Turkish identity card
Republic of Turkey Identity Card (obverse)
(reverse)
TypeIdentity card, optional replacement for passport in the listed countries
Issued by Turkey
PurposeProof of identity and Travel Document
Valid in
^1 : If arriving directly from Turkey.
EligibilityTurkish citizenship
Expiration10 years
Cost₺130
₺260 (applies when re-issuing a lost identity card)[1]

The Republic of Turkey Identity Card (Turkish: Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Kimlik Kartı) is compulsory for all Turkish citizens from birth. The Turkish police are allowed to ask any person to show ID, and refusing to comply may lead to a fine. It can be used as a travel document to enter Northern Cyprus,[2] Bosnia and Herzegovina (planned),[3] Georgia (since 2011),[4] Moldova (since 2019),[5] Ukraine (since 2017),[6] Azerbaijan (since 1 April 2021, if arriving directly from Turkey),[7][8] and Serbia (not yet in force)[9][10] instead of a passport.

History

Identity cards, theoretically obligatory for all citizens, male and female, existed already in the late Ottoman Empire. They were known in Turkish as nüfus tezkeresi.[11] To the Slavic subjects of the Ottoman state they were known colloquially as nofuz (Bulgarian: нофуз).[12]

ID cards (1927-1991)

Atatürk's identity documents after the Surname Law

Turkey issued ID cards (Turkish: Nüfus Hüviyet Cüzdanı) with the 1927 census in Ottoman Arabic letters. With Turkey's change to Latin script, ID cards were changed to Latin in 1928. Surnames were added after 1934, with the Surname Law. Newer ID cards were issued in 1976, however old cards were still valid until 1991.

ID cards (issued 1976-2017, still valid)

Turkey issued ID cards (Turkish: Nüfus Cüzdanı) for all citizens beginning in 1976. The cards are 7x9 cm in size and have gender specific color (Orange/red for females, blue for males). Starting from 1999, cards were issued with a Turkish Identification Number. Cards have an embossed stamp for security.

Starting in 2017, this type of ID cards stopped being issued.

New identity cards (2017-current)

The Turkish Ministry of the Interior issued an EU-like identity card (Turkish: Kimlik Kartı) for all Turkish citizens. New identity cards are biometric like passports. Since 21 September 2020, they can be used as a driving licence.[13] In the future they will be used as a bank card and bus ticket. Starting from 2 January 2017, these new ID cards were issued throughout Turkey. Unlike previous cards, which were valid for life, new cards are only valid for 10 years. They are in ID-1 (credit card) size, smaller than the previous cards. The cards are gender-neutral for all citizens.[14] Cards are bilingual, both in Turkish and English. E-signatures can be installed into the card's chip.[15] The cards have PIN codes for authorization.

During the application for new cards, fingerprints for all fingers and palm vein prints are collected and associated with the person. New cards require biometric photos (for ages 15 and up) and have an individual's signature. The new cards also omit several pieces of information found on previous cards, such as; marital status, religion, blood type, place of issue, previous surname (for females), hometown (State, District, Village) and register numbers (volume, family and line numbers).

Machine Readable Zone

There is a machine-readable zone on the back of the 2017 card. It consists of 3 rows each containing 30 characters. The format is compliant with ICAO Document 9303 Part 5.[16]

Row Positions Length Example Meaning
1 1-2 2 I< Document code (identifies the document as an Official Travel Document)
1 3-5 3 TUR ISO 3166 Alpha-3 code of the issuing state
1 6-14 9 A12B34567 Document No (Seri No)
1 15 1 0 Check digit for positions 6-14
1 16 1 < Separator character
1 17-27 11 12345678901 Turkish Identity No, matches with the ID No at the front of the card and barcode at the top right
1 28-30 3 < Separator character
2 1-6 6 950110 Date of birth in YYMMDD format
2 7 1 3 Check digit for position 1-6
2 8 1 F Abbreviated gender
2 9-14 6 250101 Expiry date in YYMMDD format
2 15 1 8 Check digit for positions 9-14
2 16-18 3 TUR ISO 3166 Alpha-3 code of country of citizenship (which is always TUR)
2 19-29 11 < Separator character
2 30 1 4 Composite check digit
3 1-30 30 JANE<<DOE<ANON Family name(s) each separated by a single separator character (<), two separator characters (<<), given name(s) each separated by a single separator character (<)

Checksum calculation is the same algorithm used in Machine-readable passports. Multiply each digit by its weight. Weight of a digit depends on its position. The weight sequence is 7, 3, 1 and it repeats. The remainder of the sum of all values divided by 10 gives the check digit.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ "Başvuru Ücretleri (2024)". 1 January 2024.
  2. ^ "VISA Regulations | Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus". 4 March 2014.
  3. ^ "Bosna Hersek'e kimlik kartıyla seyahat dönemi". 6 September 2022.
  4. ^ "From Rep. Of Türkiye Ministry of Foreign Affairs".
  5. ^ "Passport-free travel between Turkey, Moldova". Daily Sabah. 20 February 2019. Retrieved 28 February 2019.
  6. ^ "Entry regime to Ukraine for foreign citizens - MFA of Ukraine". Archived from the original on 2018-01-28. Retrieved 2017-06-07.
  7. ^ "Türkiye-Azerbaycan arasında kimlik kartı ile seyahat imkanı". 10 December 2020.
  8. ^ "Milletlerarası Andlaşma" (PDF). 30 January 2021.
  9. ^ "Sırbistan ile Türkiye arasında kimlikle geçiş uygulaması". 9 June 2022.
  10. ^ "Milletlerarası Andlaşma 6244" (PDF). 22 October 2022.
  11. ^ Chris Gratien, Ottoman Identity Card; includes images of the cards
  12. ^ Kunchov, Vasil (1900), Makedonii͡a (in Bulgarian), Sofia: Bulgarskoto Knizhevno Druzhestvo, p. 135
  13. ^ "SON DAKİKA HABERİ: Çipli kimlik kartında yeni dönem".
  14. ^ "Ehliyet yenileme ücreti ne kadar? (Ehliyet yenileme işlemleri)". NTV. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  15. ^ "Kimliklerde yeni dönem başlıyor: E-imza yüklenecek". 25 November 2021.
  16. ^ International Civil Aviation Organization. "Doc 9303 – Machine Readable Travel Documents". Retrieved 2021-12-29.
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