Visa requirements for Turkish nationals planning to travel to its neighbouring country Greece continue to bring significant challenges for them.
In this regard, the analyst, Jan Pulak, said that Greek nationals are eligible to enter Türkiye without a visa, but Turkish nationals are in a worse situation after they are subject to visa requirements at first.
Our neighbour Greece can and does go to 145 countries without a visa, while 90 states and territories require a visa from us. We can’t even take a step without a visa even on palm-sized islands that we haven’t even heard of.
Pulak said that in spite of the fact that the distance between Greece and Türkiye is short, authorities in Greece continue to maintain strict visa requirements.
In addition, the Turkish columnist emphasised the need for Türkiye to implement the principle of reciprocity, proposing the refusal to grant visas to all those countries that keep visa requirements in place for Türkiye. Pulak said that he discussed the matter with a foreign diplomat.
Millions of people have passed through your borders. And many of them are trying to escape to the outside. Those who take your passport manage to lose track of them in the countries they go to and never return. That is why we necessarily have to follow a strict visa policy.
Greece’s Express Visa Scheme Brought Over 35,000 Turkish Tourists
In a bid to attract nationals from Türkiye, on April 1 this year, Greece launched the visa-express scheme, which became very popular among Turkish nationals within a short period.
The figures provided by authorities in Greece revealed that for a period from April until the first week of July, 182,000 Turkish tourists visited Greece’s islands.
The surge in the number of Turkish tourists to Greece also contributed significantly to the further growth of Greece’s economy.
Authorities in Greece also revealed that of the total number of arrivals, 35,000 reached the Hellenic Republic through the Express Visa Scheme.
The Express Visa Scheme permits Turkish tourists to obtain a visa upon their arrival at ten Greek islands.
A report from Kathimerini noted that the main reasons why Turkish tourists choose Greece instead of domestic travel are the quality of services and affordability.
In addition, a sector representative in Lesbos said that 75 per cent of tourists registered in Lesbos were nationals of Türkiye.
