In order to travel to Turkey, you need a valid travel document, such as a passport or an ID-card. Do you also need the e-visa for your journey? In this case, please check your passport’s validity before your application for this online visa. Can you use your passport or ID card to travel to Turkey? In many instances, there is no need for a visa at all, though conditions for visa-free travel still apply.

Please Note: Do you want to stay in Turkey for less than 90 days on a holiday or business trip? If you are a national of the United Kingdom, Ireland or any other country in the European Union, Switzerland or Norway, as of 2020, you no longer need a visa for these travel purposes.

What kind of travel document should you use?

If you intend to travel to Turkey, you are required to possess a valid travel document such as a passport or ID-Card. In some instances, however, you will need a Turkey visa for your trip as well. Certain demands are placed on the travel document you use for this, which will be expanded on further down this page.

When applying for your Turkey visa online, your travel document always needs to be a passport

The requirements for your travel documents depend on its country of issue. For instance, it is possible for inhabitants of certain countries to travel with their ID card, though the conditions vary by country. For other travellers, to enter into Turkey, their passport must be valid for 150 days after their arrival date. If travellers wish to apply for an e-Visa, they must use their passport to do so. Different nationalities also require different types of visas to enter the country. In most cases, the online Turkey visa is adequate for citizens from the UK and the European Union. For other countries, it is necessary to obtain a physical visa, which can only be collected at one of the Turkish consulates.

Travelling to Turkey using your passport: checking its validity

All travellers are allowed to use a passport to apply for entry to Turkey, regardless of its country of issue. The main requirement is that the passport needs to remain valid for at least another 150 days starting from your date of arrival in Turkey. If your passport expires within 150 days after your arrival, then you must apply for a new passport. As a UK national, it is usually possible to apply for your new passport fully online or by post. Irish nationals can renew their passports with the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs Passport Online service. Take note: travellers with a visa requirement have to wait until they receive their new passport before applying for the online visa for Turkey. This is because they can only fill in the new passport number in the application form.

Travel to Turkey using your identity card (ID card)

Do you have an identity card (ID card) from one of the countries listed below? Then you can also travel with your ID card, meaning that you don’t have to worry about any passport requirements. However, you do need to adhere to the remaining Turkey visa requirements. This concerns the ID cards issued by the following countries: The United Kingdom, Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, France, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, The Netherlands, Poland, Portugal and Spain. It also applies to travel with national ID cards from Switzerland and Liechtenstein and for ID cards issued by Georgia (the country), Moldova, and Ukraine (these are biometric ID cards only). Moreover, travellers from the aforementioned countries do not require a visa for their tourist or business travel to Turkey, as long as they abide by the rules for travelling without a visa.

Until 31 December 2022 travellers with a Norwegian ID card (with chip) could travel without a passport. For travel to Turkey for tourist or business purposes at any later date, they can still travel without a visa, but will need a valid passport for this.

Travelling to Turkey with your residence permit or residence document

Are you an asylum seeker or a qualifying beneficiary, and therefore do not have a UK, Irish, or US passport, or a passport from a country in the European Schengen area? Then you cannot apply for your Turkey visa on this website. In this case, you will either need to submit your visa application fully online via the Turkish government website, or only partially for a follow-up appointment at the nearest Turkish consulate.

Visa-exempt travel for passport holders from the following countries

Do you possess a passport with sufficient remaining validity from one of the countries listed below? Then you don’t need to file for a visa at all to be able to travel to Turkey. This concerns the following countries:

Albania, Andorra, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belize, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Brunei (up to 30 days), Bulgaria, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica (up to 30 days), the Czech Republic / Czechia, Denmark, Ecuador, El Salvador, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Hong Kong (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region / SAR passport holders only), Hungary, Ireland, Iceland, Indonesia (up to 30 days, for each entry on the conditions that the total stay does not exceed 90 days within any period of 180 days), Iran, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan (up to 30 days), Kosovo, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macau SAR (up to 30 days), (North Macedonia), Maldives, Malaysia, Moldova, Monaco, Mongolia (up to 30 days for tourist visits), Montenegro, Morocco, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, North Macedonia, Norway, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia (up to 60 days), Saint Kitts and Nevis (or, Saint Christopher and Nevis), San Marino, Serbia, Seychelles, Singapore, Slovenia, Slovakia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tajikistan (up to 30 days), Thailand (up to 30 days), Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, United Kingdom, Ukraine, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vatican City State, Venezuela.

Travel with the document used during application

Are you eligible for the Turkey e-visa? It is essential that you use the same passport for your travel as the one you used to apply for this visa. This is because your passport number on your passport needs to be the same as the one you entered in the application form. This way, your Turkey visa can be matched to your passport. It also means you won’t usually have to show proof of your e-visa at Turkish border crossings. The country’s immigration authorities can tell whether you have obtained a visa, by looking up your passport number in their electronic system for this. In the event you were to travel with a different travel document from the one you filed the application with, however, Turkish immigration will not be able to verify the validity of your visa, even when showing a printed copy.

That’s why, when you are eligible for the online visa, it is important to make sure that you apply for the Turkey visa with the passport you will take with you on your trip. This also applies when you have dual or multiple nationality and the passport of one or more of these countries. The passport number you fill in the online application form needs to match your passport’s (travel) document number. Only if and when these numbers match, can you use the e-visa for entry to Turkey.