AROUND 50 expats turned out for the latest British Consulate community meeting last Wednesday (Nov 12).

The meeting, held at the Didim Chamber of Commerce theatre and which addressed residency permits and consular changes, was also attended by the new Didim Governor Iskender Yönden.

Joanne Pietsch, Consular Network Coordinator, said there was still little new information emerging from the General Directorate of Migration Management (GDMM), which oversees residency permits, about any fresh changes to the application process, or answers to a number of questions posed by a number of foreign embassies.

She said she was aware of only person in Izmir being given a life-time permit to 2099.

She confirmed that first-time residence applications would have to be done in the country of origin of that person and that those over the age of 65 would not require health insurance.

She confirmed that residents no longer had the 15 days grace after the residence date renewal deadline. Instead residents could make an application within 60 days of the residence date ending to apply for a new one.

One resident revealed they had recently begun their residence application process, but had come up against the court and the title deeds offices asking for declarations in Turkish of who they were and why they wanted the necessary information. These declarations have not been in place before last week.

Consular officials said there was no reciprocal agreement in place between the UK and Turkey health ministries for the respective residents. Hence the reason for the health insurance being a requirement of the permit application process.

Mr Yönden then took questions from expats ranging from street dog problems, ongoing PTT issues, the recent fines given to bars and restaurants, and residents’ concerns of glue-sniffing among local youths.

He said that he would have an open-door policy to the expats during his tenure here.

Mr Timothy Fisher, HM Consul at the British Consulate General in İstanbul, Turkey, then gave information about the impending closure of the Bodrum Consulate, but re-assured there would still be a consular presence in Bodrum in 2015.

He said there was no intention to directly replace William Buttegieg, who had retired in March, from the Izmir Consulate, but said that the services of the staff at the consulate would be retained.

He added there was an option under consideration of some kind of official consular presence in Didim, but no decision had been made. An update will be provided in due course.