Short answer
A restriction code (tahdit kodu) is an administrative code that the Presidency of Migration Management enters in a foreign national's record; it bans entry to Türkiye, makes entry subject to prior permission, or is simply an informational note. The letter shows the type: Ç codes are usually time-limited entry bans, G codes are security or health-related and usually indefinite bans, N codes require prior permission, O codes relate to international protection, and V codes are information and monitoring records. Every code is an administrative act and its annulment can be sought by an action before the administrative court within 60 days of notification (Administrative Procedure Law No. 2577, Art. 7).
Because restriction codes are administrative acts, they must be notified to the foreign national. In practice, however, many people only learn of their record at the border, during a visa application, or from the reply to a freedom-of-information request to the migration authority. The date on which the code was entered and the reason given are decisive both for calculating the time limit for an action and for choosing how to have the code lifted.
The tables below summarise the codes most often encountered in practice, based on the migration authority's Circular on Restriction Procedures of 10 July 2020. For a detailed explanation of each code and relevant case law, see our article on visa and residence violations.
Ç series codes usually result in a time-limited entry ban. Where a visa, visa exemption, residence permit or work permit has been overstayed, the length of the ban depends on the length of the violation.
| Code | Meaning | Duration / effect |
|---|---|---|
| Ç-101 | Overstay of 1–3 months | 3 months |
| Ç-102 | Overstay of 3–6 months | 6 months |
| Ç-103 | Overstay of 6 months – 1 year | 1 year |
| Ç-104 | Overstay of 1–2 years | 2 years |
| Ç-105 | Overstay of 2–5 years | 5 years |
| Ç-167 | Overstay of 3–6 months, reporting voluntarily and paying the fine before any deportation order | 1 month |
| Ç-113 | Illegal entry or exit | Depends on the decision |
| Ç-114 | Judicial proceedings for involvement in a crime, cancellation of permit or deportation | 2 years |
| Ç-115 | Deportation after release from prison | 2 years |
| Ç-116 | Assessed as earning a living by illegitimate means | 5 years |
| Ç-117 | Working without a work permit | 1 year |
| Ç-118 | Deportation due to a communicable disease threatening public health | 5 years |
| Ç-136 | Failure to pay deportation costs | Depends on the decision |
| Ç-137 | Failure to leave despite an invitation to leave | Depends on the decision |
| Ç-138 | Inadmissible passenger (INAD) | Depends on the decision |
| Ç-149 | Inadmissible passenger; risk of links to conflict zones | 5 years |
| Ç-150 | Forged or another person's document, false information in an e-visa application | 5 years |
| Ç-151 | Deportation for migrant smuggling or human trafficking | 5 years |
| Ç-152 | Short-term prevention of entry | 1 year |
| Ç-166 | Inadmissible passenger with a V-163 record | 1 year |
| Ç-179 | Deportation for organ or tissue trafficking | 5 years |
V series codes are mostly for information and monitoring; some are linked to temporary or international protection status. Even where they do not create an entry ban on their own, they can affect residence, visa and exit procedures.
| Code | Meaning | Duration / effect |
|---|---|---|
| V-69 | Foreigner whose residence permit has been cancelled | Record / monitoring |
| V-70 | Suspected marriage of convenience | Record / monitoring |
| V-71 | Not found at the address, or breach of address registration rules | Record / monitoring |
| V-74 | Foreigner whose exit requires permission (mostly international protection) | Record / monitoring |
| V-84 | Entered on condition of applying for residence within 10 days but did not apply | Record / monitoring |
| V-87 | Foreigner under temporary protection who returned voluntarily to their country | Record / monitoring |
| V-91 | Foreigner under temporary protection whose exit requires permission | Record / monitoring |
| V-92 | Duplicate temporary protection registration; records other than the current one | Record / monitoring |
| V-137 | Monitoring the departure of a foreigner invited to leave | Record / monitoring |
G series codes rest on security and public health grounds and usually result in an indefinite entry ban. Administrative courts can annul decisions that are not based on concrete information capable of being put before the court.
| Code | Meaning | Duration / effect |
|---|---|---|
| G-78 | Carrying a communicable disease | Indefinite |
| G-82 | Activity, or suspected activity, against national security | Indefinite |
| G-86 / G-87 | Assessed as a danger to general security | Indefinite |
| G-89 | Assessed as a foreign terrorist fighter | Indefinite |
N series codes are technically not entry bans; they make entry subject to the prior permission of the Ministry of Interior. N codes arising from unpaid fees and fines can often be lifted once the debt is paid; until it is paid, a time-limited ban can in practice become indefinite.
| Code | Meaning | Duration / effect |
|---|---|---|
| N-82 | Prior-permission requirement on national security grounds (istizan) | Entry subject to prior permission |
| N-95 | Entered despite a ban and did not pay the administrative fine | Entry subject to prior permission |
| N-96 | Did not leave within the period of the invitation to leave (V-137 record) | Entry subject to prior permission |
| N-97 | Did not pay the fine linked to a V-71 record | Entry subject to prior permission |
| N-119 | Did not pay the administrative fine for working without a permit | Entry subject to prior permission |
| N-120 | Did not pay the fees and fines for a visa, residence or work violation | Entry subject to prior permission |
O series codes apply where an application for international protection is withdrawn or refused, or protection status ends.
| Code | Meaning | Duration / effect |
|---|---|---|
| O-100 | Voluntary withdrawal of an application for international protection | 1 year |
| O-176 | Application deemed withdrawn, found inadmissible or not in need of protection, or status ended | 3 years |
| O-177 | Exclusion, cancellation of status or refusal of the application | 5 years |
Filing an action does not by itself give a right to enter Türkiye; entry becomes possible if the court stays the decision or annuls the code. For the detailed procedure, see our articles on restriction codes and annulment actions and deportation orders, and for all our immigration services, our Immigration and Foreigners' Law page.