Do Latvian citizens need a visa for Turkey?
No. Latvian ordinary passport holders do not need a visa to enter Turkey for tourism or short business. You are admitted visa-free: there is no e-Visa to buy, no form to file and no consulate appointment to book. The exemption covers stays of up to 90 days within any 180-day period, and the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs extends the same exemption to Latvian official passport holders. Work, study and longer stays generally fall outside it and need permission arranged in advance.
How long can Latvian citizens stay in Turkey?
Up to 90 days within any 180-day period. That is a rolling calculation, not a per-trip allowance: on any given day, count backwards 180 days and add up the days you have already spent in Turkey. If the total reaches 90, you must wait before returning. Most holidays never come close, but if you fly south more than once a year — a spring weekend in Istanbul, a fortnight on the Antalya coast, a winter escape — or plan one long, slow trip, do the arithmetic before you book. Overstaying can carry fines and affect future entries, so treat the 90 days as a hard ceiling.
Do you need an e-Visa? (official portal evisa.gov.tr)
No — and this is the one point worth reading twice, because Latvia is a genuinely confusing case. The legacy eligibility list on the e-Visa portal at evisa.gov.tr still shows Latvia, which reads as though an e-Visa were needed. It is not. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs sets entry policy, and it holds Latvian ordinary and official passport holders visa-exempt for 90 days within 180. So there is nothing to apply for, nothing to pay and nothing to print. A Latvian traveller should never be sold a Turkey e-Visa — if a site offers you one, it is selling something you do not need.
Cost: is there a fee?
None. Visa exemption means exactly that: there is no visa fee for Latvian citizens, no service charge and no payment page to reach. Any website charging a Latvian national for a Turkey visa or e-Visa is not the government, and what it is selling is not something you need. The only costs are the ordinary ones — flights, hotels, and any accommodation tax your hotel adds to the bill.
Your passport and its validity
Travel on your passport. Turkey sets a minimum validity for visa-exempt visitors, and it is your airline that enforces it at check-in rather than the border — so a passport expiring soon after your return date is the likeliest way to lose a trip. Do not assume that being visa-exempt means validity does not matter: confirm the current figure on the official portal before you book, and renew a passport that is close to expiry rather than risk being turned away. Whether any nationality may enter on a national identity card instead is governed by a separate Ministry list that changes, so do not rely on one unless the official list says so.
Documents needed
For a visa-free tourist trip you will generally need a passport meeting Turkey's validity requirement and your return or onward ticket. Officers may also ask for proof of accommodation and sufficient funds for your stay, so keep your hotel booking and itinerary handy. Travel insurance is not an entry condition for Latvian visitors, but it is sensible. Children travelling with you need their own travel document.
At the airport
Immigration is usually a formality. Present your passport at the counter; there is no visa to show and no fee to pay. Officers may ask where you are staying, how long for and when you fly home. Your passport is stamped on entry and exit, and those stamps are what the 90-day count is measured from — so let them stamp it.
Apply on the official portal
The only official place to apply is the Republic of Türkiye e-Visa portal. Avoid third-party sites that charge inflated fees.
Go to evisa.gov.tr →
