Blue Card, Closed Records and Name Equivalence

Our Approach to This Procedure

Citizenship history and closed and current records are examined together. The conditions for entitlement to the certificate, the source of the name difference and the effect of the correction on inheritance or land registry procedures are determined.

Closed Civil Registry Records, the Blue Card and Name Equivalence Procedures

A civil registry record can be closed for reasons such as death, declaration of absence, loss of citizenship, marriage, divorce, adoption or a change of parentage. A procedure on a closed record is assessed according to the reason the record was closed and the effect of the request on the current personal status.

The principal topics in this area:

Correction of the first name, surname or other information in a closed record
Differences arising with a foreign country record after renunciation of citizenship
Family and personal status records of a Blue Card holder
Different first names or surnames in Turkish and foreign identity documents
Applications for a name equivalence certificate
Consistency of records of persons with multiple citizenships
Events requiring the reopening of a closed record
The effect of the correction on inheritance, land registry or family records

are assessed. The existence of a closed record does not mean that every correction request connected with a personality right will be rejected automatically; the legal interest in the request and its effect on current records are examined on the concrete facts.

For whom is a name equivalence certificate issued?

This certificate is not a general identity-matching document issued for every name difference. According to the explanation of the General Directorate of Population and Citizenship Affairs (NVI), it can be issued for persons who later acquired Turkish citizenship and whose civil registry record contains their previous first name and surname. If the previous name is not in the record, the supporting document must be completed. Being a Blue Card holder does not by itself mean entitlement to this certificate.

Preparing for the Consultation and Scope of Services

Prepare the record you believe is wrong or inconsistent, the official documents on which that record is based and, if there is one, the rejection letter. Also state the dates of any notifications and procedures. Do not share unnecessary personal data before it has been assessed which documents the file actually requires.

The scope of the administrative application, lawsuit, appeal and post-decision procedures, as well as the attorney’s fee and other expenses, are agreed separately. The outcome and the end date are not guaranteed.

From Antalya to Personal Status Matters Across Türkiye

Güneş & Güneş Law Firm, founded in Kemer on March 18, 1999, assesses personal status procedures in all 81 provinces of Türkiye according to the subject-matter jurisdiction, territorial jurisdiction, representation and evidence requirements of the file. Our actual headquarters has been in Antalya since 2007.

In Türkiye-related record and document procedures of persons living abroad, the requirements of diplomatic missions, foreign documents, translation and registration are handled together. Local procedures in a foreign country are coordinated separately with lawyers authorized in that country when necessary.

Languages of communication: Turkish, English, German and Russian.

Legal Basis

Depending on the nature of the request, the Turkish Civil Code, the Population Services Law and the relevant procedural provisions are applied together.