Deep dive

Turkey eSIM ban: what was blocked in 2025 and what still works

There’s no eSIM ban in Turkey. In 2025 the regulator blocked dozens of eSIM sellers’ websites. What that means for a travel eSIM, top-ups and IMEI rules.

Published October 1, 2026 · 9 min read · MoreSim editorial team

Plan for your trip: Turkey · Data for your trip — See plans →

The “Turkey eSIM ban” is not a ban on eSIM. As of October 2026, eSIM is legal in Turkey, and a travel eSIM you install before you fly still connects to Turkish networks as a roaming line. What happened in 2025 is narrower: Turkey’s telecom regulator, BTK, blocked access from inside Turkey to the websites of more than 50 foreign eSIM sellers. So the risk is buying, installing or topping up a plan through a blocked seller once you’re there.

What did Turkey block in 2025?

In 2025 Turkey blocked the websites of foreign eSIM sellers, not eSIM technology. The orders came from BTK’s Authorization Department and were applied by Turkish internet providers to the sellers’ domain names. BTK hasn’t published the decisions or its reasons. The dates, decision numbers and names come from İFÖD, which records blocked sites in its EngelliWeb archive.

Turkish tech press reported the ground as licensing: offering mobile service in Turkey without authorization under Electronic Communications Law No. 5809. Law professor Yaman Akdeniz called the decisions arbitrary and unlawful and pointed out that they aren’t published. As of October 2026 there’s no official public list, and a new decision can add any seller.

Is there an eSIM ban in Turkey, or is it a myth?

An eSIM ban in Turkey is a myth if you mean the technology: Turkish carriers sell eSIMs, eSIM phones are sold in Turkish stores, and foreign eSIMs roam on Turkish networks. The real restriction is narrower than the headlines. Here’s how the common claims compare with the facts as of October 2026.

Does an eSIM installed before you fly still work in Turkey?

Yes: an eSIM profile installed at home works in Turkey the same way it did before July 2025. Once the profile is on your phone, it doesn’t need the seller’s website to get online. It connects to Turkcell, Vodafone Türkiye or Türk Telekom as a roaming line, like the SIM from your home carrier, and a block on the seller’s domain doesn’t reach it.

After landing, choose the Turkey eSIM for mobile data. On the travel eSIM line, turn on data roaming: most travel eSIMs connect to the local carrier’s network as a roaming SIM, and without it you won’t get data. If your plan’s instructions say otherwise, follow them. A MoreSim plan starts counting from its first connection to a network in the destination country. Step-by-step screens are in “How to install and activate an eSIM on iPhone and Android.”

What can’t you do once you’re in Turkey?

Once you’re in Turkey, anything that needs a blocked seller’s website or app may fail. Turkish internet providers apply the blocks, and hotel and café Wi-Fi in Turkey runs through the same providers, so switching networks doesn’t help. Here’s what tends to break:

• Buying a new plan on a blocked seller’s website.
• Installing a plan you bought but didn’t install, if the seller’s app is the only way to add it.
• Signing in to your account, checking your balance or topping up.
• Reaching support through a chat inside a blocked app.

With MoreSim, a plan that allows top-ups gets more data through “Top up data” on the eSIM card in your account or in the bot’s app; top-ups are paid by bank card or SBP (cards issued in Russia), not with Stars. MoreSim isn’t named in the three decisions İFÖD published, but lists grow without notice, so we don’t promise the site or bot will open from Turkey. If you might need more data, sort it out before you fly.

Do you need to register your phone’s IMEI in Turkey?

You don’t need IMEI registration for a holiday on a travel eSIM or on roaming. Turkey’s IMEI rule is about phones brought from abroad and used with a Turkish SIM: according to BTK, such a phone works for 120 days from your entry date, and after that it’s cut off from Turkish networks unless registered. Registration goes through the e-Devlet portal, which the July 2, 2026 amendment in the Official Gazette (No. 33298) made the place to apply. Registration also comes with a fee that Turkey sets each year, and as of 2026 it is substantial.

Long stays are where a travel eSIM meets the IMEI rules. Since 2021, BTK’s regulation has covered “permanent roaming”: a device on a non-Turkish SIM that, within any 120 consecutive days, is active on Turkish networks on more than 90 days without voice calls. Such a device goes on the blacklist, and Turkish carriers cut it off within 30 days, notifying the user by text. Since July 2, 2026, sending texts no longer counts as voice activity; only making and receiving calls does.

MoreSim plans are mobile data only, with no phone number. You can call through messaging apps where they aren’t restricted in Turkey; bank texts arrive on your home SIM. If you need a Turkish number for a long stay, our guide “eSIM for Turkey in 2026: mobile data, local SIM or roaming” covers the local SIM route.

Does the block matter if you’re traveling from the UK or the EU?

The block works the same for every visitor: it depends on the network you’re on in Turkey, not on your passport or home carrier. The difference for UK and EU travelers is roaming. Turkey isn’t in the EU, so EU roam-like-at-home rules don’t cover it, and each carrier sets its own Turkey charges. “Turkey roaming or eSIM: the math for a week of data” shows how to compare a daily roaming fee with a travel eSIM.

Turkey is also part of MoreSim’s Europe plan, which covers 47 countries. That helps when Turkey is one stop on a longer trip, say after Greece or Bulgaria, and you’d rather install one profile than two.

What to do before you fly to Turkey

A seller’s site or app may not open from Turkey, so do everything that needs it before you fly:

1. Check that your phone supports eSIM; the Telegram bot @moresim_bot has a built-in compatibility check.
2. Pick a plan on the Turkey page of the catalog, or the Europe plan if you’re visiting several countries; check the data amount, validity and whether top-ups are allowed.
3. Pay with Telegram Stars from any country, right in the bot; bank card and SBP payments currently work with cards issued in Russia.
4. Wait for the QR code in the chat; it usually arrives in about 30 seconds.
5. Install the profile over Wi-Fi at home and label the line “Turkey.”
6. Leave data roaming on the eSIM line off until you land; the plan starts counting from its first connection in Turkey.
7. On your home SIM, turn off mobile data after landing so you don’t go online through your home carrier. Keep the line on if you’re expecting texts from your bank: that requires roaming to be available on your home plan.

To size the plan, use “How much data do I need for travel? A simple way to work it out.” Enough data bought at home beats a top-up that might not go through from Turkey.