacity issues, five migration officers were handling approximately one thousand cases. Ağrı Bar Association and PDMM have established effective communication over the past year; however, personal interviews are not conducted promptly making the applıcatıon impossible.[40] Gaziantep is closed for registration, but Adana and Malatya frequently serve as referral cities. Previously, LGBTIQ+ individuals were referred to certain cities, such as Eskişehir, Yalova, Isparta, and Denizli, it is not the case anymore in 2023[41].
In some PDMM offices, there is a misconception that only those who arrive irregularly can apply for international protection[42]. This creates difficulties for individuals who previously held any type of residence permit and now need protection due to changes in their home countries, as well as for those under alternatives to detention.
People in precarious circumstances isolated themselves and did not leave their homes to avoid police and deportation. When they did so, their foreign identification numbers were deactivated, preventing them from accessing services such as healthcare and education. There were also issues when individuals traveled to other provinces without permission from PDMM. People could not afford to live in the province where they were registered, so they moved to larger cities.[43] Unauthorised departure from the province of registration without a valid excuse and travel permıt results in the application for international protection is deemed withdrawn, and in judicial appeals against withdrawal decisions, economic reasons are frequently not regarded as a legitimate excuse.[44]
When authorities in the PDMM believe that a person fled to Türkiye for economic or medical reasons, they typically adopt a negative stance towards them. In addition, PDMM practices constantly change and even lawyers sometimes have trouble accessing the PDMM premises. The director of the Şanlıurfa PDMM was accused of bribery and corruption, according to an investigative journalism report. After the news became visible, the director lost his position and was transferred to Muş PDMM.[45]
The Izmir Bar Association’s Migration and Asylum Commission highlighted various issues and rights violations faced by foreigners and lawyers during and after international protection applications in their report. The report[46] pointed out legal irregularities and inconsistencies across different provinces, including: applications not being registered, lawyers and applicants being made to wait for long hours, lack of suitable waiting areas leading to adverse physical conditions for lawyers and vulnerable applicants, applicants being deprived of basic human rights such as education and healthcare due to not being issued international protection applicant IDs.
In 2023, 19,017 individuals applied for international protection[47], a decrease from the registrations in previous year (33,246 applications) potentially due to the above-mentioned difficulties, earthquakes, and deepened economic crisis.
The EU launched a project in April 2022 to be implemented during three years called ‘Reinforce Effectiveness of National Asylum Procedures in Compliance with International Standards and National Legislation’ in Türkiye under the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA II) to support the asylum-seeking processes.[48] The expected outcomes are to strengthen and maintain the effectiveness of the procedures, to establish quality assurance for an effective and sustainable system in the procedures through the relevant principles and standards developed, to take measures to reduce vulnerability to abuses, including fraud, and to strengthen and maintain the effectiveness of resettlement procedures. The project has been supporting the PMM quality assurance board to ensure uniformity of treatment for applications in 81 cities.[49]
Applications from detention and at the border
Where an application for international protection is presented to law enforcement agencies on the territory or at the border[50], the PDMM shall be notified “at once” and shall process the application.[51] Applications for international protection indicated by persons in detention shall also be notified to the PDMM “at once”.[52] In addition to Removal Centres for pre-removal detention on territory, there is one facility in the transit zone of Ankara Esenboğa Airport, which serves to detain persons intercepted in transit or during an attempt to enter Türkiye (see Place of Detention).
Persons whose international protection application are received whilst in detention are released from the Removal Centre or police station and are issued an Administrative Surveillance Decision Form (İdari Gözetim Kararı Sonlandırma Tebliğ Formu), also known as “T6”.This form requires them to regularly report to a designated PDMM whichmay or may not be the PDMM of their province of residence (see Alternatives to Detention).[53]
Despite the legal safeguards provided by the LFIP to secure access to the asylum procedure, people in Removal Centres continue to encounter some difficulties in having their applications for international protection registered by the PDMM,[54] access to asylum and legal assistance is problematic. In certain centres, there have been testimonies of mandatory signing of return forms, leading to significant rights violations[55]. Asylum seekers lack clear information about the procedures being applied to them while they are in the centres. In Harmandali, document registration numbers are not provided for applications, which makes it very difficult to follow the cases; in Van, applications are registered however the applications of very few applicants with serious health issues were assessed, on the other hand in Edirne, the applications are received and interviews regarding their applications are conducted[56].
Access to the procedure from detention also concerns persons readmitted by Türkiye. Whereas Article 64 RFIP entrusts the Ministry of Interior with the establishment of a separate framework of procedures for persons readmitted by Türkiye pursuant to readmission agreements, there has not been any such instrument regulating the access of readmitted persons to the international protection procedure to date.
In the context of the implementation of the EU-Türkiye statement between 4 April 2016 and 31 January 2020, Türkiye readmitted a total of 2,054 persons from Greece, of whom 738 originated from Pakistan, 373 from Syria, 204 from Algeria, 140 from Afghanistan, 127 from Iraq and 104 from Bangladesh.[57] PMM has established a specific code, “V89” entitled “Greece – return”, but stakeholders have not referred to this being used in practice. Readmission operations were stopped as of 16 March 2020 and Türkiye was still not accepting readmissions as of the end of 2023[58] (See the AIDA Country Report: Greece 2023). As of June 2023, the number of Syrians readmitted by Türkiye is 394.[59]
Reports on the post-return human rights situation of Syrians document serious human rights violations such as arbitrary detention and deportation without access to legal aid and international protection (see also Legal Assistance for Review of Detention).[60]
[1] Türkiye is administratively divided into 81 provinces. The provincial governorate is the highest administrative authority in each province. Therefore, provincial directorates of all government agencies report to the Office of the Governor. The agency responsible for registering all applications for international protection is the PDMM, which technically serves under the authority of the Provincial Governorate.
[2] Article 65(1) LFIP.
[3] Article 65(3) LFIP.
[4] Article 65(1) RFIP.
[5] Article 65(2) RFIP.
[6] Article 65(1) RFIP.
[7] Article 69(1) LFIP.
[8] Article 70(2) LFIP.
[9] UNHCR, ‘TÜRKİYE 2021 Operational Highlights’, 2022, available at: https://bit.ly/3rwWHGT.
[10] Information provided by a stakeholder, April 2023.
[11] Article 70(4) RFIP.
[12] Article 66(2) RFIP.
[13] Fabrizio Foschini, ‘Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea: No good options for Afghans travelling to and from Turkey’, 16 May 2022, available here & Information provided by stakeholders, March – April 2024.
[14] Information provided by stakeholders, March- April 2024.
[15] Information provided by a stakeholder, May 2023 & Information provided by stakeholders, March- April 2024.
[16] Information provided by a stakeholder, May 2023.
[17] Information provided by stakeholders, March- April 2024.
[18] Article 69(2)-(4) LFIP.
[19] Article 69(2) LFIP; Article 69(4) RFIP.
[20] Article 69(3) LFIP; Article 69(3) RFIP.
[21] Article 69(6) LFIP.
[22] Article 70(5) RFIP.
[23] Information provided by a stakeholder, May 2023.
[24] Article 65(5) RFIP.
[25] Article 70(6) RFIP.
[26] Article 70(7) RFIP.
[27] Article 76(1) LFIP, as amended by Article 35 Law No 7148 of 18 October 2018.
[28] Article 76(1) LFIP, as amended by Article 81 Law No 7196 of 24 December 2019.
[29] Article 76(2) LFIP.
[30] Article 76(1) LFIP, as amended by Article 81 Law No 7196 of 24 December 2019.
[31] Information provided by stakeholders, March – April 2024.
[32] Ikamet, Türkiye Closes 781 Neighborhoods to Foreigners, Addresses, May 22, available in English here
[33] PMM, ‘Mahalle Kapatma Duyurusu hk.’, 30 June 2022, available in Turkish at: https://bit.ly/44zWSQk.
[34] PMM, “İstanbul’da 39 İlçenin Yabancıların İkamet İzinlerine Kapatıldığı” İddialarına İlişkin Basın Açıklaması, 16 July 2023, available here
[35] Information provided by a stakeholder, May 2022.
[36] Information provided by stakeholders, March – April 2024.
[37] Information provided by stakeholders, March – April 2024.
[38] Information provided by stakeholders, March – April 2024.
[39] Information provided by stakeholders, March – April 2024.
[40] Information provided by a stakeholder, May 2023.
[41] Information provided by stakeholders, March – April 2024.
[42] Information provided by stakeholders, March – April 2024.
[43] Information provided by various stakeholders, May-June 2023
[44] For further analysis, see; Gamze Ovacık, Turkish Judicial Practices on International Protection, Removal and Administrative Detention in Connection with the Safe Third Country Concept (On İki Levha Publications 2021) 112-120.
[45] Gazete Duvar, ‘Şanlıurfa İl Göç İdaresi’nde neler oluyor?’, 11 July 2022, available in Turkish here.
[46] Uluslararası Koruma Başvurusu Sırasında Yabancıların ve Avukatların Yaşadığı Sorunlar ve Yaşanan Hak İhlalleri İle İlgili Rapor Hazırlandı, available here.
[47] PMM, Statistics, 2023, available here
[48] PMM, 1 April 2022, ‘Ulusal İltica Prosedürlerinin Etkinliğinin Kuvvetlendirilmesine İlişkin Projenin Açılış Toplantısı Gerçekleştirildi’, available in Turkish here & UNHRC, 31.03.2022, Press Release: Reinforce Effectiveness of National Asylum Procedures in Compliance with International Standards and National Legislation
[49] Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ‘Ulusal Sığınma Prosedürlerinin Etkinliğinin Uluslararası Standartlar ve Ulusal Mevzuata Uygun Olarak Kuvvetlendirilmesi ‘, 14 October 2022, available in Turkish here
[50] In Türkiye, while National Police exercises law enforcement duties in residential areas and at border gates, the gendarmerie exercises police duties outside the residential areas.
[51] Article 65(2) LFIP.
[52] Article 65(5) LFIP.
[53] Information provided by a stakeholder, February 2019.
[54] Information provided by multiple stakeholders, May 2023.
[55] Information provided by multiple stakeholders, March – April 2024.
[56] Information provided by multiple stakeholders, March – April 2024.
[57] UNHCR, Returns from Greece to Türkiye, 31 January 2020, available here.
[58] International Rescue Committee, ‘What is the EU-Türkiye deal?,’ 18 March 2021, available here.
[59] Information provided by a stakeholder, June 2023.
[60] Daily News, ‘Greek forces pushback dozens of Syrian refugees into Turkey’, 31 May 2022, available here.