You have a mobile phone from your country; you came to Turkey, got a Turkish SIM card, and then after some days you received an SMS from BTK (IT and Communication Authority), and the following days your phone was blocked. You have 120 days to register your phone after your arrival day.

If you do not want to register your phone, you can buy a cheap phone from stores. 

It is because your phone is not registered to the Mobile Devices Registration System. Even if the phone is registered, you have to match your SIM card with your residence permit ID number as well.

We are going to explain how to register your phone to this system:

First step: Getting a Residence Permit 

You can not register your phone anymore without residence permit so if you would like to get information for the residence process, please check our Touristic Residence Permit Page

Second step: Registration Fee Payment to Tax Office

After you arrive in Turkey, your passport is stamped by police at customs. After this date you have 120 days to register your mobile phone. If 120 days passed after your last arrival, then you may need a new entrance stamp in order to make the registration process.

Take your passport, residence permit card, and 45,614.30₺ with you and go to any tax office around your district. After you get in the building, you should go straight and ask for Vezne (Payment Desk). You should tell them "Cep Telefonu Kaydı," which means Mobile Phone Registration

They will ask you for the IMEI number of your mobile. You can learn it by pushing these digits:

*#06#

After you learn your IMEI number(s), write it down to a paper with your full passport name, passport number and Turkish Foreign ID Number (YKN, the number starting with 99, 98...). You will pay 45,614.30₺, and you will get a receipt. Here there is something you should pay attention to.

Please check if the details on your receipt are correct or not. IMEI number, your name, surname, passport number, residence permit number If there is a mistake, you cannot register your phone with this receipt. You will pay the tax again with the correct information.

Second Step: Registration 
You can register by two options if you have a residence permit or not. 

Registration through operator company:

After you received your correct receipt. You can go to your mobile operator company store in your district (Türk Telekom, Vodafone, or Turkcell) in order to register your phone.

Mobile companies are charging around 700-1400 TL for the registration (excluding the SIM card fee). So, you will pay a total of 47,000₺ for mobile registration, including the governmental fee.

On the other hand, please do not forget to match your SIM card with your residence permit card ID number (YKN); most probably you got your SIM card with your passport, and the BTK system needs your mobile number to match with your Foreign ID Number (YKN). So your operator company will relate your passport number and YKN, and then the system will reactivate your number.

Registration with a residence permit by e-Devlet (via turkiye.gov.tr):

You can go to any PTT office and get an e-devlet password with your residence permit card. Then you can log in and register your phone on the e-devlet website. In order to register your phone to the system, you need to pay your tax (governmental fee) in advance with the correct details.

Briefly, if you would like to use a Turkish SIM card in your mobile phone, you should register your phone to the BTK system, but if you think that 45,614.30₺ is too much to pay as a tax, it makes more sense to buy a cheap smartphone or a cell phone already registered to the BTK system.

Registering your SIM card with your Residence Permit ID number

Your Turkish SIM card will be blocked after 30 days x 4 time periods, which is 120 days. So it means, from the first time you start to use your SIM card, even for 1 day, a 30-day period starts for you, and after using it actively in the following months for 30+30+30+30=120 days, then it will be blocked. In this 4-month period you should already start your residence permit process, and then you should match your Turkish Foreign ID number with your Turkish mobile number. In order to make this registration, you should go to your operator's company and deliver them your active residence permit card.