Immigration law in Turkmenistan

Most foreign nationals need a valid passport and a visa to enter Turkmenistan unless an applicable treaty provides otherwise. Visas are tied to their stated purpose. Common categories cover work, study, family visits, business, investment, tourism, transit, humanitarian purposes and other officially defined situations. Work normally requires a WP visa and a work permit. Study uses an ST visa, family visits use an FM visa, business and investment use BS or IN categories, tourism uses TU, and transit uses TR categories. A person entering for ordinary residence uses a residence permit rather than relying on a visa alone. An inviting or receiving party usually supports the visa process and sends the required electronic notification to the SMS. A visa issued abroad is normally handled through a Turkmen diplomatic mission or consulate. Applications inside Turkmenistan and extensions are handled through the SMS. The receiving party is responsible for coordinating the visa, residence permit, work permit and registration obligations, as well as changes of address or employment and the person's departure. Registration, often referred to locally as propiska, normally follows entry or a change of place of stay within three working days, excluding the day of entry. The registration is made through the electronic SMS system at the authority responsible for the place of stay or by the receiving party. Tourists are registered electronically at the border crossing. Transit stays of up to five calendar days are registered at the border. Some short stays of up to three working days are exempt. Residence-permit holders and stateless people remain subject to registration and propiska requirements. The usual evidence includes a passport or other identity document, an invitation or electronic notification, purpose-specific documents, a photograph and an application. Family applications commonly require copies of marriage, birth and passport documents, with legalisation or certification where required. A transit applicant generally needs a passport valid for at least six months and the visa or other entry document for the onward country. False information or documents can lead to refusal, cancellation or loss of status. Foreign employment normally requires both a work visa and a work permit. Authorities may give priority to Turkmen workers and apply employer quotas. Foreign workers generally have to retain permanent residence outside Turkmenistan. Exceptions can apply to diplomats and consular staff, accredited international organisations, certain foreign educational, scientific or cultural institutions, accredited media, registered religious organisations, state-invited teachers and specialists, short-term experts or negotiators, short-term installation and repair workers, qualifying full-time students working during free time at their own educational institution, protected people, refugees and people holding residence for a permanent purpose. Temporary work must remain compatible with the authorised purpose. Employment rights and social benefits depend on the person's immigration status and the applicable special legislation. The residence permit, вид на жительство, is an identity and residence document. An applicant generally applies through the SMS for a presidential decision. Possible grounds include Turkmen ancestry, marriage to a Turkmen citizen, close Turkmen family ties, guardianship, an investment of at least USD 500,000, high qualifications or achievements, historical CIS registration, or at least two years of residence. The President may allow exceptional cases. Applicants must generally be at least 18. A child under 16 derives the permit from the parents; a child aged 16 or older must apply within six months. A permit is valid for up to five years and may be extended through the SMS. It normally permits multiple entry without a separate visa. Processing may take up to six months, and the decision is communicated within ten days after the presidential act. A refusal is communicated within three working days. The available rules establish statutory or consular fees, but no reliable general amount for a residence permit has been verified. Turkmenistan has no separately verified, generally available indefinite permanent-residence status in the applicable sources. A residence permit valid for up to five years and renewable through the SMS functions as the main continuing residence instrument. Five years of permanent residence can support a citizenship application, but it does not automatically convert into citizenship or an indefinite residence status. A residence permit can be cancelled for reasons including false information, serious or especially serious offences, threats to security, public order or morality, extremist or terrorist involvement, foreign state service, drug registration, a sham marriage, loss of an employment-based basis, divorce within five years without a child, more than one continuous year abroad, expulsion or acquisition of citizenship. The Refugees Law provides for refugee status, an additional form of protection and temporary protection. A protection application may be made personally or through a representative to the SMS at a border point or place of stay. A person who entered irregularly because of compulsion may apply to the Border Service. The authorities issue a provisional registration certificate. Missing identity documents cannot by themselves justify refusing registration. Prompt registration after an irregular entry or unlawful stay protects the applicant from sanctions for that entry or stay. The non-refoulement principle applies, subject to the stated exception for threats to state or public order. Protection applicants may receive an interpreter, information, accommodation, food, medical care, temporary work access, education, family reunification, free legal assistance and access to a court. They must provide truthful information, register within three days, complete a medical examination and comply with residence rules. The SMS decides after consultation under Cabinet rules within three months, with an extension possible up to one year. The result and the protection document are generally communicated or issued within ten working days. Temporary protection can apply to a mass arrival in an emergency and is registered for up to three months. The practical number of protection cases has not been verified. Citizenship may be acquired by birth, admission, restoration or treaty. Admission generally requires an application by an adult, compliance with the Constitution and laws, sufficient knowledge of the Turkmen language, at least five years of permanent residence and lawful means of support. Absence from Turkmenistan normally must not exceed three months in a year without interrupting the residence period. Exceptions or shortened requirements can apply to Turkmen people and descendants, certain former-USSR family situations, state-interest cases, people previously entitled to Turkmen citizenship and people with asylum or refugee status. The President decides citizenship matters by Указ. Applications are handled by the SMS inside Turkmenistan and by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or a consulate abroad. The general processing period may reach six months. Turkmenistan does not nationally recognise another citizenship, and a Turkmen citizen cannot be expelled. A citizenship decision may be challenged before the President; procedural or official actions may also be challenged before a superior authority or a court. Visa refusal can result from serious or international criminality, a pending criminal case, security, public-order or morality risks, risks to other people, specified health conditions, drug-related grounds, false information, an entry ban, previous expulsion, unlawful stay, assistance with unlawful entry, or terrorist or extremist connections. The SMS leadership may cancel or shorten a visa. When a visa expires or an extension is refused, the authorities may issue a departure order. Failure to comply can lead to administrative expulsion and a temporary or permanent entry ban. Expulsion costs normally fall on the expelled person or the receiving party, although the state may bear them in exceptional cases. No general appeal procedure for an ordinary visa refusal has been verified. A refusal or cancellation of protection can be challenged in court within one month; the person may remain until the judgment, after which departure is generally required within ten working days. If return or expulsion is impossible, a temporary residence document may be issued. Visa fees for a single-entry visa are USD 20 for up to ten days, USD 30 for up to twenty days, USD 40 for up to one month and USD 30 for each following month. Multiple-entry visas cost USD 60 for up to one month and USD 40 for each following month. A single-entry transit visa for up to five days costs USD 20. An international-airport surcharge of USD 50 may apply. Standard consular processing is generally ten calendar days; urgent processing of up to three working days may cost an additional 100 percent. Visa fees are not refunded after cancellation. Actual expenses can vary by location, and the available rules do not verify general payment methods or exact amounts for residence permits, citizenship or registration.