Newsletters
Türkiye’s embassy in Podgorica announced that, starting today, Turkish citizens holding ordinary passports will need a visa to enter Montenegro. Montenegrin Prime Minister Milojko Spajic had recently stated that the visa-free regime for Turkish citizens would be temporarily suspended.
In an official statement from the Turkish embassy on X, the said Turkish citizens traveling to Montenegro will now be subject to visa requirements. The announcement noted that “according to information from the Montenegrin Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Turkish citizens with ordinary passports will need a visa to enter Montenegro starting Oct. 30.”
Before traveling, visas can be obtained from Montenegrin diplomatic missions in Ankara or Istanbul. Turkish citizens residing in Australia, the U.S., Canada, Ireland, the U.K., and Schengen countries, however, may enter Montenegro without a visa.
According to local media, the decision follows the stabbing of a 25-year-old Montenegrin named M.J. by two Turkish citizens living in Montenegro. The visa requirement was triggered by this incident.
Following the attack, Zabjelo, a neighborhood in the capital Podgorica, became the center of protests. Groups organized via social media began sharing anti-Turkish videos. Crowds reportedly demonstrated outside Turkish-owned businesses, shouting slogans including “Death to Turks.”
Under the Visa Exemption Agreement between Türkiye and Montenegro, “holders of diplomatic, official, service, and ordinary passports of Türkiye and Montenegro may enter each other’s countries without a visa for up to 90 days within any six-month period from the date of first entry, or for transit purposes.”
Additionally, travelers entering Montenegro by land with an ordinary passport valid for at least six months were allowed to stay for up to 90 days within 180 days for tourism or transit purposes.
5 min read
