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Turkey offers Syrians fleeing war 1-year residence permit
Only those Syrians that enter the country using their passports at border checkpoints are eligible to receive the residence permit, according to Şahin. “This is a practice that complies with both our national laws and international law,” the minister told reporters, adding that the government was also taking measures to ensure the Syrians will have access to education and health services in Turkey.
“Our ministry is implementing special measures for Syrians seeking shelter in Turkey. For those who are of school age we will implement some measures that will allow them to receive an education. Some new measures have been taken in health issues with the efforts of both our ministry and health ministry,” said Şahin.
Within the scope of bilateral agreements between Turkey and Syria, Syrian citizens can enter Turkey without a visa. When Syrians enter Turkey with their passports they are given a three-month residence permit. This residence permit has been increased to one year, in order to accommodate Syrians who are not able to return home due to the continued violence there.
Turkish officials have previously sent notifications to refugees residing in Hatay's Antakya district about a planned relocation due to recent tensions that have allegedly arisen between them and some Turks in Hatay, Syrian refugees residing in the province have been transferred to other provinces. Turkish officials do not want Syrian refugees to live outside of the camps due to such security concerns.
Turkey is currently hosting 170,000 Syrian refugees fleeing from the war. Some 110,000 of them are living in refugee camps, while the rest are staying in apartments in various provinces. The total number of Syrian refugees living outside of their country amounts to 2.5 million, most of them having fled to Syria's neighbors, Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon.
The Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) has spent more than $500 million so far for the Syrian refugees, AFAD stated on Monday. Even though Turkey will provide 1-year residence permit for Syrian refugees, this would not automatically give them a work permit. Having a residence permit is a prerequisite to obtaining a work permit; however, a separate application must be made to the Labor Ministry in order to obtain that.
Syrian refugees are accommodated in a total of 13 tent cities and one container city that were built by AFAD in seven Turkish provinces along the Syrian border: Hatay, Şanlıurfa, Gaziantep, Osmaniye, Adıyaman, Kilis and Kahramanmaraş. These camps address the refugees' health, security, financial access, communication, social activity and educational needs. They are also provided with three meals a day.
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