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I have 2 passports one Italian and one Dutch. I have been on my Italian passport in Turkey for nearly 3 months but want to stay longer. I thought to cross the border to Bulgaria for a week or so and then return to Turkey on the Dutch and get another 3 months.

Does this work?

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    Visit duration limits apply to the person, not to the passport. It's clear from this question of ten years ago that stacking visa-free entries into Turkey wasn't OK even back then. Today's tech makes it even more likely that Turkish Immigration would identify you as the same person who just left. Nov 17, 2022 at 16:09
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    Just fyi, last year I faced this issue when I wanted to leave turkey. I was there for 6 months and was not aware about it, paid 2k fine in turkish lira(little more than 100euros at this time)
    – AshBringer
    Nov 18, 2022 at 13:28
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    @AshBringer and paying €100 might be cheaper than leaving and returning
    – Aaron F
    Nov 18, 2022 at 17:53
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    @AshBringer Since this is technically a violation of the immigration laws, you may have trouble at the next entry (attempt). Have you been to Turkey since? If yes: Anything remarkable during the subsequent entry, like a backroom conversation with the immigration officer? Nov 20, 2022 at 8:05
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    @Peter-ReinstateMonica I have re entered the country 2 months ago without issue, normal entry like nothing happened :)
    – AshBringer
    Nov 21, 2022 at 12:56

2 Answers 2

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The fact that you have multiple passports does not change the fact that you are the same person, so the answer will be the same as if you did a visa run and returned with the same passport.

And the rule is clear, on the visa-free regime, you are allowed 90 days per visit, 90 days within a 180-day period. So after staying 90 days, you have to stay out of Turkey for 90 days before returning, or apply for a different type of visa that would allow you to stay longer.

Note that the rule says "90 days", not "3 months". So for instance if you arrived on 25 August, you are allowed to stay until 22 November, not 24 November.

Note also that if you stayed in Turkey at any time in the 90 days before the start of your current stay, you may already be overstaying.

Edit

PS: the Turkish government page here lists the 90 in 180 days maximum for many countries, but not for Italy (and a few other EU countries, but definitely not all). Not sure if it's an error or if there is actually a difference (there may be some bilateral agreement that supersedes the usual rule).

On the other hand, this page says:

The length of stay provided by visa or visa exemption cannot exceed 90 days within each 180 days. The regulation of 90 days of stay within the last 180 days is binding for all foreigners that will travel to Türkiye

Nonetheless, even when there is no explicit rules about it, there are usually less explicit rules like "you are supposed to be a temporary visitor and not attempt to live in the country for extended periods of time through repeated or successive visits", so instead of having a clear "you're not allowed to do that" you may end up in a much muddier "it depends on the bordel official".

Visa runs used to be quite the norm for many people in many countries, but in most countries this has been severely curtailed.

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I lived in Turkey for a year back in 2000. I used to hop across the border to Alexandroupoli in Greece every 3 months for a new visa. I'd come back the same day with the same passport. It was never an issue. If you re-enter with a different passport, I really doubt you'll have a problem. Of course, as others have pointed out - it's probably not politically correct.

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    It's not just "not politically correct", it's very clearly and explicitly not allowed. Maybe it was back in 2000, but nowadays it definitely isn't.
    – jcaron
    Nov 21, 2022 at 10:26
  • You're downvoting me for sharing my own experience about the exact scenario that the OP is asking about? They asked if it works - and I'm saying yes, it probably would. The question was not whether or not it is legal/appropriate/frowned-upon. It wasn't 'officially' allowed back in 2000 either, yet Turkey's own border guards allowed it, repeatedly.
    – hunter
    Nov 21, 2022 at 10:35
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    That's your experience from 2000, i.e. 22 years ago. Lots of things have changed since then, both in terms of regulations and in terms of systems in place. I don't think it's relevant for OP's situation right now. Also it is a policy of the site to not advise people to do things which are illegal.
    – jcaron
    Nov 21, 2022 at 11:01
  • Attempting to re-enter a country on a different passport is not illegal - the worst that can happen is that they turn you away. And if they grant you the visa then you're entering legally.
    – hunter
    Nov 21, 2022 at 11:20

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