Fund-route subscriptions for citizenship roughly doubled year-on-year

The Capital Markets Board (SPK) publishes quarterly statistics on real-estate investment funds (REIF) and venture-capital investment funds (VCIF) operating under its supervision. The 2025 consolidated figures, released in April 2026, show subscription volume on the funds marketed for the citizenship-by-investment programme roughly doubled year-on-year: from approximately $340 million in 2024 to approximately $670 million in 2025, with the citizenship-eligible subset taking the larger share.

This is a sub-trend inside the headline “foreign property sales at a 9-year low” picture from the TurkStat 2025 numbers. The two facts coexist: the headline real-estate route is shrinking; the fund route is growing.

Why. And whether the fund route is a better choice for any specific applicant. The two questions are not the same.

Why the fund route is growing

Three pulls, in roughly equal weight.

Operational simplicity. A REIF subscription is one document set, one SPK confirmation, one MKK custody letter. The buyer does not select a property, does not negotiate with a seller, does not face the SPK appraisal gap that catches many first-time real-estate buyers. The friction is at the fund-due-diligence stage, which the lawyer of record handles before the subscription is made. Once the subscription clears, the file moves.

Sectoral diversification. A REIF holds twenty to forty properties across Istanbul, Antalya and (sometimes) Izmir, often a mix of residential, commercial and logistics assets. A buyer who would otherwise concentrate $400,000 in a single Istanbul apartment is, through the fund, exposed to a portfolio. For investors who view the citizenship file as a financial decision and not a “where I want to own an apartment” decision, the diversification has appeal.

Managed exit. At month 37, the real-estate buyer faces a lira sale market. The fund-route subscriber faces a redemption mechanic the fund manager runs. For investors who expect to redeem and exit Türkiye at the three-year mark, the fund manager’s redemption discipline is more predictable than the buyer-finds-a-buyer pattern.

Who is subscribing

The 2025 subscription book shows a different applicant mix than the real-estate route. Fund-route applicants skew Chinese, Hong Kong and Indian, plus a meaningful Gulf-state slice (UAE, Saudi, Bahrain). The Russian and Iranian applicant mix that dominates the real-estate route is lighter on the fund route, partly because the fund managers’ compliance teams have shorter source-of-funds appetite than the Turkish banks’ general appetite, and partly because Russian and Iranian applicants tend to be operationally more comfortable with a tangible asset.

The Chinese and Indian growth reflects the E-2 sequencing strategy: applicants who plan to move to Türkiye for the three-year domicile do not need the residential property right away; they need the citizenship file to close cleanly, which the fund route delivers.

The trade-offs

Three trade-offs are worth naming.

Annual management fees. REIFs charge management fees in the 1.0% to 1.8% range on subscribed amount, plus performance fees on the upside. Over three years, an $500,000 subscription gives up roughly $15,000 to $27,000 in management fees. The real-estate route has no equivalent; the property’s running cost is the taxes-and-maintenance bill, which is typically smaller.

Liquidity at the three-year mark. REIF redemption windows depend on the fund’s structure. Some funds offer quarterly redemption; some require notice; some have rolling liquidity windows. Three-year liquidity is generally good but it is not “sell tomorrow”; expect a two-to-six-month exit window.

Sectoral and lira concentration. A REIF that is 70% Istanbul residential is concentrated in a single market. A buyer who would have spread across two cities directly is exposed differently through the fund. Picking a fund with explicit cross-regional and cross-sector exposure is the workable hedge.

Which funds are accepted

The SPK regulates many funds. A subset is on the Treasury’s qualifying list for citizenship purposes. The list moves; our current cut is on the qualifying funds page, refreshed each quarter.

The qualifying funds are typically managed by the asset-management subsidiaries of the major Turkish banks (Garanti Portföy, İş Portföy, Ak Portföy, Yapı Kredi Portföy) and a handful of independent managers (Strateji Portföy, Re-Pie). Choosing a fund managed by a bank you already have a relationship with often shortens the source-of-funds review on the subscription leg.

The bottom line

The fund route was historically the option chosen by 2% to 4% of applicants. In 2025 the share roughly tripled, to 8% to 11% of the file flow. We see this as a structural shift, not a cyclical one; applicants who prefer managed exposure to direct property exist as a permanent share of the demand, and the fund-route infrastructure has matured to the point that it now serves them.

For the first-time foreign buyer who wants a Turkish apartment to use, the real-estate route remains the right answer. For the buyer whose citizenship file is a financial decision rather than a property decision, the fund route is now a serious alternative.