Türkiye

Recent reports of entry without significant problems.

OpenLatest Aug 2026high confidence

Based on 26 reports. Score 0.82 on a scale from −1 (always refused) to +1 (always admitted), with recent reports counting most. How scoring works

What to expect

Most of the roughly 20 reports from 2021 through 2024 describe smooth entry, nearly all by air at Istanbul with an e-visa bought online, including travelers with marked passports who had filed the 21-day notice.^7810–26 Of six reports since 2025, four describe entry without questions, including arrivals on connecting flights from Greece, Athens and Madrid.¹³⁴⁶ Two 2026 reports conflict with that pattern: one traveler was stamped in, then refused after an officer checked a screen and was returned to the US, and a secondhand report describes another denial on a direct US flight.²⁵

Written by an AI model from the reports below on September 20, 2026. The numbers link to the reports each sentence is based on. Read those before you decide.

Common questions

Can registered sex offenders enter Türkiye?

It's rated Open: Recent reports of entry without significant problems. Of 4 trips reported in the last two years by people on a US registry, 4 ended in entry and 0 in refusal.

Do Türkiye's border officers know about US registrants in advance?

None of the reports on file describe officers appearing to know in advance.

How do travelers usually arrive in Türkiye?

Reports on file describe 16 by air, 1 by sea or cruise. Outcomes can differ by how travelers arrive; each report below says which.

Reports

Been to Türkiye? Share your trip

1Aug 2026 (reported)
Admitted, no issues · By air
The traveler entered Turkey shortly after completing probation for a felony conviction, having filed the 21-day advance travel notice. Turkey approved the visa and admitted them; entries were via connecting flights from Athens and from Madrid rather than directly from the US.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · archived copy · Forum post · Firsthand
2Apr 2026
Refused entry · By air
A poster reports a friend who was off the registry and had an unmarked passport flew directly from the US to Turkey within the previous four to five months and was denied entry and turned around. The poster describes it as a bad experience.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · archived copy · Forum post · Secondhand · Former registrant
3Mar 2026 (reported)
Admitted, no issues · By air
The traveler entered Turkey after giving the 21-day notice for that destination and reported no issues, using it as a base for onward travel.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · archived copy · Forum post · Firsthand
4Mar 2026 (reported)
Admitted, no issues · By air
The traveler was pulled aside by federal agents at a US airport shortly before boarding an international flight and questioned about supervision status, phone contents and trip length, then released in time for the flight. The traveler entered the destination country with an electronic visa and reported no problems there, and was not searched on the return to the US.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · archived copy · Forum post · Firsthand
5Jan 2026
Refused entry · By air
The traveler flew into Türkiye and was initially stamped in, but the officer then checked a screen and refused entry, holding them in a deportation cell before returning them to the US as an INAD. No departure stamp or other markings were placed in the passport, and they passed back through a European transit airport without being stopped; on arrival in the US they were questioned and had their phone examined before being admitted.
RSO Travel Matrix trip report form · Traveler report · Firsthand · Former registrant
6May 2025 (reported)
Admitted, no issues · By air
The traveler flew from Greece to Turkey using a marked passport with an online visa and had no issues entering.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · Forum post · Firsthand
7Oct 2024 (reported)
Admitted, no issues · Changing planes, Istanbul
The traveler transited Istanbul airport without clearing immigration and continued on without problems.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · archived copy · Forum post · Firsthand
8May 2024
Admitted, no issues · By air, Istanbul
The traveler made an overnight stop in Istanbul, paid the visa fee of roughly $20-30 and stayed at a hotel, with no issues.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · Forum post · Firsthand · Former registrant
9May 2024
Admitted, no issues · By sea or cruise, Istanbul (cruise port)
The traveler and spouse arrived on a cruise ship stopping at this port, cleared customs without problems, and spent the day touring ashore.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · archived copy · Forum post · Firsthand
10Jan 2024 (reported)
Admitted, no issues · By air
The traveler entered Turkey on an easily obtained e-visa while still on the registry and carrying a marked passport, with no problems.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · archived copy · Forum post · Firsthand
11Aug 2023 (reported)
Admitted, no issues
The traveler entered without trouble on multiple occasions, including after giving the 21-day advance travel notice, using an online visa; they reported no problems with or without a marked passport.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · Forum post · Firsthand
12Jul 2023 (reported)
Admitted, no issues · By air
The traveler filed a 21-day advance notice and flew from a US airport to Istanbul. Before boarding, two US homeland security agents questioned them about itinerary, travel companions, their visa and their supervision officer, then let them board; one agent said their unmarked passport was fine. No entry problems in Turkey were reported.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · archived copy · Forum post · Firsthand
13May 2023 (reported)
Admitted, no issues · By air, Istanbul
The traveler flew into Istanbul with no problem; on return to the US they were pulled aside and had their luggage searched.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · archived copy · Forum post · Firsthand
14May 2023
Admitted, no issues · By air
The traveler entered the country for the third time using a new visa that was already in their system; the officer barely looked at the passport before stamping it. The destination had been listed on the traveler's 21-day advance travel notice.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · archived copy · Forum post · Firsthand
15Apr 2023
Admitted, no issues · By air, Istanbul
The traveler made an overnight stop in Istanbul on the way home from the Middle East without reported difficulty.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · archived copy · Forum post · Firsthand · Former registrant
16Jan 2023 (reported)
Admitted, no issues · By air, Istanbul
The traveler obtained a Turkish visa online while abroad and arrived in Istanbul by air a few hours later with no issues at entry.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · archived copy · Forum post · Firsthand
17Jan 2023 (reported)
Admitted, no issues
The traveler reported visiting the country twice on vacation and also passing through, never having any issue getting in and finding people welcoming.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · archived copy · Forum post · Firsthand
18Jan 2023 (reported)
Admitted, no issues
A spouse reported that the registrant had previously traveled to Turkey without being stopped, in the course of several years of travel before their first refusal.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · archived copy · Forum post · Secondhand
192023
Admitted, no issues · By air
The traveler entered Turkey again roughly three and a half years earlier with no problem, again using an online visa obtained before arrival.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · archived copy · Forum post · Firsthand
202023
Admitted, no issues · By air, Istanbul
The traveler entered Turkey on a tourist visa en route to another destination and spent time in two cities. Turkish border officers asked no questions despite the trip having been listed on the traveler's 21-day advance notice; the traveler said US agents gave them trouble on departure and return instead.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · archived copy · Forum post · Firsthand
212023
Admitted, no issues · By air
The traveler flew directly to Turkey on an e-visa and was admitted without problems, despite believing an advance notice had been sent.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · archived copy · Forum post · Firsthand
222023
Admitted, no issues
The traveler, still required to register, travelled to Turkey without reporting any entry problems.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · archived copy · Forum post · Firsthand
23Nov 2022
Admitted, no issues · By air, Istanbul
The traveler obtained a 90-day multiple-entry Turkish e-visa online despite a criminal record, filed the 21-day advance notice, and was questioned by US officials at the departure airport. On arrival in Istanbul at night, officers checked the passport, scanned the e-visa, and waved the traveler through without problems; the traveler then spent weeks traveling within the country.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · archived copy · Forum post · Firsthand
242022
Admitted, no issues · By air, Istanbul
The traveler bought a Turkish visa in advance and flew from the US to Istanbul via Frankfurt, having filed the 21-day notice. Border control did not give a second look.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · archived copy · Forum post · Firsthand
252022
Admitted, no issues · By air, Istanbul
The traveler flew into Istanbul weeks after completing probation and reported zero problems at entry, despite an advance notification apparently having been sent by the US.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · archived copy · Forum post · Firsthand
262021
Admitted, no issues · By air
The traveler entered Turkey about five years earlier with no problem, having obtained the visa online before arrival.
ACSOL (Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws) · archived copy · Forum post · Firsthand
27By 2022
Admitted, no issues
Row from the RTAG Travel Matrix, an undated summary last maintained around 2021.
Registrants turned away
No
Law bars sex offenders
No
Law bars people with felonies
No
Has its own offender registry
No
Registrant Travel Action Group (RTAG) · Legacy matrix · Summary