U.S. citizens who wish to visit Turkey for less than 90 days may obtain an e-visa for Turkey at https://www.evisa.gov.tr/en/.

While you do need to have a passport when traveling overseas, special arrangements are made by the large cruise lines to facilitate their passengers’ shore excursions.  These special arrangements eliminate the potential for loss or theft of passengers’ passports while shopping and touring, and eliminate the need for passengers to obtain individual visitor visas from Turkey.  U.S. citizens do typically need an e-visa to enter Turkey, but cruise ship passengers are permitted to come ashore without a visa for day visits by special arrangements.

In short, you may visit Turkey on the day trip from your cruise ship without being in possession of your passport.  You may, however, want to carry a photocopy of your passport with you when your passport is being kept for safekeeping by the cruise lines.

If you wish to stay longer than 90 days in Turkey, you must apply for a residence permit. Please visit Embassy’s residence permit page for more information.

Overstaying your visa is taken seriously by the Turkish Authorities.  If you overstay your visa, you will be fined upon departure.  Fines vary according to the length of time you have overstayed. If you have overstayed and you are fined, you must apply for your next visa at a Turkish Embassy or Consulate overseas before you travel. You may also be banned from re-entering Turkey for a period of time as follows:

• Overstay 1-15 days: No ban.
• Overstay from 16-90 days: banned for up to three months.
• Overstay for more than 90 days i.e. from the 91st day: banned for up to six months.

It is recommended that you have six-month validity beyond date of entry into Turkey. Please click here for more information.

You can find country specific information about Turkey at the U.S. Department’s website. You can also find more information at Turkey’s official tourism portal.

You can enroll in the SMART Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) of the U.S. State Department by clicking here.

You can also download SMART Traveler app by clicking here.

U.S. citizens can check visa requirements for other countries by visiting the U.S. State Department’s web site.

You can obtain a certified copy of your U.S. birth certificate from the Vital Statistics office of the state you were born. Click here for the list of Vital Statistics office in the U.S.

You can request a certified copy of your Consular Report of Birth Aboard from the U.S. Department of State. Further information can be found here.

The copies of Consular Report of Death Aboard (CRODA) can be requested through the U.S. Department of State. Click here for further information.

You can apply for a Citizenship Certificate at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). The application can only be done in the U.S. For further information please visit the USCIS web site.

The naturalization ceremony can be performed by USCIS-Athens Field Office. Please get in touch with the USCIS office from the numbers below to find out if it will be possible to have it performed in Turkey.

Tel       : +30-210-720-2404, or 720-2405
Fax      : +30-210-729-4304
E-mail  : USCIS.Athens@dhs.gov

You can only obtain the apostille certification of a U.S. document from the state that issued the document. Clicking here to find a list of competent authorities from which you can obtain an apostille certification in the U.S. Additional information on this topic can be found at the State Department’s website.

The American Embassy in Ankara, the Consulates in Istanbul and Adana or the Izmir Consular Agency is not permitted to perform authentications of official Turkish documents. To obtain an authentication, you may go to the Governor’s office and obtain an apostille certificate. You must have your document translated into English by a sworn translator and notarized by the Turkish notary before taking them for apostille certification. Apostille certificates (documents which have the special Hague Legalization Certificate) are acceptable in all countries where the Hague Treaty is in force (including Turkey and the United States) without need for authentication by any other authority. Apostille certification can be obtained at:

Ankara:
Ankara Valiliği
Hukuk İşleri Müdürlüğü
Ulus, Ankara
Tel: 0-312-311-8816, ext. 151

Istanbul:
Valilik Hukuk Isleri
Istanbul Valiligi
Ankara Caddesi
Cağaloğlu, Istanbul
Tel.: 0-212-522-9789

Adana:
Hukuk İşleri Müdürlüğü
Adana Valiliği
Mücahitler Caddesi
Adana
Tel: 0-322-459-2743 or 459-2288

U.S. driver licenses can only be renewed in the U.S. Please check your state requirements for renewing your license. Each state has different regulations on driver license renewals.

U.S. Citizens need to get an affidavit of eligibility to marry in Turkey from Consular Services. For information on getting married in Turkey please click here. You need to get the affidavit in person from the consular sections as mentioned in the web page. If you are both a Turkish and a U.S. citizen, you don’t need the affidavit and you can directly apply at a Turkish Marriage Bureau. If you have ever been married before, you need to bring your original divorce decrees.

Depending on where you will get married, please schedule a notarial appointment with Ankara, Istanbul or Adana. If you are in Izmir, you need to get the affidavit in Ankara.

For questions regarding how to get your spouse a visa to go to the U.S. with you, please visit the Immigrant Visa Unit webpages.

A divorce decree obtained from U.S. courts does not automatically annul a marriage that was registered or has taken place in Turkey. Any Turkish citizen involved in such a legal separation should file a suit in Turkey to have the U.S. decree recognized by Turkish courts. The list of attorneys in Turkey.

The followings are needed:

1. A Power of Attorney to a lawyer in Turkey
2. Original copy of the divorce decree

To learn more about military enlistment, please visit https://www.usa.gov/join-military.

Due to Privacy Act, it is not possible to share the information of U.S. citizens with third parties. You can try searching your relative/friend on the internet. If you are searching this person for legal issues, you can try getting a lawyer in the U.S. who can help you with the search. To find a lawyer in the U.S., click here for American Bar Association’s web site.

The list of lawyers in Turkey

The list of doctors in Turkey

For all questions about importing goods to Turkey, consult a lawyer or import/export professional.  Consular officers cannot advise on these matters.

Please consult your educational institution.  Consular officers do not have information about student financial aid.

Below is a list of the English language schools in Ankara, you can contact them for more information.  The U.S. Embassy assumes no responsibility or liability for the professional ability or reputation of, or the quality of services provided by the following institutions.  Names are listed alphabetically, and the order in which they appear has no other significance.

• Bilkent Laboratory and International School (BLIS) +90-312-290-5361/2, http://blisankara.org
• British Embassy School Ankara (BESA) +90-312-468-6563, http://www.besaturkey.org/
• Department of Defense Dependents Schools (DoDDS) +90-312-287-2532, http://www.anka-ehs.eu.dodea.edu/
• OASIS International School +90-312-285-7524,http://www.oisankara.org/
• Kids International Pre-School (KIPS) +90-312-466-4640, http://www.kipspreschool.com/
• Turkish American Association Preschool (TAA) + 90-312-446 8886, www.tadpreschool-gop.com/eng/ ; www.tadpreschool.com

You can find information on the authentication of American academic credentials for use outside of the U.S. at the below link: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal/travel-legal-considerations/authentication-of-american-academic-credentials.html

Information on how to obtain U.S. criminal records can be found here.

U.S. citizens may obtain fingerprint cards from their local police departments in the United States or at FBI.gov.  Local police authorities (Turkish Passport Police Department–Pasaport Polisi) in Turkey may be able to provide fingerprinting services. The U.S. Embassy and its Consulates in Turkey do not provide fingerprinting services.

In order to find our your Social Security number (SSN), you need to contact the SSA Federal Benefits Unit (FBU) located in Greece.  For more information on their services and how to contact them, please visit their webpage at: https://gr.usembassy.gov/u-s-citizen-services/social-security/

To file for benefits, please contact the SSA Federal Benefits Unit (FBU) located in Greece.  For more information on their services and how to contact them, please visit their webpage at: https://gr.usembassy.gov/u-s-citizen-services/social-security/

Medicare Part B can only be used in the U.S. The monthly premium is about $99.90. If you don’t think of going back to the U.S., you can cancel the payment for Medicare Part B. However; if you want to re-enroll, you need to pay higher premiums and you can only enroll again in January/February/March of every year. For more information, please contact the SSA Federal Benefits Unit (FBU) located in Greece.  For more information on their services and how to contact them, please visit their webpage at: https://gr.usembassy.gov/u-s-citizen-services/social-security/

You need to fill out SSA-7050 to get your Social Security earning information. After you get this form, you either need to have it notarized at the Turkish Embassy or its Consulates in the U.S. or have an Apostille Certification from the U.S. before you can submit it to the Turkish Social Security Office (SGK).

You can find information on how to apply for Turkish Citizenship at the below websites:
The U.S. Embassy Ankara

You can find information about voting at Federal Voting Assistance Program webpage  and also at the Embassy’s voting page.

To file taxes overseas, you can refer to IRS Publication 54 and U.S. Tax Information for Overseas Americans. You can also consult an attorney to get information about filing taxes overseas. The list of attorneys in Turkey.

There is no limit on the amount of money that can be taken out of or brought into the United States. However, if a person or persons traveling together and filing a joint declaration (CBP Form 6059-B) have $10,000 or more in currency or negotiable monetary instruments, they must fill out a “Report of International Transportation of Currency and Monetary Instruments” FinCEN 105 (PDF 222 KB) (former CF 4790).

If assistance is required, a Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Officer can help with filling out the form.

Please be aware, if persons traveling together have $10,000 or more, they cannot divide the currency between each other to avoid declaring the currency.

For example, if one person is carrying $5,000 and the other has $6,000, they have a total of $11, 000 in their possession and must report it on a FinCEN 105. If a person or family fails to declare their monetary instruments in amounts of over $10,000, their monetary instrument(s) may be subject to forfeiture and could result to civil and criminal penalties.

The FinCEN 105 (PDF 222 KB) can be obtained prior to traveling or when going through CBP.

You can find further information at U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Its recommended that you get a letter from your doctor stating you need the medication explaining why you need to take it, the dose (amount) you need along with the original prescription. The letter should be also in Turkish as some customs officer may not speak English.