A Blue Card (Mavi Kart) holder, a dual citizen and a Turkish citizen living abroad do not have the same legal status. In inheritance procedures in Türkiye, the person’s current citizenship, how the citizenship was lost, the status on the date of death and the type of property are examined together. An application made with the wrong status may create unnecessary obstacles in land registry and document procedures. [1] [2]
What Right Does the Blue Card Show?
Article 28 of the Turkish Citizenship Law (Türk Vatandaşlığı Kanunu) provides a special regime of rights for persons who were Turkish citizens by birth and lost their citizenship through a renunciation permit, and for the descendants specified in the law. The Blue Card shows entitlement to the rights within this scope; it is not a new document of Turkish citizenship. Not every former Turkish citizen who has become a foreign citizen automatically falls within the same scope. [1]
In inheritance and immovable property procedures, this special status is taken into account. However, national security, public order and the exceptions in the law are reserved. Where the card cannot be presented, the possibility of carrying out the transaction with the record extract provided for by law and a foreign identity document is assessed. If there has been a change of identity, a document prepared in due form that links the old and new details is required.
Which Law Applies to Dual Citizenship?
Article 4 of the Private International and Procedural Law (MÖHUK) provides that, for a person who holds more than one citizenship and is also a Turkish citizen, Turkish law is taken as the basis. In inheritance law, the status of the deceased must be examined first; the fact alone that an heir has a Turkish passport does not show that the entire estate is subject to Turkish law. For immovable property in Türkiye, the special rule in Article 20 applies separately. [2]
For example, the deceased may be only a German citizen, while the heir may be a Turkish-German dual citizen. In this case, the heir’s two passports alone do not change the deceased’s national law. If the deceased also had Turkish citizenship, a different assessment may arise. This example is not a calculation of shares but shows that the status of the correct person needs to be examined.
Identity Matching in Documents
| Situation | Required link |
|---|---|
| Old Turkish identity and new foreign passport | Citizenship and name change records |
| Blue Card | Card or record showing the scope |
| Surname changed by marriage | Marriage and name document |
| Old land registry record | Showing that the owner and the current identity are the same person |
| Special status of descendants | Ascendant and filiation documents |
A person may have a bank account under the old T.C. identity number and another account under a foreign identity. The search should cover all known identities. The fact that a record does not appear in an electronic query does not conclusively establish that the right does not exist; a correction by the institution may be required.
Certificate of Inheritance (Veraset İlamı) and Foreign Documents
The foreign element, the notaries’ authority to issue documents and the adequacy of population records are assessed together. The existence of a Blue Card does not mean that foreign family records or a review of foreign law are unnecessary. If a court application is required, the death and filiation documents are prepared in compliance with certification and translation requirements. [3] [4]
The use in Türkiye of a certificate of inheritance obtained abroad is examined separately. The card or dual citizenship does not change the res judicata nature of a foreign document. Apostille, recognition and obtaining a new document in Türkiye are different procedures.
Land Registry, Bank and Tax Procedures
At the land registry, whether the person falls within the scope of Article 28 of the Citizenship Law must be clearly documented. It is incorrect both to apply all the restrictions of the normal foreign acquisition regime to a Blue Card holder without examination and to say that no condition exists at all. The date of death and the special immovable property legislation are reserved. [1] [5]
At the bank, identity, tax number, residency and heirship documents are required. The Blue Card does not provide a general exemption from inheritance tax. The scope of the tax is determined by Article 1 of the Inheritance and Transfer Tax Law (VİVK) and the related provisions; the filing period is determined by the death and by where the taxpayer is located. [6]
Power of Attorney and Remote Follow-Up
In a power of attorney drawn up through a consulate or a foreign notary, the correct citizenship and identity details must be used. If there is no link between the old identity and the new passport, the application to the institution may be left pending. The authority to sell, to divide and to collect payments must also be stated expressly. [7]
The address abroad and the arrangement for notification are also kept up to date. A short visit to Türkiye does not by itself change tax residence abroad or the whole legal status. In the transaction plan, citizenship, residence and tax residence should be shown in separate fields.
Which Dates Are Used as the Basis in a Status Review?
Citizenship and identity documents may change over time. The deceased’s citizenship on the date of death matters separately for the law applicable to the inheritance; the heir’s identity at the time of the transaction matters for identification at the institution; and the manner of leaving citizenship matters for the scope of Article 28 of the Citizenship Law. Trying to explain these three pieces of information with a single current passport may lead to an incomplete review. [1] [2]
In the file, the dates of Turkish citizenship by birth, the renunciation permit, the acquisition of foreign citizenship and the change of name can be shown in a chart. If the person lost Turkish citizenship for another reason, it cannot be said that all the rights granted to Blue Card holders will apply automatically. If a descendant’s benefit is in question, the scope in the law and the filiation documents are checked. The physical absence of the card and the absence of statutory coverage are different problems.
Why Are the Citizenship of the Decedent and the Heir Assessed Separately?
In the law applicable to the substance of the inheritance, the national law of the deceased is one of the main connecting factors. The fact that the heir is a Turkish citizen does not automatically subject the entire movable property inheritance of a foreign decedent to Turkish law. Likewise, the fact that a Blue Card holder heir lives abroad does not remove the special rule of Article 20 of the Private International and Procedural Law for immovable property in Türkiye. [2]
If the deceased was both a Turkish citizen and a citizen of another state, the provision of Article 4 of the Private International and Procedural Law on cases of multiple citizenship that include Turkish citizenship is taken into account. If the deceased had more than one foreign citizenship and no Turkish citizenship, a different connecting factor of the same provision comes into play. The general statement “In dual citizenship, the law of the country of residence always applies” does not account for these distinctions.
How Is a Record Matching Application Made Concrete?
If there is a record opened at the bank or land registry under the old identity, adding only the new passport to the application may not be sufficient. The old and new names, date of birth, place of birth, parents’ details and current identity numbers are matched on the basis of documents. If the error arises from a translation, the translation is corrected; if the source population document is wrong, a registration procedure before the competent authority may be required. Attention should be paid to duplicate records that treat different spellings of the same person as a new person.
The result requested from the institution can be written clearly: updating of identity details, acceptance that two records belong to the same person, or processing of the transaction on the basis of heir status. Each of these requests may not be resolved with the same set of documents. If, instead of an oral explanation by the institution, it is asked in writing which link is considered missing, the unnecessary re-preparation of all foreign documents can be avoided.
The Blue Card Is Not a Tax Residence Document
Citizenship, residence and tax residence are different from one another. The existence of a Blue Card alone does not determine the tax liability abroad or the scope of inheritance tax in Türkiye. For inheritance tax, the person and property connections in Article 1 of the Inheritance and Transfer Tax Law are examined; for the filing period, the distinctions in Article 9 between the place of death and the taxpayer’s location are examined. For this reason, a bank’s separate request for a tax residence declaration should not be regarded as an unnecessary repetition of the certificate of inheritance. [6]
An heir whose address abroad has changed should update the representation and notification file. A short visit to Türkiye does not change all tax connections. When inheritance money is sent abroad, the receiving bank’s requests for source documents may also arise regardless of citizenship status.
Example File and Finalization
In a hypothetical example, suppose that a person within the scope of the Blue Card inherits a house and deposits from a father who is registered in Türkiye under his old surname. First the identity chains of the deceased and the heir, and then the inheritance shares, are determined. The special status is documented at the land registry; the old and new identity details are matched at the bank. The tax return is prepared on a per-property and per-person basis. The completion of one of these procedures does not automatically update the records of the other institutions.
At the end of the file, the current land registry record, the bank payment receipt (dekont) and the tax documents are compared. If a refusal has been issued because of a wrong status, the avenue of recourse appropriate to the grounds for refusal is chosen; resending only a photocopy of the Blue Card does not resolve every dispute. The measure of success is not the abstract acceptance of the special status but the actual application of the inheritance right to the property concerned.
How Should a Blue Card Heir Plan the Application?
First the Scope of the Right, Then Identity and Inheritance Share
The scope of Article 28 of the Citizenship Law and which person left how much inheritance are separate questions. Having a special status does not exempt a person from proving kinship or the inheritance share. First the link between citizenship by birth and exit by permit is established, then the filiation to the deceased and, if any, the relationship as spouse. For descendants, both the scope of the law and the link between generations are documented. The Blue Card statements of the Directorate General of Population and Citizenship Affairs (Nüfus ve Vatandaşlık İşleri Genel Müdürlüğü) are a reference source for documenting the status. [1] [8]
The fact that a family event is not up to date in the Blue Card Register (Mavi Kartlılar Kütüğü) does not always mean that the inheritance right does not exist. For example, if a marriage or birth abroad has not been entered in the records, the event must be shown with an appropriate document and the necessary registration procedure must be carried out. Presenting the card does not complete a missing filiation chain. The institution should distinguish between insufficiency of documents and the status falling outside the scope.
Choosing Between a Notary and a Court
Because of the limits in Article 71/B of the Notaries Law (Noterlik Kanunu), the adequacy of population records and the foreign element are examined. No assurance can be given in the form of statements such as “There is a Blue Card, so the notary will certainly issue it” or “A notary issues it to everyone who shows a Turkish passport.” For a foreign record or legal review that cannot be resolved at the notary, a request for a certificate of inheritance before the civil court of peace (sulh hukuk mahkemesi) comes into question. The court is presented not only with the status card but with documents establishing the death and the family relationship and, where necessary, allowing foreign law to be researched. [3] [4]
Comparison of the Three Statuses in Terms of Procedure
| Status | First check | Wrong conclusion to avoid |
|---|---|---|
| A person holding Turkish and foreign citizenship together | Continuation of Turkish citizenship on the relevant date | Assuming that two citizenships create two separate inheritance shares |
| Blue Card holder within the scope of Article 28 of the Citizenship Law | Exit by permit, scope and identity chain | Treating the card as Turkish citizenship or a tax exemption |
| Foreign national outside the scope of the Blue Card | Citizenship, inheritance link and the regime to which the property is subject | Automatically applying all the rights of the other two groups |
This table does not calculate statutory inheritance shares. For the share, the national law of the deceased, the special regime of the immovable property in Türkiye, the family relationship of the heirs and mortis causa dispositions are assessed together. The multiple citizenship rule in Article 4 of the Private International and Procedural Law applies in cases where the law determines the competent law by the citizenship connection; it does not mean that all disputes are resolved only according to citizenship. [2]
The Distinction to Follow If an Institution Refuses
If the refusal arises from a mismatch between the old and new identity details, the record link is completed. If it is alleged that the foreign immovable acquisition regime has been wrongly applied, the scope of Article 28 of the Citizenship Law and the grounds for refusal are shown together. If the share in the certificate of inheritance is disputed, the problem cannot be solved merely by a bank identity update; an appropriate judicial route is needed for the document and the entitlement. The same petition and the same authority cannot be used for every refusal. The refusal letter, the date of notification and the avenue of recourse indicated, if any, are retained; the administrative or judicial route is determined according to the legal nature of the dispute.
Conclusion
In a Blue Card and dual citizenship file, the first step is to document the correct status. Once the identity chain, the citizenship of the deceased and the nature of the property are clarified, inheritance, land registry and bank procedures can be carried out under the appropriate legal regime.
Related articles: Estate Division in Türkiye for Persons Living Abroad: Agreement, Power of Attorney and Completing Procedures; How Is a Foreign Will Applied in Türkiye? Opening, Heirship and Delivery of the Property; Why Can an Inheritance Transfer in Türkiye Not Be Completed? Missing Documents, Institutional Refusal and Solutions; How Are Inheritance Procedures Carried Out Without Coming to Türkiye? Power of Attorney from Abroad and Remote Follow-Up; Is a Foreign Certificate of Inheritance Valid in Türkiye? Apostille, Court Decision and Method of Use.; Certificate of inheritance (veraset ilamı); Inheritance Transfer in Türkiye for Foreigners and Persons Living Abroad
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the Blue Card Turkish citizenship?
No. It shows entitlement to the special rights set out in the law.
Can an inheritance pass to a Blue Card holder?
Yes. The inheritance right of persons within the scope of Article 28 of the Citizenship Law is protected. Heir status, share and identity are documented separately; the provisions on national security and public order are reserved.
Is a dual citizen heir’s share doubled?
No. The number of citizenships does not multiply the inheritance share.
Does the Blue Card remove inheritance tax?
It cannot be used as a general tax exemption.
Sources and legal bases
- Law No. 5901, Turkish Citizenship Law
- Law No. 5718 on Private International and Procedural Law (Milletlerarası Özel Hukuk ve Usul Hukuku Hakkında Kanun)
- Law No. 1512, Notaries Law
- Law No. 6100, Code of Civil Procedure (Hukuk Muhakemeleri Kanunu)
- Law No. 2644, Land Registry Law (Tapu Kanunu)
- Law No. 7338, Inheritance and Transfer Tax Law (Veraset ve İntikal Vergisi Kanunu)
- Law No. 6098, Turkish Code of Obligations (Türk Borçlar Kanunu)
- Directorate General of Population and Citizenship Affairs, Blue Card