Turkish authorities on Tuesday launched operations to detain 49 people accused of using automated software to obtain visa appointments in bulk and charging applicants large fees for appointments and related services, local media reported, citing Justice Minister Akın Gürlek.
The İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office is investigating individuals and companies operating as visa consultancies over allegations that they used software known as bots to access the online appointment systems of consulates and authorized visa service providers and obtain appointments in bulk.
Gürlek said in a tweet the practice had “made it virtually impossible for our citizens to obtain appointments directly.”
Investigators found evidence that the companies promised to secure visas or appointments within specified periods and collected large sums from applicants under charges described as software, consulting and service fees, according to the minister.
The companies allegedly failed in some cases to provide the promised services or refund customers and transferred applicants’ personal data to private digital systems.
An examination by the Treasury and Finance Ministry’s Tax Inspection Board found more than TL 2.84 billion ($59.5 million) in transactions in accounts linked to the companies between January 2024 and July 2026.
Approximately TL 918 million ($19.2 million) was collected from more than 41,000 people during the same period, Gürlek said.
Authorities also found that a significant portion of the payments had been transferred to accounts belonging to company partners and employees, along with extensive transactions involving cash, cryptocurrency and precious metals.
The İstanbul Provincial Gendarmerie Command carried out simultaneous raids at 63 locations in İstanbul, Ankara, Antalya, Balıkesir, Bursa and İzmir on Tuesday as part of efforts to apprehend the 49 suspects.
Gürlek said authorities were continuing to examine digital material and documents seized during the searches.
The investigation comes after months of complaints in Turkey about difficulty obtaining Schengen visa appointments and allegations that intermediaries use automated systems to capture available appointments and resell them at inflated prices.
In June the Trade Ministry said seven visa intermediary companies were under investigation over allegations that they used automated software to capture Schengen visa appointments and resell them for hundreds of euros. The Association of Turkish Travel Agencies said appointments captured by bots were subsequently being offered for €300 to €1,000.
Days later, the ministry’s Advertising Board temporarily suspended advertisements by six visa brokerage companies that promoted services using claims such as guaranteed visa appointments, guaranteed approvals and expedited processing while it investigated whether the advertisements misled consumers.
Trade Minister Ömer Bolat said at the time that authorities had received 143 complaints about visa intermediary companies through the Presidential Communication Center, 10 through e-Government channels and 1,187 applications to consumer arbitration boards over the previous five years.
This article is republished from Turkish Minute.
