It is a known fact that I’d be one of the biggest advocates of traveling to Turkey, as I have been doing through this blog for the past 3 years, ever since my solo trip to Istanbul. Turkey is a beautiful country with some scenic attractions, an abundance of history, rich culture and heritage, delicious food and extremely warm and hospitable people.
In 2019, Turkey is back in vogue as a top choice for holiday goers. Even more so after the introduction of numerous new flights from major Indian cities to Turkey. Another advantage being the inclusion of Indian passport holders for e-visa, making the process a whole lot simpler.
While Indians still need to get themselves a Turkish Visa before visiting Turkey, the process has definitely gotten easier and even faster in many cases, making Turkey a much sought-after destination.
Applying for Turkish Visa
All Indian passport holders can go to VFS and apply for a Turkey Tourist Visa, which is typically granted for a period of 30 days with a 90 days validity.
In case you hold a valid US, UK, Schengen or Australian visa, you can apply for a Turkish visa online and avoid the hassle of physical submission of your application.
So, the first step to getting a visa for your Turkish holiday would be to identify if you can apply for your visa online or if you need to book an appointment and submit a paper application with your documents for your visa.
1. Applying for Turkish e-Visa
Indian passport holders can now also avail the Turkish Visa Online if the applicant has either of the valid Schengen Visa, US, UK or Australian visa at the time of application.
Once you’re eligible for an online visa, the process is incredibly easy.
The process of your obtaining your visa is simple and quick-
- Step I: Head to Turkey E-Visa Application Portal
- Step II: Fill in your trip details in the online application form for your Turkish e-visa
- Step III: Make the payment using your International Debit Card, Credit Card or PayPal account
- Step IV: Wait for your visa! Typically, your visa will be emailed to you anywhere between 15mins to 3 days at your registered email ID.
You can take this visa and head straight for your trip to Turkey.
Charges: INR 2500 approx.
Processing Time: 5mins to 3 days (Most e-Visa applicants are known to get their visa immediately upon application)
Terms:
Having a Turkish e-visa is not sufficient to guarantee you an entry in the country. You are likely to be questioned at immigration and maybe detained further in case of discrepancies with your passport/ application.
The Turkish e-visa is valid for a Single Entry, allowing you a maximum of 30 days stay in the country.
The Turkish e-visa is only valid for Tourist purposes.
Pro Tip: I’d highly recommend getting yourself a US visa, not just for your US travels but also to avail benefits such as the various e-visas and discounts that come along.
2. Applying for Turkey Visa for Indian Passport Holders
To apply for a Short-Term Turkey Visa, you can follow the simple procedure below:
Which category of Visa do you need?
The Turkish Visa categories are defined by your purpose of visit and duration of stay.
Short Term: If you’re traveling to Turkey for a period of 30 days or less, this is the obvious category for your application. (Most Tourist visa applications are Short Term Visas)
The Short-Term visa is a single-entry visa having a 90 days validity, allowing you a stay of 30 days or less in the state of Turkey.
If you’re looking to stay for more than 30 days, you need to apply for the Long-Term visa with all essential documents.
How to go about the application?
Plan
Step 1 of any visa application is always planning. Be certain of your travel plans- dates, itinerary, this is the toughest part of any trip because too much research can be overwhelming keeping in mind the time you have for the trip and your budgets.
Especially for your visa purposes, you need to have a fixed overview plan- How many days in a city? How and when are you traveling to the next city? Your entry and exit into the country, etc.
Prepare
Basis of your travel plans, you need to prepare for all the necessary documentation for your visa application. Paperwork is the only trick to a 100% visa approval situation.
Book an Appointment
Once you have your paperwork in place, book your appointment for physical application submission.
You can either head directly to the Consulate of Turkey in your city (if you’re from Mumbai/ Delhi) or you could book an appointment with the nearest VFS Global center.
Document Submission
Here’s your document checklist for your Short-Term Turkey Visa:
- Passport with minimum 6 months validity from your travel dates and 2 blank pages
- 2 passport size photographs (2.5-inch x 2.5 inch)
- Visa Form
- Cover Letter
- Return Flight tickets
- Accommodation Bookings
- Employment details- leave letter for the period of your travels
- In case you’re self-employed, you can submit your client contracts, license number, company details.
- ITR for last 3 years
- Bank Statement for the last 3 months with sufficient balance (signed and stamped by bank officials)
Turkish Visa does not require biometric scan for the application.
Processing Time
After submitting your application, you must allow 10-15days for the processing of your visa. You can opt for SMS updates or track your visa using the application number on the receipt to see the status of your passport/ if any additional documents are required.
Remember, your online tracker does not reveal the visa decision for your passport.
Collect your passport
You will receive an email/SMS when your passport is ready to be collected. You can head to the submission center to collect your passport as per the given time or simply opt for the courier service which will get your passport delivered to your address directly from the embassy.
You will only find out the visa decision after you have received your passport.
In case your visa is rejected, you can instantly appeal for the same.
If you have any additional hacks or queries for applying for a Turkish Visa, feel free to comment below.
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