Transferring to Universities in Turkey and Northern Cyprus (2026): YÖK Rules, Documents and Timeline

Minimum overall GPA in Turkey's transfer-from-abroad rules

60/100

First two and last two bachelor's semesters, closed to transfers

4 semesters

Cap on students from one foreign university within each class quota

15%

File review and application through Taktik

Free

Sources last checked: 3 November 2026. Rules and dates can change every year; the university's own official announcement is what counts.

What is a transfer, and how is it different from starting in year 1?

A transfer (Turkish: yatay geçiş; for students at universities outside Turkey, "yurt dışından yatay geçiş") means a student who is currently enrolled at one university continues the same or an equivalent program at another university. The receiving faculty compares the courses already passed with its own curriculum and decides which courses are exempted and which year and semester the student starts in (Istinye University transfer page).

What does YÖK require for a transfer from a foreign university?

In Turkey the basis is the "Regulation on Transfers between Associate and Bachelor's Programs, Double Major, Minor and Inter-institutional Credit Transfer in Higher Education Institutions". Article 14 covers transfers from universities outside Turkey and Article 15 covers foreign students (text of Articles 14 and 15 on Istanbul Gelişim University's site, regulation text on Çankırı Karatekin University's site). The key points:

• Recognition of the home university: under Article 14(4), the home university and program are required to be recognised by YÖK as authorised to award associate or bachelor's degrees, and the receiving university also has to accept the program as equivalent. Istinye University states plainly that applications from institutions not recognised by YÖK are not evaluated.
• GPA: Istanbul Medipol University's fall 2026–2027 transfer-from-abroad guide sets a minimum overall GPA of 60 out of 100; 4-point grades are converted with YÖK's conversion table.
• Closed semesters: according to the same guide, transfers into the language preparatory class are not possible; for associate programs the first and last semesters, and for bachelor's programs the first two and last two semesters, are closed to transfers.
• Non-attendance study: according to this guide, students in programs without an attendance requirement (such as open or distance education) cannot apply to in-person programs.
• Quota: under Article 14(1), each university's senate sets the transfer-from-abroad quota at no more than half of the inter-institutional transfer quota, and all universities' foreign quotas are announced on YÖK's website. Under Article 14(6), no more than 15% of a class's foreign quota can come from a single foreign university. Under Article 15, foreign students from countries designated by YÖK are not subject to the limit in Article 14(1).

What about medicine, dentistry and ranking-based programs?

Medipol's guide requires, for programs such as medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, law, engineering, architecture and teacher education, the required ranking in Turkey's central exam (YKS) or enrolment at a university in the listed ranking groups. However, YÖK's announcement on transfers from abroad, published on Okan University's site, states that these conditions do not apply to foreign nationals or to Turkish citizens who completed all of their secondary education outside Turkey; Istanbul Aydın University's transfer-from-abroad document says the same.

Two things to keep in mind:

• This announcement covers students who enrolled at a foreign university in the 2024–2025 academic year; earlier entrants follow the guide for their own year of enrolment.
• Being exempt from the ranking condition does not mean admission; quota, GPA, program equivalence and the faculty's decision still decide the outcome.

How do private universities in Turkey run transfers?

Each private (foundation) university has its own calendar, form and document list. Some official examples for the fall 2026 semester:

At Antalya Bilim, incomplete or late applications are not considered.

How does course matching (intibak) work?

Istinye University's page for international transfer students describes this process:

• Once the documents are complete, the file goes to the relevant faculty.
• The faculty evaluation committee compares the courses you have passed with Istinye's curriculum within a maximum of 5 working days and sets the exempted courses and your starting year and semester.
• The international office only forwards the file and has no role in the evaluation result.
• The result and a conditional acceptance letter are sent by email, and the seat is secured with the pre-registration payment stated in the letter.
• The same page says there are no scholarships or discounts for international transfer students and tuition is the same as for new students.

Which documents are usually requested?

• Passport
• High-school diploma and transcript (Istinye)
• Official university transcript, signed and stamped, and descriptions or syllabi of the courses passed, signed and stamped or as an official link (Istinye)
• Student certificate, transcript and course contents with apostille and a Turkish translation by a sworn translator (Antalya Bilim)
• Document showing YÖK recognition of the home university and program (Antalya Bilim, Kadir Has)
• Document on disciplinary status (Antalya Bilim, EMU)
• English proficiency document for English-taught programs (Antalya Bilim)

Kadir Has University's list states that notarised Turkish or English translations of the documents are to be attached.

How are transfers different in Northern Cyprus?

Universities in Northern Cyprus publish their own transfer rules. According to Near East University's (NEU) ordinance on transfers at bachelor's and associate levels:

• Transfers are possible only from institutions offering a program equivalent to NEU's; year-based programs transfer at the start of the academic year and term-based programs at the start of each term.
• Applications are made at least 10 days before the academic year begins.
• Transfers into the first year or first term of bachelor's programs are not possible.
• Entry to the second to fourth years requires passing all exams at the current institution and an overall average of 60%; entry to the final year requires 65%.
• The NEU senate sets each department's quota, and transfers from open universities or open programs are not accepted.

EMU's fall 2026–2027 transfer announcement lists these documents: transcript, course descriptions, a document showing no disciplinary penalty (unless the transcript or student certificate already states this), a copy of the passport or ID card, and a valid student residence permit certificate. The call is labelled "for Turkish citizen students" and says nothing about international students, so an Iranian student's situation is asked separately from the university's international office.

What does a typical transfer timeline look like?

1. First check: YÖK recognition of your home university, overall GPA and the semester you are in.
2. Preparing documents: transcript, course syllabi, apostille and official translation; this depends on your university and authorities at home, so it helps to start early.
3. Watching the calls: in the examples above, fall-semester calls were open from July to late August.
4. Applying within the announced window with a complete file.
5. Faculty evaluation: results, plus the exempted courses and entry year.
6. Registration: pre-payment and final registration as set out in the acceptance letter.

What does Taktik do for transfers, and what does it not do?

What Taktik does, free of charge:

• An initial review of your transcript and program against the universities' published conditions
• A document checklist and an organised file for each university
• Contact with the international offices of private universities in Turkey and Northern Cyprus, and follow-up on your file
• Submitting your application through Taktik at no cost

What Taktik cannot do:

• Guarantee admission; the final decision is the university's.
• Guarantee how many courses or credits are accepted; course matching is done by the receiving faculty.
• Issue apostilles or official translations, or decide on recognition of your home university in place of YÖK.

If you are currently studying at a university in Iran or another country, send your transcript and program name to Taktik's advisers for a free initial review.