Turkey Retirement Visa 2026: Short-Term Residence Permit

This is residence by financial means. Nothing is invested, donated or deposited: you show that you can cover your living costs in Turkey, and the money stays yours. Turkey has no residence permit for retirees as such, so this page covers the permit retirees use in practice and the separate tax regime open to qualifying new residents.

What is Turkey's short-term residence permit for tourism purposes?

The short-term residence permit (kısa dönem ikamet izni) is one of the permits listed in article 30 of Law 6458 on Foreigners and International Protection (Official Gazette no. 28615, 11 April 2013; read 11 October 2026). Article 31(1)(e) grants it for tourism purposes, and article 28(10) of the Regulation on the Implementation of Law 6458 (Official Gazette no. 29656, 17 March 2016; read 11 October 2026) treats any short-term request outside the listed purposes as a tourism-purpose request. The law's other permits (family, student, long-term, humanitarian and trafficking-victim) do not cover retirees, so retirees apply on this ground.

The Presidency of Migration Management (Göç İdaresi Başkanlığı, formerly the Directorate General of Migration Management, DGMM) decides the application, which can be made in Turkey or from abroad. The permit gives residence, not nationality; for the difference, see residency versus citizenship. The separate permit for owners of real estate (article 31, amended by Law 7533 of 21 November 2024) is a different route and is not covered here.

Who qualifies, and how much income do you need?

Turkey's test is a means test, not a pension threshold: under article 22(6) of the Regulation, you must be able to cover living costs equal to one net monthly minimum wage for each month you intend to stay.

• TRY 28,075.50 for each month of stay: the 2026 net monthly minimum wage announced by the Ministry of Labour (read 11 October 2026). The amount follows the minimum wage, so it changes every January.
• Each person counts: everyone in the application, you included, needs means of at least one third of the net minimum wage, and the total may never be below one full net minimum wage (article 22(6)(b)). No separate amount per dependant is stated.
• Any regular source counts: a pension, salary, rental income, deposit interest, savings, an inheritance or business profit; third-party undertakings alone are not enough.
• Declaration first: DGMM asks for documents only if your declaration is not convincing.
• Also required: housing that meets general health and safety standards, an address in Turkey, valid health insurance and, if requested, a criminal record certificate.

No investment is required, and no minimum age appears in our records. The route does not fit retirees who want to spend several months a year abroad or who want permanent residence from the start.

Is Turkey's retirement visa a golden retirement visa?

Not fully: it is rated Partial, 61 out of 100, with confidence grade B, in the Mirabello Golden Retirement Index, scored on 11 October 2026 under methodology 1.1. Partial means the route meets most of the standard, with one gap. Here the gap is presence: the Index finds the presence rule too strict, because the permit is refused, cancelled or not extended after more than 120 days abroad in a year, an absence limit of under six months. It earns full marks on financial requirements, with no capital locked up, and on processing, with an official decision time. Its renewal category is recorded as unknown, because the law and the Regulation give different validity periods for each permit. The standard is Mirabello's own: Golden means at least 70 out of 100, confidence grade A or B and no fail on tax of foreign income, physical presence or renewal, and every route is scored from official sources.

Do you have to live in Turkey?

Yes, for most of the year. No minimum stay is stated, but under articles 29(1)(c) and 21(11) of the Regulation a short-term permit is refused, cancelled or not extended if you spent more than 120 days in total abroad in the last year, unless the absence was for compulsory public service, official duty, education or health reasons. That implies about 245 days a year in Turkey. The 120 days are cumulative, not one continuous absence, so short trips add up.

Tax residence is a separate test: domicile in Turkey, or living there continuously for more than six months in a calendar year, which a holder who keeps within the absence rule will often meet too. For a base without living there most of the year, see our guide to residency without relocating.

Does Turkey tax a foreign pension?

Turkey taxes its residents on worldwide income: once you are tax-resident, a foreign pension and foreign investment income are taxed at ordinary progressive rates. Non-residents are taxed on Turkish-source income only.

A separate regime can change that for new residents. Law 7582 (Official Gazette no. 33270, 4 June 2026, read 11 October 2026) added article mükerrer 20/D to Income Tax Law 193, and Income Tax General Communique Serial No. 333 (Official Gazette no. 33300, 4 July 2026, read 11 October 2026) sets the procedure. The article gives a 0% rate for 20 years on income and gains earned outside Turkey to individuals who:

• become Turkish residents from 1 January 2026;
• had no Turkish residence and no Turkish tax liability in the three calendar years before;
• are resident on the date they apply; and
• apply to the tax office for the exemption certificate by the end of the calendar year in which they became resident, or by the end of February if they became resident in November or December.

The exemption attaches to Turkish tax residence, not to the permit; Turkish-source income stays taxable, foreign tax is not creditable and related expenses are not deductible. Pensions are not named in the statute, in Communique 333 or in the Revenue Administration (GİB) guide (read 11 October 2026). The text covers all income and gains (kazanç ve irat) earned outside Turkey, but whether a foreign pension is exempt is not yet officially confirmed, and we would seek GİB confirmation before relying on it.

Tax follows tax residence, not the permit: these rules apply once you are tax-resident in Turkey. The country that pays your pension may still tax it under the relevant double tax treaty. This is general information, not tax advice. See also our guide to countries that don't tax foreign pensions.

How long does it take, what does it cost, and what documents do you need?

The Regulation sets an official maximum of 90 days to decide, counted from delivery of complete documents (article 22(2)), and the application receipt gives you 90 days of lawful stay while you wait (DGMM guidance). No official fee and no real-world processing time were read, so both are not yet officially confirmed; we confirm them for your case. DGMM's guidance on applications and documents (read 11 October 2026) lists what may be asked for:

• Your declaration of means and, on request, proof of it: a pension card and pension allocation papers, 6 months of bank movements and card statements, a bank certificate of the amount held for your stay, or a certificate of income.
• Proof of housing and an address in Turkey.
• Valid health insurance and, if requested, a criminal record certificate.

Accepted insurance policies, and how the insurance rule applies to older applicants, are confirmed per case. Work rights were not assessed in our records.

Renewal, permanent residence and citizenship

The permit is extended on request: you can apply from 60 days before it expires, and before it lapses (Regulation, article 21(5)), and no ceiling on the number of renewals was found. Its length is not settled: Law 6458, article 31(2), allows up to two years at a time, while articles 27 and 28 of the Regulation cap each issue at one year, and the period DGMM issues to tourism-purpose applicants is not yet officially confirmed.

A long-term residence permit, Turkey's equivalent of permanent residence, exists under Law 6458, article 42, and Regulation, article 40. Its conditions have not yet been researched for this route, so how a retiree on short-term permits reaches it is not yet officially confirmed.

Citizenship was not researched for this route and no naturalisation period is recorded. Turkey's citizenship by investment is a separate programme with its own rules, described on our Turkey citizenship by investment page.

What the market gets wrong

• Some guides describe a dedicated Turkish retirement visa. Law 6458 has no retiree or pensioner category; retirees use the tourism-purpose short-term permit.
• Some guides say the tax exemption comes with the permit. Mükerrer 20/D attaches to Turkish tax residence and the three-year rule, not to any permit.
• Some guides say foreigners living in Turkey pay no tax on foreign income. Residents are taxed on worldwide income; only qualifying new residents with the certificate are exempt, and Turkish-source income stays taxable.
• Some guides suggest the permit survives most of the year abroad. More than 120 days abroad in a year leads to refusal, cancellation or non-extension.

Turkey or another retirement route?

Turkey's permit suits retirees who want to live in Turkey for most of the year, with no capital committed. Its trade-offs are the strict absence rule, an unsettled permit term and worldwide taxation outside the new-resident exemption.

• The Cyprus Category F permit is Golden in the Index and is permanent residence from the grant, with no minimum stay; it is for non-EU nationals with a secure income from abroad, who may not work in Cyprus.
• The UAE retirement visa is Partial for a similar reason, a limit on consecutive absence, but the UAE levies no personal income tax.
• Bahrain Golden Residency for retirees is Golden, with no minimum stay and no personal income tax, and the retiree route needs no investment.

Compare every route in the Golden Retirement Index and in our retirement and passive-income residency guide.

What is not yet officially confirmed

• Whether a foreign pension falls within the mükerrer 20/D exemption.
• The validity of each permit, which the law and the Regulation state differently, and the period DGMM issues in practice.
• Official fees and real-world processing times.
• Whether the Regulation's absence rule and one-year cap are still current: the consolidated text we read lists amendments only to 13 August 2022.
• The conditions for the long-term residence permit, and any path to citizenship from this route.
• Work rights, the insurance policies DGMM accepts and how the insurance rule applies to older applicants.
• How DGMM applies the permit to retirees in practice, including any local limits by address.
• Income tax bands, capital gains rates, inheritance and gift tax bands, and the absence of a wealth tax.

Ask Mira, by Mirabello

For a first answer at any hour, ask Mira, by Mirabello, the AI advisor of Mirabello Immigration Intelligence. It reads the same verified programme data as this page and can compare Turkey's permit with the other routes in the Mirabello Golden Retirement Index. A specialist then checks the details that decide your case.

How Mirabello Consultancy helps

Mirabello Consultancy checks how your pension or savings meet Turkey's means test, prepares your declaration and the evidence DGMM may ask for, plans your year around the 120-day rule, and works with tax advisers on whether the new-resident exemption could apply to you before you become resident. To find out whether the route fits, book a free, confidential consultation.

Information only, not legal or tax advice. Requirements were read from the official sources linked above on 11 October 2026 and can change; we confirm them for your case.