No, foreign residency permits have not been banned in all districts of Istanbul

Context

On July 15, 2023, a social media account in Türkiye tweeted that foreign residency permits had been banned in all 39 districts of Istanbul. The tweet quickly went viral on social media, amassing 1.5 million views, 14,000 likes, and 520 retweets. It is thought that the same tweet, which was shared on many different accounts, spread on social media after a report with a similar headline was published by Milliyet on July 14.

However, upon closer examination, it was determined that foreign residency permits had not been banned in all districts of Istanbul.

Many immigrants live in Türkiye, especially in Istanbul, thus making the issue a common talking point in Turkish politics and leading to the subject becoming fervently discussed on social media.

In Fact

To verify the tweet's authenticity, Logically Facts searched for published announcements of decisions taken by the Turkish Ministry of Interior and Presidency of Migration Management. According to the research, as of January 15, 2021, the Presidency of Migration Management has banned foreigner residency permits in two districts of Istanbul. As of October 20, 2022, eight more districts have banned foreign residency permits. The ban now covers 10 of Istanbul's 39 districts. The 10 districts include Avcılar, Bahçelievler, Bağcılar, Başaksehir, Esenler, Esenyurt, Fatih, Küçükçekmece, Sultangazi and Zeytinburnu. Notably, the decision excludes international students who are residents of these districts or registered at universities in these districts.

The institution did not publish such a decision in 2023. In addition, the Presidency of Migration Management issued a press release that denied the allegations that foreign residency permits were banned in Istanbul on 16 July 2023.

The Verdict

Contrary to the claim made in the tweet, foreign residency permits have been banned in 10 districts of Istanbul’s 39 districts, as stated online, and not all districts. This decision was announced by the Presidency of Migration Management on October 19, 2022. As a result, we have marked this claim as false.