Reuters
Turkish sports presenter Sinem Okten was surprised to see her visa application to Europe's Schengen area rejected twice, having visited often to cover matches and interview figures like Italian keeper Gianluigi Buffon and Liverpool's Juergen Klopp.
"I applied first to Germany then to France. Both rejected my application," she said. "I've travelled abroad numerous times to follow and film matches and interview people, maybe 50-60 times. This is the first time I am having this problem."
Turks applying for visas to the 26 Schengen countries are increasingly being rejected, data shows, and tours are being cancelled. Ankara said this week it was a deliberate effort to put President Tayyip Erdogan in a difficult position ahead of tight elections next year, a charge the European Union denies.
According to data from schengenvisainfo.com, 16.5% of applicants from Turkey last year were denied a visa, up from 12.5% a year earlier. Schengen rejections were only 4% in 2015 and started ramping up in 2017 for Turks, it shows.
The visa costs - amounting to some 100 euros, or a third of Turkey's minimum wage - are not refundable whether a visa is issued or not.
"Overall, the rejection rates for Schengen visa applications have increased worldwide...however, when compared to other countries like Russia, Turkey's rejection rate growth is way bigger and consistent," said Shkurta Januzi, editor-in-chief at SchengenVisaInfo.com.
Okten said the German embassy gave no reason for rejecting her application. A document from the French embassy, seen by Reuters, said it did not see enough evidence that the TV presenter could finance her stay in France or return to Turkey.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said he believed the lengthy processing times and an increase observed in rejection rates were deliberate, adding that he raised the issue in meetings with his counterparts.
"Unfortunately, the U.S. and some EU and non-EU western countries give our citizens visa appointments one year, 6-7-8 months later. They also increased the rejection rate. This is planned and deliberate," he said on Tuesday.
Cavusoglu dismissed "excuses" related to coronavirus measures or personnel shortages, and said, without providing evidence, that the visa rejections were intended to give Erdogan a pre-election headache.
His ministry will warn ambassadors of some Western countries about the issue in September, he said. "If the situation does not improve after that we will take counter, restrictive measures."
Nikolaus Meyer-Landrut, head of the EU delegation to Turkey, told Reuters the Schengen applications are treated on their merits and not on political grounds, adding relatively more incomplete and potentially fraudulent applications are seen from Turkey.
"No decisions are taken on political grounds but rather on objective grounds," he said, adding Turkey's rejection rate last year was near the global rate of 13-14% for Schengen visas.
"I applied first to Germany then to France. Both rejected my application," she said. "I've travelled abroad numerous times to follow and film matches and interview people, maybe 50-60 times. This is the first time I am having this problem."
Turks applying for visas to the 26 Schengen countries are increasingly being rejected, data shows, and tours are being cancelled. Ankara said this week it was a deliberate effort to put President Tayyip Erdogan in a difficult position ahead of tight elections next year, a charge the European Union denies.
According to data from schengenvisainfo.com, 16.5% of applicants from Turkey last year were denied a visa, up from 12.5% a year earlier. Schengen rejections were only 4% in 2015 and started ramping up in 2017 for Turks, it shows.
The visa costs - amounting to some 100 euros, or a third of Turkey's minimum wage - are not refundable whether a visa is issued or not.
"Overall, the rejection rates for Schengen visa applications have increased worldwide...however, when compared to other countries like Russia, Turkey's rejection rate growth is way bigger and consistent," said Shkurta Januzi, editor-in-chief at SchengenVisaInfo.com.
Okten said the German embassy gave no reason for rejecting her application. A document from the French embassy, seen by Reuters, said it did not see enough evidence that the TV presenter could finance her stay in France or return to Turkey.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said he believed the lengthy processing times and an increase observed in rejection rates were deliberate, adding that he raised the issue in meetings with his counterparts.
"Unfortunately, the U.S. and some EU and non-EU western countries give our citizens visa appointments one year, 6-7-8 months later. They also increased the rejection rate. This is planned and deliberate," he said on Tuesday.
Cavusoglu dismissed "excuses" related to coronavirus measures or personnel shortages, and said, without providing evidence, that the visa rejections were intended to give Erdogan a pre-election headache.
His ministry will warn ambassadors of some Western countries about the issue in September, he said. "If the situation does not improve after that we will take counter, restrictive measures."
Nikolaus Meyer-Landrut, head of the EU delegation to Turkey, told Reuters the Schengen applications are treated on their merits and not on political grounds, adding relatively more incomplete and potentially fraudulent applications are seen from Turkey.
"No decisions are taken on political grounds but rather on objective grounds," he said, adding Turkey's rejection rate last year was near the global rate of 13-14% for Schengen visas.
