Turkish Citizenship by Birthplace: Can a child acquire Turkish citizenship by being born in Turkey?

Turkish citizenship cannot be acquired by only being born in Turkey's territory. For a child to acquire Turkish citizenship, his father or his mother has to be a Turkish citizen at the time of birth. Turkish citizenship passes by blood (jus sanguinis), not by territory (jus soli).

In some countries such as USA, if a child is born in USA, they can acquire the American citizenship even if they parents are not US citizens. However, Turkey doesn't follow the citizenship by territory system. According to Turkish law, one of the parents has to be a Turkish citizen. The primary Turkish Law defining citizenship by descent is Article 7 of the Turkish Citizenship Law (Law No. 5901). A child born to a Turkish mother or a Turkish father within the unity of marriage either in Turkey or abroad is a Turkish citizen. A child born to a Turkish mother and a foreign father out of the unity of marriage is a Turkish citizen. A child born to a foreign mother and a Turkish father out of the unity of marriage acquires Turkish citizenship if the principles and procedures ensuring the establishment of lineage (paternity) are met.

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