Moving from the Netherlands
to Turkey: Complete Guide

Dutch passport holders can enter Turkey visa-free for tourism or business for up to 90 days within any 180-day period. If you want to stay longer — which applies to almost everyone actually relocating — you need a short-term residence permit (ikamet), applied for through the official e-ikamet.goc.gov.tr portal run by the Presidency of Migration Management (Göç İdaresi), before your 90-day window expires.

Budget roughly €50–80 for the application fee plus roughly €20–35 for card issuance for a standard one-year short-term residence permit, though exact amounts are revised periodically and vary with your nationality and the permit's validity length. On top of that, factor in the cost of compliant Turkish health insurance, which is a separate, mandatory expense for most applicants under 65.

Yes, if you are between 18 and 65. Turkey's insurance regulator (SEDDK) raised the minimum coverage a residence-permit-compliant policy must offer, effective 1 April 2025: at least ₺15,000 of outpatient (ayakta tedavi) cover and ₺150,000 of inpatient (yatarak tedavi) cover at hospitals outside the insurer's contracted network, with unlimited cover inside it. Applicants aged 65 and over are generally exempt from the mandatory private-policy requirement for an individual permit.

If you'll live outside the Netherlands for 8 months or more within any 12-month period, Dutch law requires you to deregister (uitschrijving) from the Basisregistratie Personen (BRP) at your municipality. You can typically do this online via DigiD from up to 5 days before you leave, or in person. Deregistering does not affect your Dutch nationality, passport, or BSN — but it does normally end your entitlement to standard zorgverzekering, so line up Turkish health cover first.

Yes. Your BSN and DigiD remain valid for life as a Dutch citizen, regardless of where you live. You'll continue to need DigiD to interact with the Belastingdienst, SVB, and Dutch pension providers from Turkey, so do not cancel it — some digital government services may have reduced functionality for non-residents, but the accounts themselves stay active.

Yes, in principle. The Netherlands and Turkey have had a bilateral double taxation agreement (DTA) since 1986, which allocates taxing rights between the two countries so the same income isn't taxed twice. Private pensions and most other income are generally taxed only where you're resident (Turkey, once you've emigrated), but the Dutch state pension (AOW) can retain Dutch taxing rights under specific treaty articles. Treaty application depends heavily on your personal income mix, so get cross-border tax advice rather than assuming a blanket exemption. See our full breakdown of taxes when moving from the Netherlands.

Your AOW continues to be paid by the SVB (Sociale Verzekeringsbank) into a Turkish bank account — the Netherlands and Turkey have had a bilateral social security treaty since 1966, revised in 2000 with an additional agreement in 2009, that protects this export. Your AOW may be reduced if you had uninsured years in the Netherlands between age 15 and 65 (or the relevant reference period), and the Belastingdienst DTA rules on AOW taxation are a separate matter from whether the payment itself continues. Read our dedicated guide to Dutch pensions in Turkey for the full process.

The M-form (migratie-formulier) is the Dutch tax return you file for the calendar year you emigrate, covering the period you were still a Dutch tax resident. It's more complex than a standard return because it splits the year into resident and non-resident periods. Most people emigrating from the Netherlands should file one for their departure year, and it's worth using a Dutch tax adviser for it if your finances (property, investments, pensions) are non-trivial.

Some Dutch banks allow non-residents to keep an account, but with restrictions, and some (including major banks like ING and ABN AMRO) have been known to close accounts for customers who no longer have a Dutch address. Confirm your specific bank's non-resident policy before you leave. Many Dutch expats keep a Wise, Revolut, or similar multi-currency account as a bridge for receiving Dutch income and paying Dutch bills, alongside a Turkish bank account for local spending.

Yes. The Netherlands is on Turkey's list of nationalities permitted to buy real estate under the reciprocity principle, subject to standard restrictions (a national cap on total area a foreign individual can own, and a ban on purchases inside designated military security zones). Property above a set investment threshold can also support Turkish citizenship by investment. See our full guide on Dutch citizens buying property in Turkey for the purchase process, costs, and legal checks.

You can drive in Turkey on a valid Dutch licence for a limited period as a new resident, but Dutch/EU licences are not simply exchangeable for a Turkish one — the Netherlands is not currently on Turkey's list of countries with automatic licence-exchange agreements, so most Dutch residents eventually need to take a Turkish theory and practical test. Check current requirements before your foreign licence's driving privileges lapse — see our guides on using a foreign licence in Turkey and getting a Turkish driving licence.

Usually not for the long term. Temporary admission of a foreign-plated car is time-limited and complicated to extend, and formally importing a car into Turkey triggers ÖTV (a steep, engine-size-based special consumption tax) that can multiply the car's value. Most Dutch expats find it cheaper to sell their car before leaving and buy locally. Full details are in our guide to bringing a car from the Netherlands to Turkey.

Substantially. Overall living costs in Turkey typically run 55–70% lower than in the Netherlands, with rent showing the biggest gap — a central 1-bedroom apartment averages €1,200–2,000/month in Amsterdam versus roughly €200–450/month in a Turkish coastal city. Groceries, healthcare, transport, and childcare are all meaningfully cheaper too, though imported goods, new cars, and electronics are often more expensive in Turkey than in the Netherlands. See the full cost-of-living comparison for a category-by-category breakdown.

Antalya, particularly the Konyaaltı district, has the largest and most established Dutch community in Turkey, with Dutch-speaking agents, active social groups, and reasonably good (largely seasonal) flight links to Amsterdam and Eindhoven. Fethiye and Bodrum also have meaningful Dutch populations, while Istanbul draws Dutch professionals for career reasons rather than retirement.

A standard short-term residence permit is for residence, not employment authorisation — it does not by itself grant the right to work for a Turkish employer. Many Dutch remote workers live in Turkey on a short-term ikamet while remaining employed and paid by a Dutch company, but this area intersects Turkish tax residency rules, Dutch payroll/social-security obligations, and immigration rules in ways that genuinely need personal advice, since the details depend on your employer, contract, and days spent in each country.