The Turkish authorities have initiated a procedure to revoke the citizenship of 687 foreign citizens , who, according to the investigation, obtained passports illegally. The reason for this was a large-scale police operation, during which an organized criminal group was uncovered that helped foreigners circumvent investment requirements through fictitious real estate transactions and fake valuation reports.
The operation, carried out under the coordination of the Bureau for the Investigation of Organized Crime of the Istanbul General Prosecutor's Office and the Department for Combating Migrant Smuggling, covered 16 provinces of the country. It resulted in the detention of 72 suspects out of 90 for whose arrest warrants were issued. The raids took place almost simultaneously, and Istanbul became the center of operational activities.
Turkish Justice Minister Akin Gurlek, making an official statement on Tuesday, revealed the details of a large-scale scam. According to him, the attackers helped foreign citizens obtain Turkish citizenship provided for investments by artificially inflating the cost of inexpensive real estate. Fake valuation reports were used for this purpose, and the purchase and sale transactions themselves were fictitious and did not reflect the real transfer of funds to the country's economy.
The total damage from the group's activities is estimated at a colossal amount of about 2.5 billion Turkish liras (equivalent to more than 52 million US dollars). According to the law, this money should have entered the country as a mandatory investment, but instead, according to the investigation, it was taken out of control, and financial statements were forged. The criminals themselves received illegal monetary rewards from foreigners who wanted to obtain a passport fraudulently.As part of securing the claim and suppressing further criminal activity, the court seized significant assets belonging to the defendants in the case. In particular, seven companies have been placed under the management of trust managers. In addition, 1,045 properties, a luxury hotel in the popular tourist center of Bodrum, 15 cars, a yacht, and 10 bank accounts were confiscated.
Gurlek emphasized that the authorities have initiated procedures to revoke Turkish citizenship of all 687 people who were found to have acquired it through this fraudulent scheme.
This is the second such case in recent years. Earlier, in 2024, the Turkish authorities had already conducted a large-scale operation against a network that helped foreigners obtain citizenship through fake assessment reports and "buyback" schemes. At that time, more than 60 suspects were detained, and about 800 foreigners were threatened with revocation of citizenship. The current case shows that the fight against violations in this area continues, and the authorities are consistently tightening control over compliance with investment requirements.
The Citizenship by Investment program remains an important tool of Turkey's economic policy, and the reported fraud cases should not overshadow its positive contribution. Since the program was launched in 2017, it has attracted billions of dollars of foreign direct investment to the country, stimulated the construction sector, created thousands of jobs and supported the liquidity of the real estate market. For many conscientious investors from all over the world, this is a legal and transparent way to obtain a Turkish passport, which gives access to high-quality education, medicine and the opportunity to live in a country with a rich culture and a dynamically developing economy.
Source: Daily Sabah
