The Republic of Turkey Identity Card () is mandatory for all Turkish citizens from birth. The Turkish police are authorized to request identification at any time, and failure to comply may result in a fine. The identity card also serves as a

travel document A travel document is an identity document issued by a government or international entity pursuant to international agreements to enable individuals to clear border control measures. Travel documents usually assure other governments that the beare ...

for Turkish citizens entering certain countries and regions without a passport. It is currently accepted for entry into

Northern Cyprus Northern Cyprus, officially the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), is a ''de facto'' state that comprises the northeastern portion of the Geography of Cyprus, island of Cyprus. It is List of states with limited recognition, recognis ...

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

(planned),

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

(since 2011),

Moldova Moldova, officially the Republic of Moldova, is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe, with an area of and population of 2.42 million. Moldova is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. ...

(since 2019),

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

(since 2017, if arriving directly from Turkey),

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

(since 1 April 2021, if arriving directly from Turkey), and

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

(planned) instead of a passport.

History

Identity cards, theoretically obligatory for all citizens, male and female, existed already in the late

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

. They were known in Turkish as ''nüfus tezkeresi''. To the Slavic subjects of the Ottoman state they were known colloquially as ''nofuz'' ().

ID cards (1927-1991)

Turkey issued ID cards (Turkish: ''Nüfus Hüviyet Cüzdanı'') with the 1927 census in Ottoman Arabic letters. With Turkey's change to Latin script, ID cards were changed to Latin in 1928. Surnames were added after 1934, with the

Surname Law The Surname Law () of the Republic of Turkey is a law adopted on 21 June 1934, requiring all citizens of Turkey to adopt the use of fixed, hereditary surnames. Prior to 1934, Turkish families in the major urban centres had names by which they were ...

. Newer ID cards were issued in 1976, however old cards were still valid until 1991.

ID cards (issued 1976-2017, still valid)

Turkey issued ID cards (Turkish: ''Nüfus Cüzdanı'') for all citizens beginning in 1976. The cards are 7x9 cm in size and have gender specific color (Orange/red for females, blue for males). Starting from 1999, cards were issued with a

Turkish Identification Number Turkish Identification Number ( or abbreviated as ''T.C. Kimlik No.'') is a unique personal identification number that is assigned to every citizen of Turkey. Foreigners residing in Turkey at least six months for any purpose receive a Foreigner Id ...

. Cards have an embossed stamp for security. Starting in 2017, this type of ID cards stopped being issued.

New identity cards (2017-current)

The Turkish

Ministry of the Interior An interior ministry or ministry of the interior (also called ministry of home affairs or ministry of internal affairs) is a government department that is responsible for domestic policy, public security and law enforcement. In some states, the ...

issued an EU-like identity card (Turkish: ''Kimlik Kartı'') for all Turkish citizens. New identity cards are biometric like passports. Since 21 September 2020, they can be used as a

driving licence A driver's license, driving licence, or driving permit is a legal authorization, or the official document confirming such an authorization, for a specific individual to operate one or more types of motorized vehicles—such as motorcycles, car ...

. In the future they will be used as a bank card and bus ticket. Starting from 2 January 2017, these new ID cards were issued throughout Turkey. Unlike previous cards, which were valid for life, new cards are only valid for 10 years. They are in ID-1 (credit card) size, smaller than the previous cards. The cards are gender-neutral for all citizens. Cards are bilingual, both in Turkish and English. E-signatures can be installed into the card's chip. The cards have PIN codes for authorization. During the application for new cards, fingerprints for all fingers and palm vein prints are collected and associated with the person. New cards require biometric photos (for ages 15 and up) and have an individual's signature. The new cards also omit several pieces of information found on previous cards, such as; marital status, religion, blood type, place of issue, previous surname (for females), hometown (State, District, Village) and register numbers (volume, family and line numbers).

Machine Readable Zone

There is a machine-readable zone on the back of the 2017 card. It consists of 3 rows each containing 30 characters. The format is compliant with ICAO Document 9303 Part 5. Checksum calculation is the same algorithm used in Machine-readable passports. Multiply each digit by its weight. Weight of a digit depends on its position. The weight sequence is 7, 3, 1 and it repeats. The remainder of the sum of all values divided by 10 gives the check digit.

References

{{identity cards

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...