Ç-141 (C-141) Restriction Code: Prior Permission to Enter

The Ç-141 restriction code (C-141) shows that a foreigner is considered objectionable from the point of view of international security and that entry into Türkiye is subject to permission from the Ministry of the Interior. Sources usually refer to a five-year restriction; but the real effect of the code arises less from the period than from the prior permission requirement.

🔎 What Does the Ç-141 Restriction Code Mean?

Ç-141 shows that a foreigner's entry into Türkiye is subject to assessment from the international security angle. This assessment may arise from information sharing with other states or international organisations, from international lists, or from the foreigner's travel history. Unlike heavier codes such as G-89TR, which rests on an alleged terrorism link, or G-82, which concerns national security, the code is generally preventive and permission-based in nature.

📜 Legal Basis

• Art. 9/1 of Law No. 6458: The Directorate General may, where necessary after obtaining the opinion of the relevant institutions, ban the entry of foreigners whose entry is considered objectionable for reasons of public order or public security.
• Art. 9/7: Admission of foreigners to the country on grounds of public order, public security or public health may be made subject to prior permission by the Directorate General.
• Implementing Regulation Art. 8/3: Foreigners shown in the system as subject to prior permission are not allowed to enter the country without the favourable opinion of the Directorate General.
• Arts. 15/1-c and 7/1-c: Visas are not issued to those considered objectionable for reasons of public order or security, and these persons can be turned back at the border gate even if they are visa-exempt.

🌐 The Information Behind the Code

In Ç-141 cases the main problem for the foreigner is not knowing what the code is based on. The administration often limits the stated ground to the words "international security". Yet for judicial review to be meaningful, it has to be shown on what date, on whose notification and on which facts the record was created.

In administrative proceedings, even when classified documents are sent to the court, the principle under Article 20 of Law No. 2577 that a document not disclosed to the parties cannot be made the basis of the decision is important. For this reason, in Ç-141 cases, asking the court to call for the case file and the information note behind the record, and discussing whether the document received contains a concrete fact, lies at the centre of the case.

⚖️ What Is Examined in Court?

• How current the information is: whether a notification made years ago can be used as the basis of today's risk assessment,
• The source and accuracy of the information: the possibility of a similar name or mistaken identity,
• The foreigner's family and settled ties in Türkiye, residence history and criminal record,
• The proportionality of the measure: whether a lighter measure, such as permitted entry in place of a full ban, would be enough.

The time limit for an action against an entry ban is sixty days under Art. 7 of the Administrative Procedure Law No. 2577 (İYUK); if a deportation decision is taken against a foreigner while in Türkiye, a seven-day period applies (Art. 53/3 of Law No. 6458). The distribution of codes by group is shown together on the page on entry bans and restriction codesTR.

Related codes and articles: Ç-149 (C-149) Restriction Code, N-99 restriction code, Ç-118 (C-118) Restriction Code.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions