Ç-101 to Ç-105 Restriction Codes Turkey: Overstay Entry Ban

Ç-101 (C-101), Ç-102, Ç-103, Ç-104 and Ç-105 are five consecutive entry ban codes imposed on foreigners who overstay a visa, a visa exemption, a residence permit or a work permit in Türkiye. The length of the violation decides which code is imposed: short overstays lead to a ban of a few months, while long overstays lead to a ban of up to several years.

📊 Ç-101 (C-101), Ç-102, Ç-103, Ç-104 and Ç-105: Overstay Length and Entry Ban

The lower threshold of ten days in the table is no coincidence: the Law treats an overstay of a visa or residence period by more than ten days as a ground for deportation. For overstays of no more than ten days these codes do not, as a rule, come into play; however, the fee and fine arising from the violation must be paid. Because the sources describe differently which code applies on the boundary days between brackets, the record should always be checked for overstays close to a boundary.

📜 Legal Basis: Law No. 6458 and the Implementing Regulation

• Article 54/1-e: A deportation decision is taken against those who overstay a visa or visa exemption period by more than ten days or whose visa is cancelled.
• Article 54/1-g: Those who violate the period by more than ten days after the end of the residence permit, without an acceptable reason, face the same outcome.
• Article 9/2 and Article 9/3: A deported foreigner is banned from entry, and the ban is, as a rule, five years at most. The five-year period of Ç-105 corresponds to this upper limit.
• Regulation Article 8/2-a: For a foreigner who is to be deported, the entry ban starts from the date of departure from the country.

An overstay of a work permit period can also be tied to the same brackets; Regulation Article 8/2-b and c list visa, visa exemption, work permit and residence permit together. Where a foreigner whose work permit has ended has no separate right of residence, the situation should be assessed together with the work permit refusal and objectionTR procedures.

🚪 Effect of Leaving Voluntarily

How a foreigner who has overstayed leaves directly affects the ban faced. Law No. 6458 Article 9/4 and Regulation Article 8/2 distinguish three situations:

• Leaving after applying to the governorate: For a foreigner who applies to the governorate to leave before the overstay is detected by the competent authorities, and against whom no deportation decision has yet been served, the entry ban cannot exceed one year, provided that the fees and fines have been paid (Article 8/2-b).
• Coming to the border gate voluntarily: For a foreigner who comes to the gate to leave before a deportation decision is taken and who pays the fee and fines, no entry ban may be imposed on the ground of the violation, unless there is another ground for a ban (Article 8/2-c).
• Leaving without payment, or being caught: For a foreigner who leaves without paying the fees and fines, or who is detected in an inspection and deported, the brackets in the table apply in full; because of unpaid administrative fines and public receivables, the governorate may also make admission to the country subject to prior permission (Article 9/7).

🗂️ How Does the Code Come to Light?

These codes are often entered at the border gate during departure, and the foreigner notices them after leaving the country, when a new visa application is made or entry is refused. A request for information can be made to the Presidency of Migration Management about the content of the record and its start date; a lawyer holding a power of attorney can also apply on behalf of a foreigner who is abroad. The general system of the codes is explained in the article on entry bans and restriction codesTR.

⚖️ Ways of Removal and Time Limits

• Administrative application: Under Article 11 of the Administrative Procedure Law (İYUK), an application can be made to the authority that carried out the act within the period for bringing an action. The application suspends the running of the action period; if no reply is given within thirty days, the request is deemed refused and the remaining period starts to run again.
• Annulment action: An action against an entry ban act can be brought within sixty days of notification or of learning of it (İYUK Article 7). The competent court is the administrative court where the administrative authority that carried out the act is located (İYUK Article 32): Ankara if the ban was imposed by the Presidency of Migration Management, and the relevant province if it was imposed by a governorate.
• Deportation decision: If the foreigner is still in Türkiye and a deportation decision has been served, the time limit is only seven days (Law No. 6458 Article 53/3).
• Entry permit with the ban kept in place: The Directorate General may lift the entry ban, or permit entry for a specific period while the ban continues (Article 9/6, Regulation Article 8/2-e). In practice this route corresponds to the endorsed visa process.

For the short-term codes (Ç-101, Ç-102), the ban often expires by itself before the action is concluded; which route makes sense is therefore weighed together with the remaining period and the foreigner's need to return to Türkiye. For the long-term codes, family ties, the reason for the violation and the person's history become important. For the general process after deportation, see the article on re-entry after deportationTR.

Related articles: Ç-117 (C-117) and Ç-119 (C-119) restriction codes, V-69 restriction code, deportation and objectionTR.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions