Turkey lifts entry bans for ‘more than 15’ Cypriots

Sanctions restricting the entry of “more than 15” Turkish Cypriots to Turkey have been lifted, TRNC president Tufan Erhurman announced on Saturday.

“The restrictions on entry to Turkey for a certain number of our friends have been lifted. I informed them individually. So, there is such a development. To put it roughly, I am talking about a figure of more than 15,” he said at a press conference.

He added that “we will continue our consultations, efforts, and work on this issue”, and that “as you know, this matter needs to be addressed seriously and calmly”.

A number of Turkish Cypriots had found themselves on one of Turkey’s N-82 and G-82 lists, both of which entail restrictions on one’s entry to the country.

Having one’s name on the former means that one must apply in advance to the Turkish embassy in their country for pre-clearance to enter the country, while being on the G-82 list entails an outright ban from entering Turkey.

Neither list is publicly available, and as such, those on it generally do not find out until they arrive in Turkey.

The N-82 designation is listed by the Turkish government as “juristic preference” – in short, that Turkey has decided to exempt the individual from the unabridged right of entry. The G-82 designation is reserved for individuals deemed by the Turkish government to have “acted against national security”.