Foreign Engineer and Architect Work Permit in Türkiye: Project-Based

Foreign engineers and architects can practise their professions in Türkiye; however, there is a special framework for this that departs from the general work permit regime. Art. 20 of Law No. 6735 and Art. 42 of the Implementing Regulation define the permit as project-based and temporary, and give the Union of Chambers of Turkish Engineers and Architects (TMMOB) a special role in the assessment of the application.

🎓 Basic Condition: Title and Diploma

According to Art. 42/1 of the Regulation, the person who can obtain a permit is a foreigner who completed their education at an engineering or architecture faculty of a higher education institution in Türkiye, or at a higher education institution abroad recognised both by the authorities of the relevant country and by YÖK, and thereby obtained the title of engineer or architect. These people can practise their professions by obtaining a work permit "on a project basis and for a temporary period".

The phrase "project-based and temporary" shows that the permit given to engineers and architects is tied to a specific job or project. In this respect the permit has a narrower field of use than a general work permit tied to an employer. The types of general work permit are covered in the article on what a work permit is and its typesTR.

🏗️ Projects of Foreign Contractors and Firms

Art. 42/2 of the Regulation governs the situation most often met in practice: foreign contractors or firms may employ foreign engineers and architects, provided they remain exclusive to that job, in engineering and architecture works that they undertake in Türkiye, alone or together with domestic firms, for state departments, official and private bodies or individuals.

• These applications are assessed by obtaining the opinion of TMMOB.
• In the TMMOB opinion, diploma equivalence is not required under Law No. 2547 of foreign professionals who obtained their diploma abroad.
• The permit is limited to the contracted job; the same engineer cannot work on another project or for another employer on the basis of this permit.

📐 Work Outside Projects

If a foreign engineer or architect will work outside the contracting work of a foreign contractor, for example on the permanent staff of a Turkish company, Art. 42/3 of the Regulation applies: these applications are also concluded by obtaining the opinion of TMMOB. In addition, the general assessment criteria (education, match between duties and experience, salary, the employer's capital and employment structure) are also taken into account in these applications (Art. 22).

Art. 27/1 of Law No. 6735 also amended Law No. 6235 on the Union of Chambers of Turkish Engineers and Architects, bringing the provisions on foreign professionals into line with the new work permit system. For this reason, the professional chamber procedures should be thought of not as independent of the work permit process but as a part of it.

⏳ Duration, Extension and Change of Workplace

• The first permit tied to an employer is issued for at most one year, not exceeding the contract term (Regulation Art. 24/3).
• The extension application starts sixty days before the end of the permit and in every case has to be made before the term expires; the first extension with the same employer is for at most two years, and later ones for at most three years (Art. 27).
• A foreigner who has applied for an extension can continue working for at most ninety days during the assessment, provided the job and workplace do not change (Art. 27/5).
• A move to another branch of the same employer in the same line of business is possible with Ministry approval for jobs that do not require professional qualification and are similar (Art. 26). For project-based permits this flexibility is limited because the permit is tied to the project.

⚠️ Common Mistakes

The most common mistake is the use of a permit obtained for one project on a different project or site. Working outside the permit is a ground for cancelling it (Art. 56/1-c) and, treated as unauthorised work, may lead to deportation and the Ç-117 (C-117) code for the foreigner, and to an administrative fine for the employer. The second mistake is the employer failing to confirm the application in the system within thirty days after an engineer arriving on a work visa applies for the visa; in this case the application is rejected (Art. 17/2, Art. 23/1-h).

Rejection or cancellation decisions can be objected to before the Ministry within thirty days of notification (Law No. 6735, Art. 21/2). The general framework for foreign workers is covered in the article on foreign work permitsTR.

Related articles: Exceptional Work Permit, Cross-Border Service Provider, work permit rejection and objectionTR.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions