According to the LFIP, foreign nationals who seek legal stay in Türkiye are required to obtain a residence permit. There are 6 types of residence permits available to foreign nationals.[1] Neither the International Protection Status Holder Identification Document issued to international protection status holders nor the Temporary Protection Identification Document issued to beneficiaries of Temporary Protection are identified as “residence permits” as such in Turkish law. The LFIP does not envision the granting of residence permits to either international protection status holders or beneficiaries of temporary protection.
The law instead identifies these categories of foreign nationals to be “exempt from the residence permit requirement” that applies to other categories of foreign nationals.[2] They are instead envisioned to stay in Türkiye on the basis of open-ended international protection status documents respectively. The International Protection Status Holder Identification Document “shall substitute a residence permit” within the meaning of being equivalent to residence permit for the person concerned in the sense of authorising legal stay in Türkiye.[3]
Prior to 24 December 2019, refugees were granted an International Protection Status Holder Identification Document with a validity period of 3 years,[4] conditional refugees and beneficiaries of subsidiary protection were issued a document valid for 1 year.[5] . Currently instead, for those who are granted conditional refugee, subsidiary protection and international protection status, an identity document including foreign identity number is issued.[6] The duration of validity of these documents, along with the rules on format and content, is to be determined by the Ministry of Interior.
Therefore, in summary, it should be concluded that the law stops short of offering clear legislative guidance as to the duration of legal stay envisioned for international protection status holders regardless of what types of international protection the person concerned was granted. International Protection Status Holder Identification Document granted to status holders are to “remain valid until terminated by PMM”. That is, the discretion to terminate an International Protection Status Holder Identification Document and thereby the actual duration of legal stay afforded by an international protection status are left to the discretion of PMM.
By default, in light of the non-refoulement obligation guaranteed by Article 4 LFIP and in the absence of Cessation or Withdrawal procedures, it is unclear whether there can be any other circumstances under which the International Protection Status Holder Identification Document issued to an international protection status holder may be justifiably terminated.
On the other hand, from the vantage point of an international protection beneficiary, since the International Protection Status Holder Identification Document cannot lead to Long-Term Residence in Türkiye and since time spent in Türkiye on the basis of an International Protection Status Holder Identification Document cannot count towards the fulfilment of the 5-year uninterrupted legal residence requirement for Naturalisation, the legislative framework in Türkiye fails to offer international protection status holders any prospect of long term legal integration in Türkiye.
This approach adopted in LFIP and reinforced by the RFIP should be interpreted as an extension of Government of Türkiye’s ongoing “geographical limitation” policy in relation to its obligations under 1951 Refugee Convention.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Istanbul PDMM issued a circular encouraging those whose residence permit applications had been denied to reapply for a temporary permit, with a re-application fee.[7] The possibility to apply remained in 2022.[8]
Stakeholders in Istanbul and Gaziantep reported a considerable increase in the number of humanitarian visa granted to foreigners in 2022.[9] The profile of applicants may differ, but there are Syrians in Istanbul whose residence permits have been revoked and who cannot obtain temporary protection. In the past, the process took a few days, but by 2022, it has been taking 8-9 months. [10]
[1] Article 30(1) LFIP.
[2] Article 20(1)(g) LFIP, citing Article 83; Article 93(2) RFIP.
[3] Article 83(3) LFIP.
[4] Article 83(1) LFIP.
[5] Article 83(2) LFIP.
[6] Article 83 as amended by 85 7196 Law, 24 December 2019.
[7] Information provided by a stakeholder, March 2021.
[8] Information provided by a stakeholder, May 2023.
[9] Information provided by numerous stakeholders, May-June 2023.
[10] Information provided by a stakeholder, May 2023.