site.btaBurgas Chamber of Commerce Highlights Success of Greece's Fast-Track Visa Programme for Turkish Citizens

Greece's fast-track visa scheme for Turkish citizens visiting Aegean islands has become a successful tool for boosting tourism and supporting local economies, the Burgas Chamber of Commerce and Industry said on Wednesday.

Known in Turkiye as "kapi vizesi" (visa at the border), the programme has been operating since April 2024 and allows Turkish visitors to travel to 12 Greek islands without a pre-issued Schengen visa. The permit allows stays of up to seven days and applies only to participating islands.

The Burgas Chamber said the scheme had become a popular option for short-term travel between Turkiye and Greece and suggested that a similar approach could help attract more tourists to Bulgaria's Black Sea coast, given its success in Greece.

According to data from Greek Central Bank, Greece welcomed around 1.5 million Turkish tourists in 2025, up from about 1.2 million in 2024, with many trips made possible through the simplified visa procedure. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has described the initiative as a success, with both countries expressing interest in continuing it. Tourism representatives on islands such as Samos have also credited Turkish visitors with contributing significantly to the local economy.