First Month in Turkey Checklist: The Right Order for Enrollment, Tax Number, Bank Account, Insurance and Residence Permit
Tax number, bank account, health insurance and the residence permit each have their own guide on this site. Here is the order to do them in, in one checklist.
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Quick summary: The tax number, bank account, health insurance and student residence permit each have their own detailed guide on this site. What this page adds is the order: the tax number is free, usually issued the same day, and is a prerequisite for the bank account; the address document and enrollment certificate are needed for both the bank and the residence permit, so gather them once, not twice; the insurance decision (GSS or private) has to be made within three months of enrollment because proof of it is required for the residence permit file; and the residence permit application itself must be filed within the 90-day visa-exemption window, ideally in the first month. This guidance, like the rest of our service, is free for the student.
Once the offer letter arrives, the next question from most families is "okay, what do we do first?" Each piece of the answer already has its own page on this site — but none of them says what order to do things in relative to each other, and that order is exactly what saves or wastes time in the first few weeks. This post adds nothing new about any single process; each row links to its own detailed guide. The one thing it adds is which step needs to happen before which other step.
The checklist, in order
| Step | When | Why this order |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Enroll at the university and get the student enrollment certificate (öğrenci belgesi) | Enrollment day | Almost every later step depends on this document |
| 2. Get the tax number (vergi numarası) | Same week | Free, usually issued same-day; you cannot open a bank account without it |
| 3. Gather the address document (dorm letter, notarized lease, or host's notarized undertaking) | Same week | Needed both for the bank account and, later, for the residence permit file |
| 4. Open a personal bank account | After steps 2 and 3 | For daily expenses, entirely separate from the university tuition account |
| 5. Decide GSS or private insurance | Within 3 months of enrollment | Legal deadline, and proof of insurance is required for the residence permit file |
| 6. File the residence permit application on e-ikamet | Within the 90-day visa-exemption window, ideally month 1 | All the documents above (enrollment certificate, address document, insurance) must already be ready |
Why the tax number comes first
The tax number is free and, per our bank account guide, is usually issued the same day, at the local tax office or its online system, just by presenting your passport. You cannot open a personal bank account without it — so this is the first practical task in week one, not standing in line at a bank without it.
Gather the address document once, not twice
A dormitory letter, a notarized lease, or a host's notarized undertaking is needed both for the bank account and for the residence permit file — our bank account guide makes this point directly: "the address document and enrollment certificate you gather for the residence permit application are the same documents most banks ask for too." The practical takeaway: collect this one document in week one so it is ready for both uses.
Decide on insurance before the deadline forces your hand
Our mandatory health insurance guide states the deadline precisely: to use the state general health insurance scheme (GSS), you must apply within three months of your university enrollment date — a rule from the law itself, not an internal recommendation of ours. Miss it, and the remaining path is private insurance for the full residence period. Because the residence permit file cannot be completed without valid proof of insurance, make this decision in the same weeks you are gathering the address document and opening the bank account — not in the last days of the three-month window.
File the residence permit in month one, not month three
Holders of an ordinary Iranian passport can stay in Turkey visa-free for up to 90 days within any 180-day period, and the student residence permit application must be filed within that window, online at e-ikamet.goc.gov.tr. Our residence permit guide gives the same advice: "act in the first month, not the third" — because by the time you reach this step, the enrollment certificate, address document and proof of insurance all need to already be ready. If you have worked through steps 1–5 of this checklist earlier, step 6 becomes a matter of submitting documents, not chasing them down in the final week.
The cost at this stage is also fixed: the 2026 residence permit card fee, per the Directorate General of Migration Management's official fee page (opens in a new tab), is 964 TL — and students, unlike most other applicants, are exempt from the residence permit application charge itself.
This checklist does not change what any single guide already says
Every figure and deadline in this post — the tax number, the three-month insurance window, the 90-day visa exemption, the 964 TL card fee — comes from its own specialized guide, and that is where to go for the full picture: the GSS-versus-private comparison, or the complete residence permit document checklist. What this post adds is only a table: which step needs to happen before which other step, so the first few weeks involve one trip to each office instead of several.
If you have not yet gathered your pre-departure documents, our pre-departure document checklist is the right starting point; this post picks up exactly where that one ends — the moment you land. The overall budget for these first weeks is covered in our cost of living guide, and the full first-term calendar is in our deadlines guide.
Homa Study's role in this checklist
Reviewing your file and obtaining offer letters from three different Turkish universities is completely free for the student; you pay tuition directly to the university's own account, and none of it passes through us — the full model is explained in free offer letters from three universities. Walking through this order of steps is part of that same free consultation, not a separate paid service.
Frequently asked questions
Should I open the bank account before or after applying for the residence permit?
Usually at the same time, or slightly before. A personal bank account needs the tax number and an address document, not the residence permit card itself — though some banks also ask for the residence-application receipt or the enrollment certificate. Since the address document and enrollment certificate are exactly what the residence permit application needs too, the practical move is to gather them once, as explained in our bank account guide.
Does the tax number have to come first, and does it cost anything?
Yes, the tax number (vergi numarası) is usually the first practical step after university enrollment, because you cannot open a bank account without it. It is free and, per our bank account guide, is usually issued the same day at the local tax office or its online system, just by presenting your passport.
By when must I choose between GSS and private insurance, and why does that interact with the residence permit timeline?
Per our mandatory health insurance guide, you must apply for the state health insurance scheme (GSS) within three months of your university enrollment date to use it; miss that window and private insurance for the full residence period is the only remaining path. The connection to the residence permit: the application cannot be completed without valid proof of insurance, so this decision needs to be made before or alongside the rest of your residence-permit documents, not after.
Is there a real deadline for the student residence permit application?
Yes. Iranian passport holders can stay in Turkey visa-free for up to 90 days within any 180-day period, and the residence permit application must be filed within that window. Our residence permit guide recommends acting in the first month rather than the third, since gathering documents, insurance and the address document each take a few days, and there is little room left for delay near the end of the window.
Does the dormitory letter also count as the address document for the other steps?
Yes. Both our residence permit guide and our bank account guide list the dormitory letter as one of the accepted address documents, alongside a notarized lease or a host's notarized undertaking. So if you live in a university dormitory, the same letter works for both the residence permit application and opening a bank account — you do not need to collect two separate documents.
What does following this checklist cost me at Homa Study?
Nothing. Reviewing your file, choosing universities and obtaining offer letters from three different Turkish universities is free for the student, and you pay tuition directly to the university's own account — none of it passes through us. Walking through this order of steps is part of that same free consultation, not a separate paid service. The partner university pays us a referral fee only after the referred student enrolls, not you.