Türkiye receives a large number of patients from abroad each year, and most of them come and go on ordinary visas. Those whose treatment extends beyond a short visit need a residence permit, and Article 31 of Law No. 6458 provides one specifically for that purpose. This article explains what the treatment ground requires, which documents hospitals actually issue, and how it interacts with the protection against removal for people undergoing treatment.
The ground
Article 31/1(f) of Law No. 6458 allows a short-term residence permit to be granted to a foreign national coming to Türkiye for treatment. The permit is granted for the duration of the treatment, and it may be granted to accompanying family members or carers where their presence is necessary.
Two features distinguish it from other short-term grounds. Its duration follows the treatment rather than a fixed period, and it accommodates companions — a recognition that a patient undergoing significant treatment frequently cannot travel or manage alone.
The document that matters
The application stands or falls on documentation from the treating institution. What is required is evidence from a public or private hospital that the applicant is receiving or will receive treatment there — commonly a letter or certificate confirming admission for treatment, the nature and expected duration of the treatment, and the institution's details.
What is not sufficient:
- A price quotation from a clinic. A commercial estimate is not confirmation of treatment.
- An appointment confirmation for a consultation, without more.
- A letter from a medical intermediary or agency rather than the treating institution.
- Documentation for a treatment that has already concluded.
Patients arranging treatment through an agency should ensure the hospital itself issues the document. Agencies produce a great deal of paperwork, and very little of it is what the migration authority is looking for.
The other requirements
- Passport valid at least sixty days beyond the requested period.
- Health insurance, or evidence that treatment costs are otherwise covered. Where the applicant is paying privately, evidence of the arrangement.
- Evidence of sufficient means for the stay and the treatment.
- Accommodation — a notarised lease, hotel arrangement, or documentation of hospital accommodation.
- Address registration.
- Fees — residence fee by nationality, plus the card fee.
Where the treatment is being paid for by a foreign public health system or an insurer, documentation of that arrangement should be included; it addresses both the insurance and the means requirements at once.
Companions
Family members or carers accompanying the patient may be granted permits where their presence is necessary, and necessity should be evidenced rather than asserted — a statement from the treating physician explaining why the patient requires assistance carries more weight than a family member's own account.
This matters particularly for elderly patients, for children, and for patients undergoing treatment that leaves them dependent for a period. The application should present the companion's role as part of the medical picture rather than as a separate travel arrangement.
Duration and renewal
The permit follows the treatment. Where treatment extends, the permit may be renewed on evidence that it is continuing — an updated letter from the institution, records of ongoing care.
Where treatment concludes, so does the ground. A patient who has recovered and wishes to remain must move to another basis. There is no automatic transition, and a permit that outlives its purpose creates problems at the next assessment.
The protection against removal
This is the part of the picture that patients and their families most need to know, and it operates independently of the permit.
Article 55 of Law No. 6458 provides that a removal decision shall not be taken in respect of, among others, persons who face a risk in travelling owing to serious health problems, age or pregnancy, and persons whose treatment for a life-threatening condition is ongoing where that treatment cannot be obtained in the country to which they would be returned.
The consequence is significant. A person undergoing serious treatment cannot lawfully be removed where those conditions are met, even where their immigration position is otherwise irregular. Where removal is nonetheless in prospect, this is the provision to engage, with medical evidence.
Where removal is barred but no other permit is available, the humanitarian residence permit under Article 46 is the mechanism that provides lawful status.
What the evidence needs to say
Medical evidence in this context is not a general statement of illness. To do its work it should address, specifically:
- the diagnosis and its seriousness;
- the treatment being provided and its expected duration;
- the consequence of interrupting the treatment;
- whether the treatment is available in the country of return, and if not, why;
- whether the patient is fit to travel.
A report that addresses those five points is worth a great deal more than a longer document that addresses none of them. Where the position is urgent, the report should be obtained before the application or the petition rather than after a refusal.
If the application is refused
A refusal is an administrative act, challengeable before the administrative court within sixty days of notification. Where removal is in prospect, a stay of execution should be sought, and interruption of treatment is precisely the kind of harm that is difficult to remedy — the standard the court applies.
These are among the stronger cases in this area when the medical evidence is properly prepared, because the statutory protection is explicit and the consequences of implementation are concrete and documented.
Practical points for patients arriving from abroad
- Arrange the hospital documentation before travelling where possible, so the permit application can be made promptly on arrival.
- Do not rely on an agency's paperwork. Obtain documents from the treating institution.
- Watch the visa position while the treatment is arranged. An overstay during treatment creates an entirely separate problem.
- Keep every medical document, including records from your own country establishing the history of the condition.
- Plan for the companion's permit at the same time as the patient's, not afterwards.
- Where treatment is extending, apply to renew early rather than at expiry.
Frequently asked questions
Can I apply after arriving as a tourist? Applications are commonly made from within Türkiye, subject to lawful entry and status. Take advice where the visa position is already complicated.
How long will the permit be granted for? For the duration of the treatment, as evidenced.
Can my spouse come with me? Companions may be granted permits where their presence is necessary. Evidence the necessity medically.
Does the permit cover the cost of treatment? No. It is a residence permit, not a healthcare entitlement.
Can I work on this permit? No. Work requires a work permit obtained by an employer.
What happens when treatment ends? The ground ends. Move to another basis or depart.
I am facing deportation but am undergoing treatment. What can I do? Article 55 may bar removal. Obtain medical evidence and take advice immediately — removal decisions carry a seven-day challenge period.
Where advice helps most
These applications are usually straightforward when the hospital documentation is right, and difficult when it is not. Where removal is in prospect for a patient under treatment, the position is governed by an explicit statutory protection that has to be engaged properly and quickly.
Dural Hukuk prepares treatment-based residence permit applications for patients and their companions, and acts urgently where a person undergoing treatment faces removal. Call +90 535 260 74 54 or use the contact form on this site.
This article is general information on Turkish law as at August 2026 and is not legal or medical advice. Obtain advice on your own circumstances without delay.