Temporary protection status shall cease for a particular beneficiary where he or she:[1]
- Leaves Türkiye voluntarily;
- Avails him or herself of the protection of a third country;
- Is admitted to a third country on humanitarian grounds or for resettlement.
Voluntariness of repatriation
The TPR does not specify how the cessation criterion of voluntary departure from Türkiye is to be assessed. In theory, when a temporary protection beneficiary indicates the intention to return to Syria, he or she is interviewed by a panel consisting of PMM, UNHCR and civil society; the latter not being applied in practice. A lawyer can also be present in the interview. The panel assesses whether return is in fact voluntary and the underlying reasons behind it. UNHCR does not have any program for those who want to return voluntarily, but they continue to monitor voluntary returns to Syria in a number of provinces through presence at PDMMs[2]. UNHCR does not monitor all voluntary returns.
Voluntary, safe, and dignified returns have continued to be a priority policy area for the PMM in 2023, which established its voluntary return programme in 2021. As a reaction to rising anti-refugee sentiment stroked by opposition parties and the society calling for the return of Syrians to Syria, President Erdoğan has promised to relocate at least 1 million Syrians in Turkish-controlled regions of northern Syria. In 2024, the voluntary, safe, and dignified return programme continued. Between 1 January and 31 October 2024, 114,083 Syrians under temporary protection returned to Syria within the scope of this programme.[3] After December 2024, following the regime change in Syria, the programme began to be referred to as the voluntary, safe, dignified, and regular return programme.[4] In the initial days after the regime change, the number of returns increased significantly, reaching up to 1,000 individuals per day.[5]
According to Minister of Interior Ali Yerlikaya, as part of efforts to improve living conditions in Syria and what he referred to as “stopping migration at its source,” a total of 763,443 Syrians under temporary protection returned to Syria between 2017 and 22 December 2024. When comparing the two-week periods before and after 9 December 2024, the data reveals a significant increase in returns. Between 25 November and 8 December 2024, a total of 3,433 individuals (572 families) returned. In contrast, between 9 and 23 December 2024, the number rose to 23,440 individuals (4,136 families), indicating a 6.8-fold increase. This shift corresponds to a rise in the daily average of returns from approximately 245 individuals (41 families) to 1,647 individuals (295 families) after 9 December. Yerlikaya explicitly emphasized that returns must be voluntary and not conducted against individuals’ will.
Returns have been conducted through six border gates: Hatay Cilvegözü, Kilis Öncüpınar, Hatay Yayladağı, Gaziantep Karkamış, Hatay Zeytindalı, and Şanlıurfa Akçakale. As of 8 December 2024, the combined daily capacity across these gates was 3,020. Following this date, the total capacity was increased to 19,000 returnees per day—specifically: Karkamış (5,000), Akçakale (2,000), Öncüpınar (4,000), Zeytindalı (1,500), Cilvegözü (5,000), and Yayladağı (1,500). Additionally, the working hours of the border gates were extended to operate 24/7. In the first two weeks following the regime change, the top three provinces in Türkiye from which returns took place were Gaziantep, Hatay, and İstanbul. On the Syrian side, returnees primarily arrived in Aleppo, Idlib, and Latakia. During this period, 16,514 individuals returned with their families, while 6,926 individuals returned alone. In terms of age distribution, the largest group was aged 19–65 (12,360 individuals), followed by 0–12 years (9,055), 13–18 years (1,707), and those aged 65 and over (318).
Thanks to the appointment system available on the PMM’s website, individuals wishing to return can be assigned an appointment on the same day they apply. Once an individual applies for voluntary repatriation, their fingerprints are first taken, and a check is conducted through the UYAP system to determine whether there is any outstanding arrest warrant or restriction code. Following this process, the individual is issued a travel permit allowing them to travel across provinces. The voluntary repatriation form is completed in the individual’s own handwriting and signed while being recorded on camera. A third-party observer—such as a representative from UNHCR, the Turkish Red Crescent, or the Provincial Human Rights Monitoring Commission which is overseen by the Human Rights and Equality Institution of Türkiye (TİHEK) and the governorates —is present during this procedure. Subsequently, the V-87 code is issued, and the individual hands over their identity document to the border police. Finally, at the point of crossing, the individual’s fingerprint is checked once again. Additionally, Mr. Yerlikaya stated that customs regulations would be eased to facilitate returns, allowing individuals to take their household goods with them. He also noted that the licenses of their vehicles would be cancelled in Türkiye so that they could be used in Syria.
Ali Yerlikaya also explicitly stated that, during voluntary repatriation interviews, returnees are asked where they plan to spend the night upon arrival in Syria. He acknowledged the harsh conditions in the country, noting that there is no money in the central bank, health services are severely limited, and even government employees are not receiving their salaries. Despite these circumstances, thousands of individuals continue to return. Yerlikaya added that they expect those who have returned to inform others who remain in Türkiye about the conditions on the ground.
Mr. Yerlikaya emphasized that the Turkish government holds comprehensive personal data on returned Syrians, including their names, family records, and passport information. He stated that PMM offices would be established within Turkish consulates in Syria to prevent any conflicts or misuse of personal data. He also underlined that Türkiye is ready to assist Syrian officials if requested. However, Mr. Yerlikaya did not clarify whether the personal data of returnees would be explicitly shared with Syrian authorities, nor whether individual consent would be required in such cases.
According to two reports, one by the Union of Turkish Bar Associations (UTBA), other by Mazlumder, ULFED and The Platform of Rights of Asylum Seekers, the practice of coercing individuals into signing voluntary repatriation forms is primarily used to return those held in administrative detention while awaiting a court decision on their objection to a deportation order. This practice aims to expedite the procedure and create the appearance that the individual has voluntarily withdrawn their case. There are documented instances where the voluntary repatriation form is included among the standard documents at removal centers, as if it were an ordinary form to be signed. In one case, a form was signed just half an hour after the individual had issued a power of attorney to a lawyer for the purpose of filing a legal challenge against the deportation order—raising serious doubts about the voluntariness of the return.[15] In 2024, lawyers continued to submit documents signed by their clients to removal centre files, explicitly stating that the individuals did not wish to return to their countries of origin voluntarily. Some lawyers also began to include phrases such as “I absolutely do not wish to return to my country due to the ongoing civil war and because my family is in Türkiye,” and “I do not wish to return voluntarily or by force due to life-threatening risks upon return” into powers of attorney, even when the statement did not directly relate to the specific legal authority being granted but served instead to clarify the context or motivation behind the authorisation.[16]
In 2024, an administrative court issued a decision of “no ground to render a judgment” in a case concerning a deportation order against a Syrian national. The decision was based solely on the submission of a renunciation petition by the applicant from within the removal centre, approximately two months after the case had been initiated. This was despite the applicant’s lawyer stating that their client had no genuine intention to return. The court did not examine the circumstances under which the petition was signed, nor did it assess whether the applicant’s consent was informed, voluntary, and free from coercion. No inquiry was made into the credibility or voluntariness of a single written statement obtained in detention, raising serious concerns about the reliability of such declarations as a basis for terminating legal proceedings.[17]
Two important decisions support the claims regarding forced return of Syrians being carried out.
On February 15, 2023, the Constitutional Court General Assembly ruled on the application of Wisam Sulaiman Dawood Eaqadah (Application No: 2021/2831). The Court decided that the claims regarding the violation of the prohibition of ill-treatment and the right to an effective remedy in connection with the freedom of settlement, within the context of procedural safeguards in deportation processes, were clearly unfounded and therefore inadmissible. In the Abdulkerim Hammud decision (Application No. 2019/24388, Decision Date May 2, 2023), the Constitutional Court of Türkiye examined, for the first time, an individual application alleging forced return to Syria. The Court unanimously ruled that there had been violations of the right to life and the prohibition of ill-treatment as protected under Article 17 of the Constitution, as well as the right to an effective remedy under Article 40, in parallel with the European Court of Human Rights decision in Akkad v. Türkiye.
The European Court of Human Rights convicted Türkiye in a lawsuit filed on the grounds that Türkiye illegally deported a Syrian temporary protection holder to his country.[21] In 2022, the European Court of Human Rights found a violation of articles 3, 5 and 13 of the ECHR in Akkad v. Türkiye judgement on the ground of expulsion of the temporary protection holder applicant to Syria[22].
Some INGOs – such as IHH – and their contractors are active in the Azzez region. Even though people are settled in the region, the conditions are quite harsh due to the extreme conditions. For instance, hospitals do not function properly; given that the lack of schools and employment opportunities in the area, Syrians do not wish to return to Turkish-controlled territories. Residing in containers is not sustainable either. Stakeholders view Turkish policy as unsustainable, and an international consensus must eventually be reached. Syrians who are deported to Syria either obtain a visa to enter Syria or are deported to Turkish-controlled territory.[23]
Where temporary protection is terminated based on cessation, PMM issues a “V87” code to mark the person as a “voluntarily returned foreigner”. The person is usually left at the border and handles the return process him or herself.[24] However, beneficiaries are not always adequately informed of the process.
Moreover, the aforementioned interview procedure is not followed in Removal Centres. Persons signing voluntary return documents – often following pressure from authorities (see Detention of Asylum Seekers) – do not undergo an interview by a panel aimed at establishing whether return is voluntary.[25] This practice remained the same in 2024 and the beginning of 2025 as well.
If a Syrian individual wishes to voluntarily return to Syria with their children in the absence of the other parent, this creates a legal challenge. Turkish authorities maintain a strict requirement for the non-accompanying parent to provide a notarized consent document (muvafakatname). In cases where the other parent is unavailable—due to prior deportation, loss of contact, or similar circumstances—authorities require either a custody annulment (velayet iptali) or a guardianship appointment decision (vesayet kararı). As these are lengthy legal procedures, efforts have been made to identify faster solutions. In January 2025, a court in İzmir appointed a representative trustee (temsil kayyımı) for an individual’s grandchild whose parents were missing. The court explicitly authorized the trustee to ‘accompany the minor in the event of return to Syria. Stakeholders reported that many mothers, whose husbands were either forcibly returned or returned voluntarily and subsequently lost contact, are unable to return to Syria with their children. These women may face prolonged waiting periods—potentially lasting years—until the necessary legal procedures are resolved. In another case in 2024, a court in Istanbul dismissed a custody claim made by a mother seeking custodial rights to take her child back to Syria. The parents were married through a religious marriage (imam nikahı) in Türkiye, which is not legally recognized in the country. The court ruled that there was no need to decide on custody because, under Turkish Civil Law, custody automatically belongs to the mother.[26]
Re-entry following cessation
It is common for refugees to travel back to Syria for administrative reasons e.g. renewal of passport, and then to return to Türkiye.[27] This policy has changed for holiday permits granted to Syrians during religious holidays. Since 2022, ‘holiday permits’ are not given to Syrians.[28]
In 2023, Syrians under temporary protection who are registered and residing in the earthquake-affected provinces (Kahramanmaraş, Hatay, Gaziantep, Malatya, Kilis, Osmaniye, Diyarbakır, Adana, Adıyaman, Şanlıurfa) could – on an exceptional basis – temporarily return to Syria without losing their temporary protection status. The period was between 14 February and 15 September 2023, with staying maximum of six months. Syrians under temporary protection residing in one of these provinces could directly apply to local authorities at the border gate without obtaining a travel permit document from the province they reside in[29]. The permission was extended by December 2023. There are statements indicating that more than 90% of Syrian who visited Syria with this permission returned back to Türkiye, however there is a considerable number of persons staying in the provinces they moved to after the earthquake. [30].
As of 1 January 2025, “go and see” visits officially began, as previously noted. Stakeholders noted that these visits initially took place through the Çobanbey and Zeytindalı border gates, with Yayladağı later added to the list. The duration of the permission granted for these visits was limited to 15 days.
Approximately 15,000 individuals returned to Türkiye following these visits and were issued a V-175 restriction code. This code obliges returnees to report to the PDMM in their province of registration and update their address in order to lift the restriction and reactivate their Temporary Protection (TP) IDs. However, returnees were not informed about the existence of this code by PDMM officials; instead, many became aware of it only when they attempted to access services such as hospitals.
Permission for these visits was granted exclusively to the “pioneer” (öncü) of the family—typically the male head of household (reis). There are reported cases in which single men without families and single women with children were denied access to this right. A single elderly woman with cancer travelled from her province of residence, Samsun, to the border gate but was denied permission to participate in the visit. Although the official grounds for the refusal remain unclear, stakeholders are of the opinion that the “pioneer” rule has been strictly interpreted to mean male family members.[31]
Admission to the temporary protection regime of persons who previously benefitted from temporary protection in Türkiye but their status was ceased is assessed on an individual basis by PMM.[32] PMM is authorised to grant or deny renewed access to temporary protection status upon repeat arrival in Türkiye.
There continue to be cases of people whose temporary protection status was ceased, and who were issued a “V87” code, being unable to re-access rights upon return to Türkiye. PMM issued a Circular on 7 January 2019, instructing PDMM to lift the “V87 code” in respect of persons returning to Türkiye after having signed a “voluntary return document”, especially pregnant women, elderly persons and children, as of 1 January 2019, to allow them to re-access services.[33] The Circular also requires PDMM to provide detailed information to temporary protection beneficiaries on the legal implications of signing a “voluntary return document”.
Deportation for registered Syrians was deactivated, and a code called C-114 was issued. Deportations are mostly on weekends, and people sign voluntary return forms without knowing their purpose. The ‘V-87’ circular had a positive effect, but interviews for those whose temporary protection had been cancelled were held mainly for vulnerable refugees with no criminal record in Türkiye.[34]
The question of cessation has also arisen in the context of the readmission of Syrian nationals from Greece to Türkiye under the EU-Türkiye statement. An amendment to the TPR was introduced on 5 April 2016 to clarify that Syrian nationals, who entered Türkiye after 28 April 2011 and who transited irregularly to the Aegean islands after 20 March 2016, “may” be provided temporary protection.[35] PMM statistics refer to 412 Syrian “irregular migrants” readmitted by Türkiye from 4 April 2016 to 5 April 2021 – an increase of 8 persons in 2020.[36] These returns were still suspended in 2024 as far as stakeholders were aware.
[1] Article 12(1) TPR.
[2] Information provided by a stakeholder, March 2024.
[3] Göç İdaresi Başkanlığı, X (Twitter), 21.11.2024, available here.
[4] T.C. Göç İdaresi Başkanlığı, Gönüllü, Güvenli, Onurlu ve Düzenli Geri Dönüş, available here.
[5] Ali Yerlikaya, X (Twitter), 15.12.2024, available here.
[6] Anadolu Ajansı, İçişleri Bakanı Ali Yerlikaya, AA Editör Masası’nda soruları yanıtladı.
[7] Habertürk, İçişleri Bakanı Ali Yerlikaya Özel Röportaj’da Soruları Yanıtlıyor, 05.06.2025, available here.
[8] Habertürk, ibid.
[9] Reuters, Hope turns to regret among Syrians returning home from Turkey, 06.02.2025, available here.
[10] Human Rigths Watch, Turkey: Hundreds of Refugees Deported to Syria, 24 October 2022, available here.
[11] Milliyet, ‘Bir milyondan fazla Suriyeli evine döndü’, 21 January 2022, available here.
[12] Information provided by a stakeholder, May 2023.
[13] Biante, 26.02.24, SOHR: “Türkiye Suriyeli mültecileri zorla geri göndermeye devam ediyor, available here
[14] Global Detention Project, Türkiye: Submission to the Committee against Torture, June 2024.
[15] TBB İbid, Mazlumder, Göç Politikasını Beraber İyileştirelim!, 20.06.2025, available here.
[16] Information provided by multiple stakeholders, May and June 2025.
[17] İstanbul 16. İdare Mahkemesi 2024/3997 E., 2024/6439 K., 03.10.2024 T.
[18] Information provided by multiple stakeholders, February and May 2025.
[19] AP, The warm Turkish welcome for refugees is ending and Syrians are worried, 20.12.2024, available here.
[20] Information provided by a stakeholder, April 2025.
[21] Information provided by a lawyer of a Bar Association, February 2020.
[21] On the contrary, decisions of the Administrative Court are notified to the PDMM since they are party to the proceedings.
[21] ECHR, Akkad v. Turkiye, application number: 1557/19, 21 June 2022, available here.
[22] AKKAD v. TURKEY [Turkish Translation] by İstanbul Bar Association, available here.
[23] Information provided by a stakeholder, May 2023.
[24] Information provided by a stakeholder, May 2023.
[25] Information provided by a stakeholder, May 2023.
[26] Information provided by multiple stakeholders, February, March, April and May 2025.
[27] Information provided by a stakeholder, May 2023.
[28] Hürriyet, ‘Bayrama giden kalacak’, 2022, available here & information provided by stakeholders, March – April 2024.
[29] UNHCR Help Turkiye, Duyurular, 14.02.2023, available here
[30] Information provided by stakeholders, March – April 2024.
[31] Information provided by multiple stakeholders February and May 2025.
[32] Article 13 TPR.
[33] PMM Circular 2019/1 on Cessation of Status of Syrians due to Voluntary Return, 7 January 2019.
[34] Information provided by a stakeholder, May 2023.
[35] Provisional Article 1(6) TPR, as inserted by Article 1 Regulation 2016/8722 of 5 April 2016.