Turkey will allow Chinese citizens to enter the country without a visa starting today under a unilateral decision aimed at boosting tourism.
According to a decree published in the Official Gazette on Wednesday and signed by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, holders of ordinary Chinese passports will be permitted to travel to Turkey visa-free for purposes of tourism and transit for up to 90 days within any 180-day period.
The decision does not apply reciprocally. Visas will continue to be required for Turkish citizens seeking to travel to China.
Turkey’s Foreign Ministry says on its website that holders of ordinary Turkish passports must obtain a visa from a Chinese diplomatic mission before traveling. In contrast citizens of several countries, including Germany and Azerbaijan, can travel to China visa-free.
China’s ambassador to Ankara, Jiang Xuebin, welcomed the decision, calling it “a wonderful gift” to mark the 55th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
In a social media post he said the exemption would deepen people-to-people exchanges and strengthen bilateral ties.
Türkiye’nin Çin vatandaşlarına vize muafiyeti kararını büyük bir memnuniyetle karşılıyoruz.
Bu, Çin ve Türkiye arasındaki diplomatik ilişkilerin tesisinin 55. yıl dönümünü kutlamak için harika bir armağandır! 🇨🇳🇹🇷Bu önemli adımın, halklar arası etkileşimi daha da artıracağına…
— Jiang Xuebin 姜学斌 (@ChinaAmbTurkiye) December 31, 2025
The move is intended to help Turkey attract more visitors from China, with officials targeting 1 million Chinese tourists annually and aiming to double that figure in the medium term.
According to Turkey’s Culture and Tourism Ministry, 248,100 Chinese tourists visited Turkey in 2023, a figure that rose to 409,700 in 2024. Data from the Tourism Promotion and Development Agency (TGA) show that the Chinese market grew by 65.1 percent in 2024, making it the fastest-growing source of international visitors.
Turkey and China established diplomatic relations in 1971 and elevated ties to the level of “strategic cooperation” in 2010. Bilateral trade has grown in recent years, rising from about $1 billion in 2001 to more than $48 billion in 2024. However, the trade balance is disproportionate in China’s favor.
Turkish exports to China totaled $3.4 billion in 2024, while imports reached $44.9 billion, according to official data.
Visa decision prompts debate over reciprocity and human rights
Turkey’s decision to lift visa requirements unilaterally for Chinese citizens has sparked criticism on social media, with commentators and activists questioning the lack of reciprocity, raising security concerns and pointing to China’s human rights record regarding Uyghurs, a Muslim Turkic ethnic group from China’s Xinjiang region, which Uyghurs refer to as East Turkestan.
Turkish journalist Mehmet Ali Önel described the move as a one-sided concession with limited economic benefit, arguing that Chinese tourists tend to spend less than visitors from other countries and warned that the policy could negatively affect Turkey’s tourism sector.
Önel also said the decision carries potential national security risks.
Concerns have also been raised concerning Ankara’s silence concerning Beijing’s treatment of Uyghurs, eliciting international condemnation.
Since 2022 the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has toned down public criticism of China’s treatment of Uyghurs and stepped up measures targeting Uyghur refugees and migrants living in Turkey.
Human rights groups estimate that about 1 million Uyghurs have been arbitrarily detained in a network of camps in Xinjiang, with reports documenting forced sterilization, systematic torture and sexual abuse. Beijing denies the allegations, describing the facilities as vocational training centers aimed at combating extremism.
Arif Nacaroğlu, a Turkish academic, warned that the visa exemption could increase risks for Uyghurs living in Turkey, claiming that easier entry for Chinese nationals could expose Uyghur communities to surveillance and intimidation, arguing that Turkey has become an increasingly unsafe environment for them.
In a report in November, Human Rights Watch (HRW) also said Turkey is increasingly restricting the legal stay of Uyghurs and deporting some to third countries despite the risk of eventual return to China, in violation of the principle of non-refoulement.
Similar criticism was voiced by a social media user posting under the name Doğu Türkistan, an activist account that describes its aim as raising awareness among the Turkish public about what it calls China’s policies toward Uyghurs in Xinjiang.
Biliyor muydunuz?
Türkiye, Türk Bayrağının ve benzeri tişört takı, telefon kılıflarının bile yasaklandığı, 1.5 milyara yakın nüfusu olan Çin vatandaşlarına vize muafiyeti tanıdı.
Türk vatandaşlarının Çin’e giderken vize zorunluluğu ise devam ediyor. pic.twitter.com/dbLVfn99l6
— Doğu Türkistan (@Uyghur_Report) January 1, 2026
Describing Turkey’s visa move as a stark imbalance in Turkey’s visa regime, the user said that while Chinese citizens will be able to travel to Turkey without a visa, Turkish citizens remain subject to visa requirements for travel to China, where even symbols such as Turkish flags are reportedly restricted.