Foreign Doctor Work Permit and Conditions
As in all professions, the foreign doctor’s work permit and conditions need to obtain a work permit from the Ministry of Labor and Social Security in order to operate in Turkey. Although medicine was among the professions that used to be restricted to Turkish citizens and foreigners were forbidden to work, with the subsequent law amendment, foreign doctors and nurses can work in Turkey by obtaining a work permit.
For foreign doctor’s work permit applications, a preliminary permit from the Ministry of Health must be obtained before applying to the Ministry of Labor and Social Security. Doctors who have not graduated from Turkish universities are required to have an equivalency certificate from the Council of Higher Education (YÖK) and a Turkish Language Exam result of at least B degree.
Required Conditions for Foreign Doctor’s Work
Foreign Doctors can work in private hospitals and clinics in Turkey. Then, what are the necessary conditions to apply for a foreign doctor ‘s work permit ?
As we mentioned above, foreign doctors are required to obtain a preliminary permit from the Ministry of Health. The documents required in the application for preliminary permit differ between physicians who graduated from universities in Turkey and those who graduated from universities abroad.
What are the Pre-permit Application Documents?
Documents Required from Doctors Graduated from Turkish Universities:
- Copy of the passport translated into Turkish;
- Photocopy of residence card;
- Residence (place of residence) certificate;
- Photocopy of the foreigner’s diploma;
- 2 passport photos;
- The petition of the responsible manager requesting the Preliminary Permission Document;
- Application petition written by a foreign national doctor;
- A service contract signed between the private hospital or medical center and the foreigner.
Documents Required from Foreigners Who Have Not Graduated from Turkish Universities:
- Copy of the passport translated into Turkish;
- Photocopy of residence card;
- Residence (place of residence) certificate;
- Photocopy of the foreigner’s diploma;
- 2 passport photos;
- The petition of the responsible manager requesting the Preliminary Permission Document;
- Application petition written by a foreign national doctor;
- The service contract signed between the private hospital or medical center and the foreigner;
- Equivalency certificate issued by the Council of Higher Education;
- Turkish proficiency certificate given by Turkish Teaching Application and Research Center;
- A letter from the Ministry of Health or foreign representatives of the country where the foreign national came from, stating that they do not have any obstacles to doing the profession.
Foreign Doctor Working Conditions
As a rule, the Ministry of Health decides who will work in the health sector, but foreign national health care members must be authorized by the Ministry of Labor and Social Security. The preliminary permission document requested from the Ministry of Health is a kind of opinion. However, if this document is not provided, the foreign national physician is not allowed to practice his profession in Turkey by the Ministry of Labor and Social Security. Working conditions of foreign doctors are also applied to nurses in Turkey. Work permit applications for foreign nurses are subject to the pre-authorization procedure, as is the case with doctors. Except for doctors and nurses, it is forbidden for other healthcare professionals to work in Turkey. dentistry, dentistry, Health care workers, such as patient care, cannot work in professions that are restricted to Turkish citizens by law. Healthcare professionals who will apply for a preliminary permit should pay attention to the following:
- Equivalence certificate is requested from foreign doctors who are not graduated from Turkish Universities. The equivalence of the diploma of the Faculty of Medicine is given by the Council of Higher Education (YÖK), the equivalence of the specialty certificates is given by the General Directorate of Health Services;
- Foreign physicians who have not graduated from Turkish education institutions are required to have a document showing that they can speak Turkish. At least B level Language Certificate can be obtained from Turkish Teaching Application and Research Centers (TÖMER);
- A document showing that there is no legal obstacle to performing his profession in the country of origin is required from the foreign physician who will practice his profession for the first time in Turkey. However, this document is not requested from foreign nationals who graduated from Turkey in the year before the application date, and who have been residing in Turkey for the last 5 years without interruption, and from those who took refuge in Turkey due to war, martial law or a state of emergency in their country.
Documents Required for Foreign Doctor Work Permit
A foreign doctor who has received a preliminary permit from the Ministry of Health must obtain the following necessary documents in order to obtain a work permit .
- Equivalence certificate given by the Higher Education Council for the physicians who graduated from the Faculty of Medicine abroad;
- To be successful in the Turkish proficiency exam conducted by the Turkish Education Application and Research Center (TÖMER) in at least (B) degree (This document must be submitted to the relevant Ministry within 1 year at the latest from the date of application. Otherwise, the work permit is canceled (This document is not required from Turkey graduates). );
- From those who will practice their profession for the first time in Turkey, a document from the competent authority of the country they come from, stating that they do not have an obstacle to doing their profession (This document is from those who applied within 1 year after university graduation from Turkey, ;
- A service contract between a private hospital or health center and a foreign physician.
You can obtain both the preliminary permit issued by the Ministry of Health and the work permit issued by the Ministry of Labor and Social Security through us. We are with you during the application process with our expert staff.
Note: The work permit document is also referred to as the residence permit of the foreigner, and it is not necessary to apply for a residence permit again.
APPLICATION FORM: https://gocmenburo.com/en/immigration-office-service-form