Resolving the controversy over real estate ownership for multinational Syrians in Turkey

Ruaya Real Estate has monitored for you the latest developments related to the ownership of real estate by foreigners with other nationalities in Turkey, follow the details with us.

New Turkish decisions on the ownership of multinational Syrians in Turkey
The Presidency of the Foreigners Department of the General Directorate of Land Registry and Land Survey of Turkey issued a circular on 11/16/2021, which includes several amendments to the articles related to the ownership of real estate by multinationals in Turkey. The most important of these amendments are the following:

• Giving priority in owning real estate to the property rights granted by Turkish citizenship to the acquirer as a second nationality, regardless of his first nationality.

In other words, foreigners holding Turkish citizenship will be treated on the basis of Turkish citizenship regardless of other nationalities they hold, including Syrian citizenship, so anyone with Turkish citizenship can own property in Turkey as a Turkish citizen, even if his second citizenship falls among the nationalities prohibited from owning in Turkey .

The circular singled out the Turks of Syrian nationality who were previously treated by the law according to the Syrian nationality with regard to ownership in Turkey, or imposed on them certain restrictions related to their nationality, which is prohibited from owning in Turkey.

• The treatment of a foreign citizen in accordance with the property rights of the nationality prohibited from owning in Turkey in the event that he holds another nationality that is not prohibited from ownership other than Turkish nationality, and the circular provided an example of this as follows:

A foreign citizen holding Syrian and German citizenship at the same time, will be treated in the matter of ownership in Turkey on the basis of the Syrian nationality, which is prohibited from owning in Turkey.

• Request a document proving the origins of a foreign citizen, who was born in one of the countries prohibited from owning property in Turkey and does not hold its nationality.

He cited an example of this Palestinian born in Syria, where he must prove his Palestinian origins and not hold Syrian citizenship by being born in Syrian lands so that he can own real estate in Turkey, otherwise he will be treated in the matter of ownership according to the Syrian nationality, which is prohibited from owning in Turkey.

• The treatment of citizens holding the nationality of a country that is prohibited from owning property, and those who own real estate in Turkey before this decision, according to the property rights granted to them by the nationality of the country on the basis of which they owned.

Example: A foreign citizen who holds Syrian and Sudanese citizenship at the same time, and has owned a property in Turkey before the issuance of this decision through the Sudanese passport, the title deed transactions will be carried out for the properties he owns on the basis that he is Sudanese.

• The General Directorate of Land Registry in Ankara will be referred to regarding Syrian citizens whose names have previously registered real estate or a property has been transferred to their name through a court decision such as inheritance, for example, and property applications for Syrian citizens will be rejected directly.

• Decisions to ban or allow foreign nationals to own property can change according to the public interest.