As a result of the risk assessments carried out at border gates, restriction records that directly prevent entry to the country are issued in respect of certain foreign nationals. The Ç-149 code is one of those records and is applied to persons thought to be connected with conflict zones or assessed as liable to cross into such zones.
The most tangible consequence of the record is that the person concerned is refused admission to Türkiye for a defined period. In addition, foreign nationals against whom a deportation decision has been taken on the same ground and who have been placed in a removal centre are frequently encountered. Each of those measures calls for a separate legal process.
Below we examine the criteria on which the record is created, the administrative and judicial remedies available for its removal, the applicable time limits, the costs and the court with jurisdiction.
What Does the Ç-149 Restriction Code Mean?
The Ç-149 code is a restriction record issued by border gate personnel in respect of foreign nationals foreseen as liable to pose a threat to the public security of Türkiye. Once the record is created, the person concerned is prohibited from entering Türkiye for five years.
Unlike certain other codes, what is at issue here is not an entry regime subject to prior authorisation but an entry ban applied directly. Removal of the record therefore becomes decisive for the foreign national’s ability to re-enter the country.
The Rationale for Imposing the Record
The basis of the code is the assessment made by the Risk Analysis Units. The aim is to prevent the entry to the country of foreign nationals in respect of whom, following that assessment, a suspicion arises that they may have a connection with conflict zones, or who are found liable to cross into those zones.
How Is the Record Removed?
Two routes may be followed in order to have the Ç-149 record deleted: making an objection to the competent administrative authority, or bringing an action for annulment before the administrative court. Moreover, even where the record has not yet been lifted, a foreign national who obtains an annotated visa may enter the country.
Removal of the Record by Way of an Objection
A foreign national against whom a record has been issued may apply to the competent authority by way of a petition setting out their grounds. The addressee of that application is the Presidency of Migration Management. The period allowed for the application is 60 days, running from the day following the date on which the record was notified to the person concerned.
Where the request is rejected, where no reply is given within 30 days, or where an uncertain response is produced, the application is deemed to have been rejected. Following rejection, an action for annulment may be brought for removal of the record. It is also possible to apply directly to the administrative court without approaching the administration at all.
PLEASE NOTE: An objection made to the Presidency of Migration Management suspends the 60-day statutory period for bringing an action for annulment until it is concluded.
Removal of the Record by an Action for Annulment
The other route available for removing a Ç-149 record issued against a foreign national and enabling that person to enter the country is to bring an action for annulment before the administrative court. The action is brought within 60 days from the day following notification of the record to the person concerned, naming the Presidency of Migration Management as respondent.
Where an objection was made to the competent authority before the action was brought, the calculation of time changes. The days elapsing up to the date of that application are counted within the 60-day period and deducted from it. By contrast, the time used by the administration to consider the application is not taken into account.
By way of example: if the objection was made on the 21st day following notification, 39 days remain in which to bring the action, running from the day following notification of the decision of rejection.
A stay of execution may be requested in the action. If the request is granted, the consequences of the record are suspended until the proceedings are concluded. The court’s ability to make such an order depends on the implementation of the measure being liable to give rise to damage that is difficult or impossible to redress, and on the measure being manifestly unlawful. That both conditions are met in the particular case must be shown in the petition.
The petition must demonstrate, with concrete grounds, that the record was created unlawfully. The prescribed time limits must also be observed scrupulously; otherwise the action will be dismissed without the merits being examined. It is therefore appropriate to obtain assistance from the outset from a lawyer experienced in the field of immigration law.
All types of restriction code and the details of the court process for annulment of a record are set out under the heading of restriction codes for foreign nationals and the action for removal of the code.
Entering the Country with an Annotated Visa
A foreign national faced with an entry ban on account of a Ç-149 record may enter the country by obtaining an annotated visa. The significance of that visa lies in the fact that it affords the possibility of entry even where the record and the ban have not yet been lifted.
The annotated visa is a type of visa issued specially by the administration having regard to various purposes such as family reunification, employment, study, medical treatment or trade. The details of the matter fall within the scope of a separate study addressing the questions of what an annotated visa is and how it is obtained.
Setting Aside the Deportation Decision
A deportation decision may also be taken in respect of a foreign national against whom a Ç-149 code has been issued. A person who does not wish to be removed from the country must bring a separate action seeking annulment of the deportation decision, independently of the action concerning the restriction record.
That action must be brought within seven days of notification of the decision to the foreign national. The court with subject-matter and territorial jurisdiction is the administrative court at the place where the governorship that issued the decision is located.
In practice the administration does not wait for the seven-day period for bringing an action to expire before carrying out the deportation. The action must therefore be brought without delay as soon as the decision is notified. An action for annulment brought against a deportation decision has the effect of suspending deportation.
Removal of the restriction record may also be sought in the petition in that action. The court is then able to rule on both the record and the deportation decision within the same proceedings.
Detailed information on the action to be brought against a deportation decision is set out under the heading of how a deportation decision is set aside.
Objection to the Administrative Detention Decision
An administrative detention decision may also be taken in respect of a foreign national against whom a deportation decision has been made. Persons placed under detention are held in removal centres. The period of detention is a maximum of six months; in certain particular circumstances a further six months may be added to that period. An objection against the decision must be addressed to the criminal judgeship of peace at the place where the deportation decision was taken.
The details of an objection against an administrative detention decision are examined under the heading of objection to an administrative detention decision in a removal centre.
How Long the Process Takes
Objections made to the competent authority for removal of the record are generally concluded within one to three months. Where the same request is taken to the administrative court, the process is completed in approximately one year.
Court Fees and Litigation Costs
The costs incurred in an action for removal of a Ç-149 record are in the region of TRY 4,000 for 2023. That amount includes items such as the court application fee and postal fees.
Where an action is also to be brought against the deportation decision taken in respect of the foreign national, the fees for that file must be paid separately. The amounts in question are republished in each period.
Courts with Subject-Matter and Territorial Jurisdiction
In actions seeking removal of a restriction record, subject-matter and territorial jurisdiction lie with the Ankara administrative courts. Where annulment is sought of a deportation decision taken in reliance on the code, the action is heard by the administrative court in the province where the governorship that issued the deportation decision is located.
Conclusion
What is decisive in objections concerning a Ç-149 record is that the absence of any reasons supporting the ground on which the code was based should be clearly demonstrated. Observing the statutory time limits laid down in the legislation is equally important. Otherwise the result will be that the foreign national is deported or is unable to enter the country. It is therefore appropriate for the matter to be assessed with a lawyer experienced in the field.
Independent Legal Assessment
A Ç-149 record most often comes to light when the foreign national is turned back at the border gate. Since at that stage the person has no detailed information about the ground for the record, there is a risk that the objection and the petition will be drafted in general terms alone. Yet what secures a result before the administrative judiciary is documentary support showing that the facts taken as the basis of the risk assessment did not materialise in relation to the person concerned.
Management of time is the second critical head. The fact that sixty days are available for removal of the record but only seven days for the deportation decision makes it necessary to conduct the two processes at different speeds. The following points should be given priority in a particular file:
- Establishing by documentary evidence the date of notification and the moment at which time began to run for each measure
- Where the administrative objection is chosen, calculating its effect on the time limit for the action at the outset
- Compiling evidence capable of answering the suspicion, such as travel history and residence and employment records
- Where there is a deportation decision, also seeking removal of the record in the same petition
- Where the person is held in a removal centre, pursuing the objection against administrative detention separately
- Where there is an urgent need to enter the country, considering the annotated visa option in parallel
Independent Legal provides advisory services and conducts litigation in the field of immigration law, including the removal of restriction records, the annulment of deportation decisions and administrative detention proceedings.