As an Australian migrant living in Europe, I am often asked where I would live next after Germany. While South East Europe is great, there’s a load of great opportunities beyond its borders and one of the countries to keep an eye on is Türkiye.
Sector-wise, Türkiye has a very strong defence, aviation and space industry, along with strength in 5G, cyber security, and fintech.
There’s funding available
In 2021, venture capital investments increased ninefold yearly and reached 1.6 billion dollars. Türkiye ranks 10th in Europe and 2nd in the Middle East and North Africa region in terms of startup investments. And it's not just VC funds available to enterprising startups — government agencies like TUBITAK and KOSGEB provide extensive grants.
A hotbed for unicorns and decacorns
Turkey's unicorn journey started with local consumer-focused companies in e-commerce, food delivery and payments. This was followed by successes in the gaming sector and more recently in B2B SaaS targeting mid-market clients.
The country has seen a significant increase in startup investments, attracting over $1.5 billion in 2021 alone compared to $50-100 million annually between 2010-2020.. Nearly a dozen other startups are expected to be unicorns in less than a year.
The country has birthed two " decacorns " and four "unicorns" in the last two years (examples include Dream Games, Trendyol, Hepsiburada, and Papara.
İstanbul was announced as the Best Place to Start for startups in the "The Global Startup Ecosystem Report 2023" report published by Startup Genome.
The country aims to nurture 100,000 tech startups and achieve 100 unicorns ("Turcorns") by 2030.
A strong innovation ecosystem
Turkey's technology landscape is fueled by a network of over 8000 companies operating across 101 technoparks and over 1500 R&D centres and 200 universities. These provide a valuable space for startups, researchers, and global corporations to collaborate and develop cutting-edge technologies.
Access to plenty of talent
Further, your chances are good when it comes to securing local talent. Türkiye is the largest and youngest country in Europe with a population of 85 million and the median age of 32.
Moreover, with more than 8 million university students, it ranks in the top 10 of the world in higher education. In Türkiye, more than 1.2 million young people graduate from universities every year.
So how can I live in Türkiye?
There’s a couple of visas:
Türkiye Tech Visa offers visas to startups with innovative business models and technology-based studies and for people with critical expertise in technology.
Recipients receive:
- 3-year work permit exclusive
- Simplified residence permit processes for families
- Income tax and corporate tax exemptions
- Comprehensive free healthcare assurance
- Office opportunities in technoparks and incubation centres
- Venture capital investments and project financing supports
- Mentoring and consultancy support
Find out more at Türkiye Tech Visa.
Lead image: Freepik.
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