Introduction

A foreign investor does not necessarily need to purchase real estate to obtain Turkish citizenship by investment. Turkish law provides several alternative investment routes, including a particularly important option for entrepreneurs, industrial investors, international companies and business owners: making a fixed capital investment of at least USD 500,000 or its equivalent in foreign currency in Turkey.

As of August 2026, Turkey’s official investment framework continues to recognise a minimum USD 500,000 fixed capital investment, provided that the investment is verified by the Ministry of Industry and Technology.

This option can be highly attractive to foreign investors who genuinely intend to establish or acquire a Turkish business. Instead of committing capital to a property purchased primarily for citizenship purposes, an investor may use capital in a productive business involving manufacturing, technology, services, machinery, equipment, facilities or other qualifying investment assets.

However, there is an important legal distinction that investors frequently misunderstand:

Simply establishing a Turkish company with USD 500,000 of nominal share capital does not necessarily mean that the investor has automatically made a qualifying USD 500,000 fixed capital investment for Turkish citizenship purposes.

The Ministry examines the substance of the investment.

The investment should generally relate to productive commercial activity and may include assets such as:

• land connected with the investment;
• buildings and production facilities;
• machinery;
• equipment;
• productive fixed assets; and
• other investment elements used in the production of goods or services.

The Ministry’s implementation rules expressly distinguish a genuine fixed capital investment from simply purchasing real estate. Real estate expenses may form part of a qualifying business investment, but purchasing property alone does not transform the transaction into a fixed capital investment under this citizenship category.

The route may also potentially be used through the acquisition of an existing Turkish company or a qualifying shareholding in a non-public Turkish company, provided that the portion attributable to the foreign investor satisfies the minimum investment requirement and the Ministry accepts the structure.

For foreign entrepreneurs, this can create an important opportunity:

Acquire or establish a real operating business in Turkey and, if the statutory and administrative requirements are satisfied, use that investment as the basis for an exceptional Turkish citizenship application.

This article explains how Turkish citizenship through a USD 500,000 fixed capital investment works in 2026, what qualifies as fixed capital, whether investing in a Turkish company is sufficient, how company acquisitions are treated, which documents are required, how the three-year commitment works, whether family members can obtain citizenship and which legal mistakes may prevent an investor from receiving the required Certificate of Conformity.

1. Can You Obtain Turkish Citizenship by Investing USD 500,000 in Turkey?

Yes, potentially.

Article 20 of the Regulation on the Implementation of the Turkish Citizenship Law provides that a foreigner whose fixed capital investment of at least USD 500,000 or equivalent foreign currency is determined by the Ministry of Industry and Technology may fall within the exceptional Turkish citizenship framework.

Turkey’s current official investment guidance confirms this threshold.

The route is different from:

• the USD 400,000 real estate citizenship route;
• the USD 500,000 bank deposit route;
• the USD 500,000 government debt instrument route;
• the USD 500,000 investment fund route;
• the USD 500,000 private pension route; and
• the 50-person employment route.

The competent authority for the fixed capital investment route is the Ministry of Industry and Technology.

This distinction is important because each citizenship investment category has its own verification rules.

Investors cannot simply choose the easiest evidentiary requirements from another investment category.

2. What Is a “Fixed Capital Investment” for Turkish Citizenship?

The concept of fixed capital investment is broader than merely depositing money into a company’s bank account.

According to the Ministry’s implementation principles, fixed capital investment should generally consist of investment elements used for the production of goods or services, including assets such as:

• land;
• buildings;
• machinery;
• equipment; and
• other productive investment components.

The Ministry’s fixed-capital citizenship guidance specifically explains that purchasing real estate alone does not create eligibility under this particular investment route, although real estate expenditure connected with the wider productive investment may be taken into account as part of the project.

Consider two examples.

Example 1: Pure Property Purchase

A foreign investor buys a USD 550,000 office building and does nothing else.

This should not automatically be treated as a qualifying fixed capital investment.

If citizenship is sought solely through property ownership, the transaction should instead be evaluated under the separate real estate citizenship rules.

Example 2: Manufacturing Investment

A foreign investor establishes a Turkish manufacturing company and invests in:

• factory premises;
• industrial machinery;
• production equipment;
• technical installations; and
• other qualifying productive assets,

with a total eligible fixed capital investment exceeding USD 500,000.

This is much closer to the type of investment contemplated by the fixed-capital route.

3. Is USD 500,000 of Company Share Capital Automatically Enough?

Not necessarily.

This is perhaps the most important distinction for foreign business owners.

Under Turkish company law, a company has registered and paid-up capital.

Citizenship legislation, however, refers to fixed capital investment.

These concepts should not automatically be treated as identical.

For example, assume a foreign investor establishes a Turkish joint stock company and contributes USD 500,000-equivalent capital.

If the funds simply remain in the company’s bank account without being used for a qualifying investment, the investor should not assume that citizenship eligibility automatically exists.

The Ministry will consider the actual investment and supporting financial records.

This is why the Ministry’s application framework requires evidence concerning both:

• paid-up capital; and
• the amount of fixed capital investment.

The process includes a special-purpose report prepared and certified by a Yeminli Mali Müşavir – Sworn-in Certified Public Accountant (YMM).

Accordingly, the correct question is not:

“Does my Turkish company have USD 500,000 capital?”

The correct question is:

“Has at least USD 500,000 of qualifying fixed capital investment attributable to me actually been made and can this be documented to the satisfaction of the Ministry of Industry and Technology?”

4. Can a Foreigner Establish a New Company and Use the Investment for Citizenship?

Potentially, yes.

A foreign investor may establish a new Turkish company and make the qualifying fixed capital investment through that company.

The investor should structure the business from the beginning with the citizenship requirements in mind.

This may involve:

1. establishing the Turkish company;
2. determining the foreign shareholder’s capital contribution;
3. paying the capital;
4. purchasing or developing qualifying fixed investment assets;
5. recording expenditures correctly in the company’s accounts;
6. preserving invoices, bank records and transaction documents;
7. obtaining the necessary YMM certification;
8. filing the Ministry application; and
9. obtaining the Certificate of Conformity.

A foreign investor should ideally determine which expenditures will qualify before the money is spent.

An investment structure that looks commercially sensible may not necessarily be recognised in full as eligible fixed capital expenditure.

5. Can Turkish Citizenship Be Obtained by Buying an Existing Company?

Potentially, yes.

The Ministry’s implementation guidance contemplates circumstances in which a foreign investor purchases an existing non-public company entirely or acquires a qualifying percentage of it.

Where the investment is made through acquiring an existing company or a shareholding in it, the amount attributable to the acquired share must generally correspond to at least USD 500,000 or equivalent foreign currency.

The Ministry may also request a company valuation report from an authorised institution in order to determine the value of the company and the acquired shares.

This makes legal and financial due diligence essential.

Suppose a foreign investor pays USD 700,000 for 30% of a Turkish company.

The fact that the purchase price exceeds USD 500,000 does not necessarily end the analysis.

The Ministry may need to examine:

• the actual company value;
• the investor’s shareholding percentage;
• the investment assets;
• the amount attributable to the purchased shares;
• payment records; and
• the company’s financial statements.

6. Is Buying Shares on the Turkish Stock Exchange the Same Thing?

It should not be assumed to be the same.

The fixed capital citizenship route is designed around qualifying productive investment and Ministry verification.

Turkey separately recognises other investment routes for citizenship, including qualifying investment fund units and government debt instruments.

Accordingly, simply purchasing ordinary listed shares with a market value of USD 500,000 should not automatically be treated as a qualifying fixed capital investment.

Where the investor intends to purchase securities rather than acquire or capitalise an operating business, the appropriate citizenship route should be separately analysed.

7. Can an Investor Become a Minority Shareholder?

Potentially, yes.

A foreign investor does not necessarily have to own 100% of the Turkish company.

However, where the investor owns only a percentage of the business, the amount attributable to that foreign investor becomes critically important.

If an investor purchases part of a non-public company, the value corresponding to the investor’s acquired shareholding must generally reach at least USD 500,000.

Similarly, where an investor becomes a shareholder in a company making an additional fixed capital investment, the Ministry’s guidance examines the investor’s ownership percentage in relation to the additional qualifying investment.

Example

Assume a Turkish company makes an additional qualifying fixed investment of:

USD 2,000,000

and the foreign investor owns:

25% of the company.

The amount economically attributable to that investor may be calculated at:

USD 500,000.

This could potentially satisfy the investment threshold, subject to Ministry verification and the remaining requirements.

By contrast, if the investor owned only 10% of the same USD 2,000,000 additional investment structure, the amount attributable to that investor would be USD 200,000 and would generally fall below the citizenship threshold.

8. Can a Foreign Investor Increase the Capital of an Existing Company?

Yes, a properly structured capital increase may potentially form part of a qualifying investment.

However, the legal documentation must clearly distinguish between:

• existing company value;
• new capital injected by the foreign investor;
• fixed capital expenditures made after the investment; and
• the proportion attributable to the applicant.

The Ministry should be able to trace the investment economically and legally.

Accordingly, documentation concerning capital increases, shareholder resolutions, Trade Registry publications, bank transfers and fixed investment expenditures should be prepared consistently.

9. What Types of Expenditure May Be Included?

Qualifying fixed capital investment may commonly involve productive assets such as:

• industrial land used in the investment;
• factory buildings;
• production facilities;
• machinery;
• manufacturing equipment;
• technical installations;
• equipment used in service production; and
• other long-term productive investment assets.

The particular classification depends on the investment.

For a technology company, relevant fixed capital could be materially different from that of a manufacturing company.

For a factory, expensive machinery may constitute a major portion of the investment.

For a service business, the analysis may focus on infrastructure and qualifying equipment.

The crucial issue is that the expenditure should relate to the production of goods or services and satisfy the Ministry’s fixed investment criteria.

10. Can Real Estate Be Included in the USD 500,000 Calculation?

Potentially, as part of a broader fixed investment.

However, real estate alone does not qualify under this route merely because its value exceeds USD 500,000.

The Ministry’s implementation principles state that purchasing real estate alone does not establish eligibility for fixed-capital investment citizenship, although expenditure on real estate may be considered as part of an overall qualifying investment.

For example, a foreign investor developing a production facility might have an investment consisting of:

• USD 200,000 industrial property;
• USD 250,000 machinery;
• USD 150,000 production equipment.

If accepted as eligible components, the overall qualifying investment could exceed USD 500,000.

By contrast, simply purchasing a USD 600,000 luxury apartment is not converted into a fixed capital investment merely by putting the property in a company’s name.

11. What Documents Are Required for the Ministry Application?

The Ministry’s fixed capital investment procedure requires substantial corporate and financial documentation.

The application file may include, depending on the structure:

• application petition signed by the investor;
• completed investment information form;
• passport copies;
• residence permit copy, if available;
• investor’s signature declaration;
• power of attorney if the application is made through an authorised representative;
• Trade Registry Gazette records showing the company’s capital and shareholder structure;
• documents concerning the Turkish legal entity through which the investment was made;
• a YMM-certified special-purpose report showing paid-up capital and fixed capital investment;
• evidence supporting fixed capital expenditures;
• share purchase documentation where an existing company is acquired;
• original bank payment evidence for relevant share acquisitions; and
• the required undertaking concerning the preservation of the investment.

The Ministry’s published implementation principles specifically identify the YMM special-purpose report as a core document in demonstrating paid-up capital and fixed capital expenditure.

12. Why Is the YMM Report Important?

The Yeminli Mali Müşavir report is one of the most important evidentiary documents in the application.

The report allows the Ministry to assess whether the investor has genuinely made the required amount of fixed capital investment.

Depending on the transaction, the report may examine:

• paid-up capital;
• shareholder structure;
• investor’s ownership percentage;
• investment date;
• machinery;
• equipment;
• buildings;
• land;
• invoices;
• accounting entries;
• bank transfers;
• foreign exchange documentation; and
• other investment expenditures.

The Ministry may request supporting invoices or additional documentation.

Accordingly, the accounting records of the Turkish company should be prepared with the citizenship application in mind from the beginning.

Attempting to reconstruct USD 500,000 worth of investment documentation after the fact may be significantly more difficult.

13. How Should an Existing Company Acquisition Be Documented?

Where citizenship eligibility is based on acquiring an existing company or becoming a shareholder, the transaction should be documented carefully.

The Ministry’s procedures contemplate a notarised share purchase agreement, together with evidence showing that the purchase price stated in the agreement was paid through a bank.

Depending on the circumstances, the Ministry may also require a valuation of the acquired business.

Investors should therefore avoid informal share acquisitions.

A transfer agreement stating an artificial USD 500,000 price without financial or corporate evidence is unlikely to provide a reliable citizenship structure.

14. Must the Investment Be Maintained for Three Years?

Yes, the Ministry’s fixed-capital implementation procedure requires a three-year commitment.

The investor undertakes that, if a Certificate of Conformity is issued:

• the shares held in the investment company will not be sold or transferred to another natural or legal person for three years;
• the qualifying fixed capital investment will not be sold or transferred for three years; and
• the investor will not undertake a capital reduction inconsistent with the qualifying investment.

The official-style undertaking published with the fixed-capital application guidance expressly contains these commitments.

This is a major difference from the assumption that the investment can be liquidated immediately after receiving citizenship.

15. Can the Investor Sell the Company After Receiving Turkish Citizenship?

Not immediately if doing so would violate the three-year commitment.

The investor should not assume that citizenship approval terminates the investment-maintenance obligation.

The qualifying shares and fixed investment must generally remain compliant for the three-year period required under the Ministry’s implementation framework.

An early share transfer, disposal of qualifying assets or capital reduction can therefore create serious citizenship consequences.

16. Can the Ministry Inspect the Investment?

Yes.

Because this route is based on a real economic investment rather than a passive deposit, the Ministry may examine whether the investment actually exists.

The Ministry’s implementation framework permits verification of the investment and may involve on-site examination of the company and its assets.

This means the authorities may potentially verify whether:

• machinery actually exists;
• production facilities are operational;
• equipment is located at the business;
• invoices correspond to real assets;
• investment amounts are accurate; and
• the company’s financial records correspond with reality.

Accordingly, artificial arrangements designed only to produce documentation for citizenship create substantial risk.

17. What Happens if False or Misleading Documents Are Used?

The consequences can be serious.

The fixed-capital implementation rules contemplate action where false or misleading documentation is detected.

Problems may arise where:

• invoices are fabricated;
• equipment values are artificially inflated;
• bank transfers are circular;
• share purchase prices are fictitious;
• machinery does not exist;
• assets belong to another company;
• the investor’s shareholding is misrepresented; or
• accounting records do not correspond with the application.

Where the underlying investment ceases to satisfy the basis on which exceptional citizenship was obtained, the matter may be reported to the competent citizenship authorities.

The investor should therefore approach the procedure as a genuine regulated investment rather than merely an immigration documentation exercise.

18. Who Issues the Certificate of Conformity?

For the USD 500,000 fixed capital investment route, the competent authority is the:

Ministry of Industry and Technology.

The Ministry verifies whether the applicant has made the qualifying investment and, where the requirements are satisfied, issues or transmits the appropriate conformity determination.

Turkey’s current official citizenship guidance confirms that the Ministry of Industry and Technology is responsible for attesting fixed capital investments of at least USD 500,000.

The Certificate of Conformity is essential.

A foreign investor cannot simply bypass the Ministry and ask the citizenship authority to make its own determination that the business is worth more than USD 500,000.

19. What Happens After the Certificate of Conformity?

Obtaining the Certificate of Conformity is not the final citizenship decision.

Turkey’s NVI describes the investment citizenship process in three principal stages:

1. satisfy one of the qualifying investment conditions and obtain the Certificate of Conformity from the competent institution;
2. obtain the short-term residence permit under Article 31/1(j) of Law No. 6458; and
3. submit the investment-based Turkish citizenship application to the competent Provincial Directorate of Civil Registration and Citizenship.

Accordingly:

Fixed capital investment → Ministry conformity → investor residence permit → exceptional citizenship application.

20. Does the Investor Need to Live in Turkey for Five Years?

No.

The qualifying investment route falls within the exceptional acquisition of Turkish citizenship regime.

This should be distinguished from ordinary naturalisation, for which NVI states that a foreign applicant generally needs five years of uninterrupted residence together with additional statutory requirements.

Foreign investors falling within Article 12 may acquire citizenship through the exceptional procedure without satisfying the normal five-year residence requirement, provided that the statutory investor criteria are met.

This makes the fixed capital route especially relevant to international business owners who do not intend to relocate permanently to Turkey before obtaining citizenship.

21. Does the Investor Need to Speak Turkish?

The exceptional investment citizenship route does not apply the ordinary naturalisation requirements in the same way.

For general naturalisation, Turkish language ability is among the statutory requirements.

Exceptional citizenship under Article 12 operates separately and may be granted without applying the ordinary conditions, subject particularly to investment eligibility and the absence of national security or public order obstacles.

22. Can the Investor’s Spouse Obtain Turkish Citizenship?

Potentially, yes.

Article 12 of Turkish Citizenship Law includes within the relevant exceptional framework the foreign spouse of a qualifying investor holding the prescribed investor residence status.

The law also extends the framework to qualifying minor and dependent foreign children.

This is an important advantage.

The spouse does not ordinarily need to make a separate USD 500,000 fixed capital investment merely to participate in the principal investor’s family application.

However, the marriage must be legally documented.

23. Can Children Obtain Citizenship?

The exceptional investor framework may include:

• the investor’s minor foreign children;
• the spouse’s minor foreign children; and
• qualifying dependent foreign children,

subject to the applicable legal and documentary requirements.

Family documentation may involve:

• birth certificates;
• family registry documents;
• marriage certificates;
• custody judgments;
• parental consent;
• divorce documents; and
• dependency documentation where relevant.

Investors with children from previous marriages should resolve consent and custody issues early.

24. Does Investment Automatically Guarantee Turkish Citizenship?

No.

This is a crucial legal point.

The USD 500,000 investment provides the basis for eligibility under the exceptional citizenship mechanism.

It does not constitute an unconditional legal guarantee that citizenship will be granted.

Article 12 requires that the applicant have no condition constituting an obstacle with respect to national security and public order, and citizenship remains subject to the relevant Presidential decision-making framework.

The investment and citizenship stages should therefore be distinguished:

The Ministry verifies the investment.

The citizenship authorities evaluate the citizenship application.

25. Fixed Capital Investment or USD 400,000 Real Estate: Which Is Better?

The answer depends on the investor’s commercial objectives.

The Real Estate Route May Be More Suitable Where:

• the investor wants a passive investment;
• the investor prefers property ownership;
• the investor does not intend to operate a Turkish business;
• a relatively simple asset structure is desired; or
• the investor wants a lower statutory investment threshold.

The property threshold is currently USD 400,000.

The Fixed Capital Route May Be More Suitable Where:

• the investor genuinely wants to operate a Turkish company;
• an international company is entering the Turkish market;
• the investment involves manufacturing;
• machinery or technology infrastructure will be acquired;
• a Turkish company is being purchased;
• the investor wishes to generate operating income rather than merely property returns; or
• the investor already intends to invest at least USD 500,000 in a Turkish business.

The fixed-capital route is generally more operationally complex, but it may make greater economic sense for genuine entrepreneurs.

26. Fixed Capital Investment or USD 500,000 Bank Deposit?

The bank deposit route is generally more passive.

An investor depositing the qualifying amount in a Turkish bank primarily needs to satisfy the financial investment and holding requirements.

A fixed capital investor, by contrast, may need to deal with:

• company law;
• accounting;
• tax;
• employees;
• business operations;
• commercial contracts;
• asset purchases;
• corporate governance; and
• Ministry investment verification.

The fixed capital route may therefore carry greater operational risk but also provides the investor with the opportunity to build or acquire an income-generating Turkish business.

27. Legal Due Diligence When Buying a Turkish Company for Citizenship

A foreign investor should never acquire a Turkish company solely because the seller claims that the business is “worth USD 500,000 and therefore qualifies for citizenship.”

A company acquisition requires comprehensive legal and financial due diligence.

The investor should investigate matters including:

• tax debts;
• Social Security Institution liabilities;
• employees;
• litigation;
• enforcement proceedings;
• bank loans;
• guarantees;
• mortgages;
• machinery ownership;
• equipment ownership;
• intellectual property;
• licences;
• regulatory approvals;
• contracts;
• customer concentration;
• related-party transactions;
• undisclosed liabilities; and
• company valuation.

The citizenship objective does not reduce these commercial risks.

Indeed, it makes due diligence even more important because the investor may need to preserve the investment for three years.

28. Practical Example: Establishing a Turkish Manufacturing Company

Assume a foreign investor wishes to establish a machinery manufacturing company in Turkey.

The investor establishes a Turkish company and contributes significant capital.

The investment consists of:

• industrial premises: USD 150,000;
• machinery: USD 270,000;
• technical equipment: USD 130,000.

Potential eligible fixed investment:

USD 550,000

The company records the purchases correctly, pays suppliers through documented banking channels and retains all invoices and ownership documents.

A YMM prepares the special-purpose report.

The investor then applies to the Ministry of Industry and Technology for the Certificate of Conformity.

If the Ministry determines that at least USD 500,000 of qualifying fixed capital investment has been made, the conformity process may be completed.

The investor proceeds with:

Certificate of Conformity → Article 31/1(j) residence permit → exceptional citizenship application.

The investor also undertakes to preserve the relevant shares and qualifying investment for the required three-year period.

This is a typical example of how the route should function: real productive investment first, citizenship eligibility second.

29. Practical Example: Purchasing an Existing Turkish Company

Assume a foreign investor wants to purchase 60% of an established Turkish manufacturing company.

The business is independently valued.

The value attributable to the 60% stake is determined to exceed USD 500,000.

The share purchase agreement is notarised where required under the applicable procedure, and the purchase price is transferred through the banking system.

The investor obtains and preserves:

• share purchase documentation;
• bank transfer evidence;
• Trade Registry documents;
• company financial statements;
• YMM report;
• company valuation;
• fixed asset records; and
• corporate approvals.

The Ministry then evaluates whether the acquisition and underlying investment satisfy the fixed-capital citizenship criteria.

The crucial point is that the investor does not rely solely on the purchase price written into the share agreement.

The economic substance must be capable of verification.

30. Common Mistakes in USD 500,000 Fixed Capital Citizenship Applications

Mistake 1: Assuming Company Capital Equals Fixed Capital Investment

Registered capital and qualifying fixed investment are different concepts.

Mistake 2: Depositing USD 500,000 Into a Company Account and Doing Nothing Else

A bank balance should not automatically be assumed to qualify as productive fixed investment.

Mistake 3: Purchasing Only Real Estate

Pure real estate investment belongs to a different citizenship category.

Mistake 4: Buying an Overvalued Company

The Ministry may require evidence concerning company value.

Mistake 5: Making Undocumented Payments

Share acquisition payments and investment expenditures should be traceable through proper banking documentation.

Mistake 6: Failing to Obtain Proper Invoices

Investment assets must be capable of financial verification.

Mistake 7: Ignoring the Three-Year Commitment

Shares and qualifying investment cannot simply be disposed of immediately after citizenship approval.

Mistake 8: Reducing the Company’s Capital

Capital reduction during the commitment period may breach the investment conditions.

Mistake 9: Using Artificial Machinery or Asset Values

Inflated or misleading documentation may place both the investment and citizenship process at serious risk.

Mistake 10: Buying a Company Without Due Diligence

Citizenship eligibility does not protect an investor from historical tax, employment or commercial liabilities.

Frequently Asked Questions About Turkish Citizenship Through USD 500,000 Capital Investment

Can I obtain Turkish citizenship by investing USD 500,000 in a company?

Potentially, yes, if the investment constitutes a qualifying fixed capital investment and is verified by the Ministry of Industry and Technology.

Is simply opening a company with USD 500,000 enough?

Not necessarily. The Ministry assesses the qualifying fixed capital investment, not merely the nominal capital stated in company documents.

What counts as fixed capital investment?

Productive investment may include elements such as land, buildings, machinery and equipment used for the production of goods or services.

Can I buy property worth USD 500,000 and use this route?

Property alone does not ordinarily qualify as fixed capital investment under this category. Real estate expenditure may potentially form part of a broader productive investment.

Can I purchase an existing Turkish company?

Potentially, yes. A purchase of a non-public company or qualifying shareholding may be considered where the amount attributable to the investor satisfies the minimum investment threshold. A company valuation may be requested.

Do I have to own 100% of the company?

Not necessarily. Minority shareholdings may potentially be used, but the value attributable to the foreign investor must satisfy the applicable minimum.

Who determines whether my investment qualifies?

The Ministry of Industry and Technology.

Is a financial report required?

The Ministry’s implementation procedures contemplate a YMM-certified special-purpose report demonstrating paid-up capital and fixed capital investment.

Must the investment be kept for three years?

The Ministry’s application undertaking requires the relevant shares and fixed capital investment to remain unsold and untransferred for three years and restricts capital reduction.

Can my spouse receive citizenship with me?

Potentially, yes. Article 12 covers the qualifying investor’s foreign spouse within the relevant exceptional framework.

Can my children be included?

Minor and qualifying dependent foreign children may potentially be included, subject to the statutory requirements.

Do I need to live in Turkey for five years?

No. This is an exceptional citizenship route and does not require completion of the ordinary five-year naturalisation period.

Is citizenship guaranteed after the Ministry approves the investment?

No. Investment conformity and citizenship approval are separate stages. The citizenship application remains subject to the exceptional citizenship procedure and national security/public order review.

Conclusion: Can USD 500,000 of Capital Investment Lead to Turkish Citizenship?

Yes. Turkish law continues to provide a route for foreign investors who make at least USD 500,000 or equivalent foreign currency of qualifying fixed capital investment to pursue exceptional Turkish citizenship, provided that the investment is verified by the Ministry of Industry and Technology.

However, this route should not be misunderstood as a simple rule stating:

“Put USD 500,000 into any Turkish company and receive citizenship.”

The legal reality is substantially more sophisticated.

The investment must constitute genuine fixed capital investment.

Depending on the business, this may involve:

• land connected with productive activity;
• factory or commercial facilities;
• buildings;
• machinery;
• technical equipment;
• productive infrastructure; or
• acquisition of a qualifying interest in an existing Turkish business.

The investment must also be capable of being verified through proper corporate, accounting and banking documentation.

For investors purchasing an existing Turkish company, independent valuation and comprehensive legal due diligence may be necessary.

For investors establishing a new business, the company’s capital structure and fixed investment programme should ideally be designed before incorporation.

The process can broadly be summarised as follows:

Investment planning → Turkish company establishment or acquisition → qualifying fixed capital expenditure → accounting and documentary verification → YMM special-purpose report → Ministry of Industry and Technology application → Certificate of Conformity → Article 31/1(j) investor residence permit → exceptional Turkish citizenship application → administrative and security review → citizenship decision.

The investment must then remain compliant with the applicable three-year commitment.

For a genuine entrepreneur, the fixed capital route may provide a significant advantage over passive citizenship investments.

Instead of placing USD 500,000 in a blocked deposit or purchasing property solely for immigration purposes, the investor can potentially deploy the capital in an operating Turkish business and simultaneously establish eligibility for exceptional citizenship.

This makes the route particularly relevant for:

• manufacturing investors;
• technology founders;
• international companies entering Turkey;
• industrial entrepreneurs;
• foreign investors acquiring Turkish companies;
• family businesses expanding into Turkey; and
• investors seeking both commercial returns and Turkish citizenship.

At the same time, it is one of the more legally and financially complex citizenship-by-investment routes.

The investor must consider not only citizenship law but also:

• Turkish Commercial Code requirements;
• foreign direct investment rules;
• tax law;
• corporate governance;
• accounting;
• company valuation;
• employment law;
• banking compliance;
• acquisition liabilities; and
• the Ministry’s fixed-capital verification procedure.

For this reason, investors considering Turkish citizenship through a USD 500,000 capital investment should obtain legal and financial advice before transferring funds, purchasing a company or determining the capital structure.

Proper structuring at the beginning can prevent a particularly costly outcome: investing more than USD 500,000 into Turkey and discovering afterwards that the transaction does not satisfy the Ministry’s fixed capital requirements for citizenship.

A well-structured investment can achieve two objectives simultaneously: building or acquiring a commercially viable Turkish business and establishing a legally sound foundation for a Turkish citizenship application for the investor and qualifying family members.

This article reflects the Turkish legal and administrative framework and official guidance available as of August 2026. It is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute individual legal, tax, financial or investment advice. The eligibility of a particular investment should be confirmed with the competent authorities according to the transaction structure and rules applicable on the investment date.