Kalkan Turkey Forum - EnjoyKalkan.com

Travel and Accommodation => Flights and Travel => Topic started by: kevincat99 on January 23, 2015, 10:15:48 AM

Title: New Visa Rules
Post by: kevincat99 on January 23, 2015, 10:15:48 AM
Hi I am very surprised that no one has commented on the new visa rules and their application

If they go ahead as indicated it will surely affect an awful lot of people in Kalkan both those with longer term stays but longer periods in the UK, villa renters doing maintenance visits and those who may need to apply for new one year visas where health insurance may now be an issue

https://www.facebook.com/ukinturkey

Title: Re: New Visa Rules
Post by: Tatilde on January 23, 2015, 11:11:41 AM
Been too gutted to comment!
Over three years to run on our residency, flights booked for the rest of the year, friends booked to visit us. We would have spent more time here in Kalkan last year if we'd have known the goalposts were going to be moved.
Title: Re: New Visa Rules
Post by: onelove on January 23, 2015, 11:55:27 AM
Gutted as well, + also have 3 1/2 years to run on our res permit's...what a waste of money that was
Title: Re: New Visa Rules
Post by: brian j p on January 23, 2015, 12:08:56 PM
I suspect they are   bringing their rules in line with   most of the Europe   for when they eventually join the club  so to speak ,  but fully agree there should have been some transitioning period for those adversely affected , especially those with blue book type visa where they have already paid upfront or where implication for existing heath insurance  is an issue
Title: Re: New Visa Rules
Post by: samson on January 23, 2015, 12:29:20 PM
Will be interesting see if our book is cancelled when we return on March 3rd. Anyone going before then? :'(
Title: Re: New Visa Rules
Post by: onelove on January 23, 2015, 12:30:38 PM
So Many unanswered questions......

I would think it will have a dreadful/negative effect on the overseas property market....ie : foreigners buy property in Turkey.

Q , Would you buy / spend £1,000'sss / on a property abroad if you could only visit that country/property for 180 days per year ?.....Turkeys loss may well be Portugal/Spain's gain !!!

Q, Will people who lose their RP's have to sell their (M plate) cars ?

Q, If you lose your RP, will you not be able to use your SGK insurance ? ( you need a RP to have SGK )

Q, Won't be able to have phone line / ADSL in your own name ?

I bet there will be loads more unanswered questions ??????????
Title: Re: New Visa Rules
Post by: kevincat99 on January 23, 2015, 03:04:10 PM

Hopefully it may be that the Turkish authorities have these issues pointed out to them and as they have done in the past do a U turn

One might ask what exactly they are hoping to achieve by these measures

Finally what was the British Consulates role in this shambles - do they ever negotiate for the British and point these issues out to the Turks or as usual are they only the message carriers

Once again they seemed to have failed in their duties or are they more interested in maybe going to cocktail parties and receptions - like all civil servants they appear to be not up to the job but are still in place

It waould be interesting to hear their take on these issues

Title: Re: New Visa Rules
Post by: onelove on January 23, 2015, 04:07:45 PM
Totally agree with all you say KC99.

Let's hope your right and they re-think !

Just thinking about the 180 days, I suppose this will, in the main, only matter to property owners, albeit, there will be others it affects, sorry if I got that slightly wrong, I'm sure it will effect others as well....don't want to start upsetting anyone !

So it's worse than I first thought, it's not that you can only stay in Turkey for 180 days out of 360ish days, you will have to plan the 180 days. What happens if you have used up your 180 days & say an emergency occurs, villa's roof springs a leak in the middle of winter etc etc, there will be a load more examples, and you are not aloud to come into the country to oversee repairs, salvage, insurance claim's etc to your, say, £100/300/750k investment...as I said in my last post it will, imo, kill the foreigners property market & the knock on affects for the locals / builders is to scary to continplate  :-[ :o :-[
Title: Re: New Visa Rules
Post by: Christina on January 24, 2015, 06:36:34 AM
The consequences of this new rule are, for many people, almost too disastrous to contemplate. The ripples go on and on - many of the implications have been discussed on this forum and I am sure there are plenty more that will come to light.

I feel for the many people who, at the end of their working life have invested heavily in buying a property in Turkey, with the aim of spending their well-earned retirement split between enjoying extended winter breaks in the sun, and spending time with their families back in the UK. They diligently applied for residency, complying with the exacting criteria and paying a substantial sum, in order to be able to live their lives this way. Now, that dream is over. Once their residency is cancelled at the airport on re-entry after a cumulative absence of 120 days, they will have to buy a visa. If they stick with that, they can only spend limited time at their property. If they decide to apply for residency again, this will only be valid for 12 months, or less - if they break the rules again. There are also the implications for health insurance. Without residency you cannot get SGK. Yet you cannot get residency without health insurance. So private health insurance is often the only option. I may be wrong on this and am happy to be corrected.

For property owners like myself who just visit two or three times a year for a few weeks at a time to set up and close down for the season,  the only option seems to be to dance around the 90/180 visa rules, and hope to goodness there isn't a serious incident/damage to the property when we are back in the UK and all our 'allowance' has been used up. Another query is, if one moves to a visa from residency, will the preceding 180 days still be counted, or will the clock start ticking from the date of the start of the visa?

It's already been mentioned, but would many of us have bought properties in the first place if we had known we could only enjoy them for limited periods as dictated by the authorities? This must surely have an impact on future property sales and prices in Turkey. Looking on the bright side, it may at least slow down the building explosion in Kalkan.

I wonder if all these issues, implications and consequences were thoroughly considered by the authorities during the decision-making process before these drastic changes were rubber-stamped and announced? If so, then it makes you wonder what the driver is, and what outcome they hope to achieve. If not, and if the authorities are only now fully realising the effects of this rule change which may result in a U-turn, then it makes you question who exactly is making these decisions.

Title: Re: New Visa Rules
Post by: onelove on January 24, 2015, 08:56:08 AM
it's looking like a lot of us have been Shite on from a great height
Title: Re: New Visa Rules
Post by: kevincat99 on January 24, 2015, 09:57:39 AM
Hi Onelove

Yes it would appear so

But I still fail to see what benefits these changes will accrue to the Turkish Government / Economy

I would still love to hear what input the British Consulate have had and how they see these changes for British Citizens, who one would assume they represent

Any ideas how we could find out ??

This has overtones of the SGK fiasco of a couple of years ago
Title: Re: New Visa Rules
Post by: Chris_S on January 24, 2015, 12:36:41 PM
The cynic within me wonders whether this may be part of a bigger picture?

"Let us join the EU and the Schengen agreement will make all these problems with European owners disappear".  Pointed more at UK and Germany, of course.

I suppose the Russians will be hard hit, and will never be part of the EU; but I suspect this is all down to manipulation, together with not thinking it through for the true cause and effect....
Title: Re: New Visa Rules
Post by: Blue Lizard on January 24, 2015, 01:40:28 PM
Mmmmmmm!! That's assuming that when we finally get a european in or out vote the people of the UK don't vote to take us out by which time Turkey may be in >:D >:D >:D
Title: Re: New Visa Rules
Post by: kalkanview on January 24, 2015, 02:15:02 PM
We were intending to book the TC flight on 3/3, but are now considering our position and for the reasons outlined below are now probably looking at February for our first visit.

It is scandalous that the authorities would impose the 120 rule retrospectively and cancel visas which we have paid for in advance.  Why couldn't they bring in the rule and apply it to new visas or  at the very least start the 120 day clock from 1 Jan 2015, so we would have some chance of organising ourselves around the new rules.

We have already booked most of our flights this year and these add up to just under 6 months.  We could just continue with a tourist visa, it's a pain but it does sort of work although you do have to spend a bit more time in Kalkan during the off season than before.  But as onelove said you could be left with no days remaining when an emergency occurs.

We will probably come over in February now to get the clock ticking on the tourist visa assuming we are refused entry, to make the most of the season throughout 2015.  This also clears the way for a similar schedule in 2016 etc.

The answer may be to start each and every year with a tourist visa and then go to Kas during that first visit to apply for a short term Residency visa.  At least we wouldn't have to worry about our car or broadband line....... or would we.......what is the position with our Turkish car insurance when you exceed the 120 day rule later in the year and whilst still in turkey?

I also question what the motive could possibly be for the authority's to do this?

We won't spend more than 6 months in Kalkan primarily for family reasons but also for other reasons such as NHS cover (when I broke my arm and visited Brighton NHS Trust I was asked whether I had a valid UK Passport and if so how many months in the last 12 had I been out of the country) and also insurance at home.

I am reasonably sure that that when you take out your car and travel insurance in the UK, the small print says you must be a UK resident.  But how can you be if you are spending more than 6 months abroad?  I fear there are people out there who may not have the cover they think they have.
Title: Re: New Visa Rules
Post by: onelove on January 24, 2015, 02:22:45 PM
I don't see Turkey getting into the EU anytime soon....the French & Germans don't want them, + freedom of the press, there is talk at the moment that facebook & youtube might be turned off again here, so don't hold your breath.

So, imho the comments below are well off the mark....I could be wrong I surpose, I've heard it happens to everyone, at sometime  :o :o :o ;) ;)
Title: Re: New Visa Rules
Post by: onelove on January 24, 2015, 02:33:31 PM
My last post was referring to the posts by BL & Chris_s
Title: Re: New Visa Rules
Post by: Cosetta on January 24, 2015, 03:40:18 PM
Brian J P, residency rules in Europe are not like the one that Turkey is imposing.  To qualify for Spanish residency (and I believe this is the same for the other EU countries) one must spend 183 days per year in Spain.  It can be continuous or broken up as long as the total = 183.  But here's the catch for anyone considering Spanish residency:  you are obliged to declare your worldwide earnings and assets, possibly to pay taxes in Spain if you paid too little in the UK.  If you miss declaring something, the fine is very steep.

We are among those who probably will have our 5-year RP cancelled when we return in April.  If worst comes to worst, we plan to continue applying for 1 year visas each time we come.  The cost now is not as high as it used to be.  We might also choose to go the 90/180 route, remains to be seen.  And yes, am wondering what they plan to do with our MA car, home phone and so on.  They don't realize the mess this is going to make or the impact it will have.

Kalkanview, you are right.  When you take out travel and car insurance, the fine print says you are only eligible if you are a UK resident.  For that reason, we could not buy it as we are not UK residents.
Title: Re: New Visa Rules
Post by: Chris_S on January 24, 2015, 03:50:04 PM
OneLove

Nor do I - The imprisonment of Journalists (more in Turkey than the whole of the Western world combined), together with the flakey economy, and all the other issues (Cyprus included) mitigate against it.

Erdogan may want it, but he is going to have to do some things to sway the balance. Are the Visa rules a part of this?

Best Turkey can hope for is a low-entry membership, with partial benefits and compliance, which isn't allowed in the rules for joining anyway!

Anyway, Health & Safety would have a field day - I'm not sure anyone would really want that!
Title: Re: New Visa Rules
Post by: Blue Lizard on January 24, 2015, 04:52:21 PM
my post was tongue firmly in cheek.....in truth it seems the turkish government want investment and your money but don't want you living in Turkey  ::) ::)
Title: Re: New Visa Rules
Post by: Christina on January 25, 2015, 07:35:05 AM
To add insult to injury, not only are those who have paid for a time-limited/short term residence permit unlikely to get a proportional refund when their permit is cancelled on re-entry to Turkey after a cumulative absence of 120 days, they will need to shell out again for a tourist visa. Then to rub salt into the wound, they will be stung for the £20 fee as a penalty for buying it at the airport rather than the £12 if you buy your e-visa online in advance. Maybe that is why they kept the visa purchase facilities open at the airports. Or am I crediting the authorities with too much forward planning? Many owners currently in the UK are still oblivious to this new rule, and some will be blissfully unaware as they touch down in Turkey for their next visit. I hope staff at the passport desk have the necessary language skills to explain the situation to those travellers affected. I can envisage some heated scenes.
Title: Re: New Visa Rules
Post by: si18665 on January 25, 2015, 10:39:19 PM
I have found the Turkish bureaucracy painful in some circumstance but I think that we are moaning a bit here, regarding this topic.

I think VISA follows the same rules between the host and the guest countries. An example of an UK VISA applicable for Turkish is available here: https://www.gov.uk/general-visit-visa. In addition, almost any EU country requires a minimum staying of 181 days per each year, in order for a citizen being considered resident. I travel a lot and the phrase of EU citizen who is free to cross any EU country makes me laugh. You are free to travel in any EU country as long as you don't bring your belongings with you. If you require a car insurance, a bank account, boat trailer, from an EU country to another EU country, then you can see that EU citizenship is vapourware because each country applies its own rules. So, I don't think that Turkish VISA regulations are unfair.

Talking or writing about Kalkan, I was there last Christmas and New Year Evening. The excavators and drilling were relentless 12 hour per day including Saturdays and Sundays. Developers are eager to build as much as villas they can and destroy olive trees as much as they can. I had a closer look at what they are building and found poor quality in several cases. They are keen to have new villas ready for the seasons and mostly for British tourists who dream a warm retirement or invest their savings. I do like Kalkan and happy to rent a house there, but honestly I don't think that we are bringing a lot of wealth to the local people. We just help the economy on the seasonal basis and then go back to our countries. What it remains, is a beautiful nature with a lot of concrete, cement and roads without tarmac or drainage.



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