April 2026 update: closed-mahalle list refreshed by Göç İdaresi

Göç İdaresi (Türkiye’s Presidency of Migration Management) refreshed the closed-mahalle list on 11 April 2026, the routine semi-annual update of neighbourhoods where new residence permits cannot be issued because the foreign population exceeds the 20% threshold set in 2022.

The headline change for citizenship-investment buyers: the list is shorter than it was in October 2025. Eight mahalleler came off the list, two were added. Net foreign-permit capacity is up modestly in Antalya and Mersin, flat in Istanbul, marginally down in Bursa.

This is the kind of regulatory move that does not generate press but matters greatly to a buyer who is about to put $400,000 into an apartment whose residence permit may or may not issue at the address.

Which neighbourhoods came off the list

The eight mahalleler removed are concentrated in Antalya and Mersin, reflecting the 2024–2025 slowdown in foreign property purchases and the gradual return of those neighbourhoods to below the 20% threshold.

• Antalya, Muratpaşa: Tahılpazarı Mahallesi; Memurevleri Mahallesi.
• Antalya, Kepez: Hüsnü Karakaş Mahallesi.
• Antalya, Konyaaltı: Toros Mahallesi.
• Mersin, Mezitli: Akdeniz Mahallesi; Tece Mahallesi.
• Bursa, Osmangazi: Demirtaş Sakarya Mahallesi.
• Yalova, Çiftlikköy: Taşköprü Mahallesi.

Residence permits at addresses in these mahalleler are now issuable again, including spousal residence permits under the post-2025 rules. Files that had been blocked at these addresses can be reopened.

Which neighbourhoods went on the list

The two additions:

• Istanbul, Beylikdüzü: Kavaklı Mahallesi.
• Istanbul, Esenyurt: Yenikent Mahallesi.

Both are well-known foreign-buyer corridors in Istanbul’s European-side new-build belt. The 20% threshold tripped on a combination of high foreign purchase volumes in 2024 (delayed registration shows up in the 2025–2026 cut) and a small Turkish-population denominator shift. Buyers planning purchases in these mahalleler should pause the residence-permit assumption; the citizenship file can still proceed because the citizenship itself does not require a residence permit at the property address, but the practical comfort of holding the residence permit at the property of investment is gone for these two.

The full Istanbul cut, which has stayed broadly stable for two years (Esenyurt and Başakşehir-heavy), is unchanged otherwise.

What this means operationally

Buyers in mid-file at any of the eight removed mahalleler should re-run the residence-permit step in their plan. Spousal residence permits are now obtainable at these addresses; if the file had been on hold pending the closure to lift, the lawyer of record can file immediately.

Buyers eyeing Kavaklı or Yenikent should change the residence-permit address to an alternative; the citizenship file can still proceed at the property of choice, but residence-permit serviceability is now elsewhere. This is workable; the residence permit can be tied to any Turkish address the applicant has access to (including a serviced apartment, a long-term lease, or a relative’s home with notarised consent).

How we maintain the live list

The full list is on the closed districts page. We update it within 48 hours of the Göç İdaresi gazette notification and check the list against the official İl Göç İdaresi web portals for the relevant provinces. The source citations are at the bottom of that page.

The next scheduled refresh is October 2026. Out-of-cycle changes happen occasionally when a specific mahalle crosses the threshold mid-year; we track those as they appear.

See also

• The closed districts page, refreshed in line with this April 2026 cut.
• The Istanbul guide for the European-side new-build context.
• The Antalya guide for the Muratpaşa, Kepez and Konyaaltı changes.