Baby Born in Turkey to Foreign Parents

When a baby is born in Turkey to foreign parents, there are two separate tasks: registering the birth in Turkey, and then using the Turkish birth certificate with your own country's embassy or other authorities. The second task often needs translation and certification, and it is easier if you plan for it early.

Step one: registering the birth in Turkey

Births in Turkey are notified to the Population and Civil Registry office, primarily by the parents, within 30 days. The commonly requested documents are:

• The birth report issued by the hospital.
• The parents' identity documents issued by the Provincial Directorate of Migration Management, which means a residence permit or equivalent. Your passports may also be asked for.
• Address information.
• The parents' marriage certificate, in some offices, where the parents are married. Ask the office.

Foreign parents' own documents, such as a marriage certificate issued in another country, may need certification and a Turkish translation before the office accepts them. We explain how in Foreign Documents for Use in Turkey. Practice differs between offices, so ask the registry what it needs before you go.

Step two: your own country's embassy

Your embassy or consulate decides whether and how the birth is recorded in your country, and what it needs from you. Many ask for the Turkish birth certificate, and some want it translated or certified. Whether the child becomes a citizen of your country, and how to document it, depends on your country's law, so ask your embassy first.

Preparing the Turkish birth certificate for use abroad

Turkey issues more than one document that works as a birth certificate, and which one you need depends on the receiving office. The multilingual extract and the Turkish family registry record are different documents. Read Turkish Birth and Marriage Certificates for Use Abroad before you order one.

If the destination is a Hague Convention country, the document needs an apostille, and if it isn't, it needs legalization. Many offices also ask for a translation. See Apostille or Consular Legalization? to tell which applies.

The child's residence in Turkey

If you plan to stay in Turkey, a child who is not a Turkish citizen will generally need a residence permit as well. The Turkish birth certificate is usually one of the documents for it. See Family Residence Permit in Turkey and Residence Permit in Turkey.

Mistakes that cost time

• Waiting too long to register. The notification period is short. Start while you are still in hospital or just after.
• Ordering the wrong birth document. Ask your embassy or the receiving office which one it wants.
• Name spellings that don't match. The child's name on the Turkish certificate, the passport and your records should agree. Turkish letters can make this tricky. See Names in Translation.
• Not checking your parents' documents. A marriage certificate from abroad may need preparation before the Turkish office will accept it.
• Getting an apostille for a non-member country. The document needs legalization instead.

How we help

Tell us where the birth certificate will be used, and which documents the registry or your embassy asked for. We will confirm which of them need translation, notarization, apostille or legalization, and handle those steps. We also help with residence permits.