Monday, November 27, 2006
Here's an except from a letter Silvia recently wrote:
"It took six trips from August to November to Ankara Police Headquarters and 2000 YTL (which we still haven’t been reimbursed) to get our residence permits. When I told Michael he should write a blog on this endless process, he said it was too frustrating to write about and he didn’t want to jinx it at this point, since we’re not really sure if the permits we finally got are enough to legitimize our stay and his work. You see, we finagled our way into getting tourist permits and even had to sign that within a certain amount of time we would apply for and get work permits, although Michael is not earning any Turkish lira (YTL) here. (He’s getting paid his US salary in the US...) In total to date, we’ve had to front about US$4000 for expenses for which we eventually get reimbursed, as in this case we hope to do, but the uncertainty of putting one’s limited finances on the (slow bureaucratic) line, no interest earned, of course, is a high risk financial investment. The only, yet abundant, returns are the experiences of a year in this country, almost high yield, one could argue. But definitely not financial.
This story began a few days after Michael arrived in Turkey early August and one of his ever-helpful colleagues took him by Police Headquarters to get the permits. Back then we used to talk in such absolute terms: get, do, finish. Now we know better. We say, “start the process, begin getting, or see what we need to do.” The Police bureaucrats gave him forms, to fill out in duplicates and return with 5 pictures each and about 2000 YTL, cash only, no credit card. In shock at having to pay this large fee (so soon after spending the NON-reimbursable 300USD on Visas and 6000USD on airfare for his family), Michael telephoned the Fulbright Ankara office to see what could be done on the permit costs. “I’ll look into it,” the person responsible said. He never heard from her again on the permit subject, that month or the next, and all the while fretted as he slowly withdrew YTL fund from his US account through an ATM as his salary account balance permitted.
At a Turkey Fulbrighters Orientation Program on Sept. 28, he received a handout entitled “Reimbursements” for Fulbrighters. Below the two categories Tuition and Housing (a grad student category which doesn’t apply to us) and Turkish Language Instruction (which we haven’t been able to schedule yet and have not received a reply as to whether or not it is spouse transferable) is the category that both relieved yet angered Michael: Residence Permit. It reads: “All grantees and family members may be reimbursed for the cost of their Residence Permit, but not for Visas.” We both wondered why we were not informed of this sooner, as there is a one to three month deadline (depending on the source) from the moment on enters the country for obtaining the permits without a fine being added for delinquency.
Looking at the reimbursement quote again, now more carefully after the initial mixed anger and relief, the words “may be” as in “may be reimbursed” concern me; so do “their Residence Permit” in the singular, which could be interpreted to our disadvantage as only one per family or not both tourist and work permits, as we may be required to obtain. Oh well, with five blue residence permit booklets in hand, looking much like our passports, one feels a certain safety and security, a legitimacy only a bureaucracy can give one with signed, sealed, far-dated (valid until October 2007!), laminated, photographed, and completely in Turkish (i.e. not understandable to us) documentation.
But back then, upon reading the reimbursement policy quote pertaining to Residence Permits for Fulbright grantees and their families, we were angry that no one at either office had told us this before, that we were left to handle the money and the bureaucracy by ourselves (good thing for the untiring help of Michael’s colleagues), yet relieved that it might be that easy. Alas, even reimbursement is a process to start, since our ATM withdrawals in August, to our attempted applying and paying in August, Sept, and Oct, to our receipt and cover letter submittal in mid October, to being told we need to physically show our issued permits in late Oct, to getting the permits in early November, to scheduling a visit to the office to prove we have the permits, to currently awaiting confirmation that the reimbursement is ready for disbursement to the grantee Michael. And then we can only hope we’re fully reimbursed for all of our costs, minus psychological and emotional tolls, since we cannot get receipts for those.
Yet even our submitted cost in that mid Oct cover letter do not account for the accumulated transportation costs of six round trips to Police Headquarters and then to the Fulbright office (mostly by bus to minimize our cash outlay costs, hence very time consuming—Can get a receipt for that?), do not account for e communication costs (among landlines and cell phones and translators, between us and police and office and school, you do the permutations of possibilities), and definitely do no account for the cost of frustration. Like the first time when Michael was told he needed to complete the application for residence permit form in duplicate, we spent hours filling out a detailed form listing all the ID info for all five family members on each of the five forms, one for each person, twice. Do you get what that means?! It means on Michael’s form, for example, not only is all his ID info required, but so is it for each of the four accompanying members of his family, cross-referenced on his form so to speak, as well as on all of the other four forms, one for each other person; then hand-duplicate them all again. It is no wonder I did not memorize everyone’s visa and passport number, place and date of issue; luckily for me one already has in RAM everyone’s birthdate, place, social security number, parents’ maiden names and their birthplaces, as well as all the relevant permanent, local, temporary, and work/school addresses and telephone numbers/fax and emails. In the end, well past 1am, I just availed myself of power of attorney to sign off on all ten forms, all with the exact same information in different order, to be done with them all (only to wonder if they needed to be signed in the presence of a policeperson or some notary-like person with a seal). Then the Police took only one fully-filled form for each person, and told us to keep the other, maybe as a souvenir.
Same with the other fluctuating requirements, which always made us err on the side of excesses in case more was needed. Got the five photo of each person, actually purchased 7 just in case, then they only took three. Cash they took no problem, but official-looking receipts were impossible to get. So along with that cover letter we submitted the scraps of paper with numbers the police attendants scribbled and multiplied times 5, for applying, for the permits, for the photocopies, for the very file folders the Police filed our records in, and for the permit mug shots.
So many inconsistencies, changes of policy or procedures from one attendant to the next, from one telephone conversation to the next, from before lunch to after lunch. You the family head may apply alone. You cannot apply alone; bring your wife and children. We all go. Tamam (OK), the wife signs here and needs not return. Next time: Your wife need to come again and bring your marriage certificate. Tamam, yes, that’s the copy we awaited. Meanwhile, a translator/mediator calls before each attempted trip: what do they still need to bring, how much or many, who needs to come? And there’s always the incalculable risk of finding long lines at the Police, everyone like us foreigners trying to stay legally. And sane.
If we’re lucky and persistent, we may see that reimbursement before December, or it might be safer to say by December or this year, or heck, just make it all-inclusively vague: within the school year or our stay in Turkey. Hope that doesn’t jinx anything, anyway, anywhere.
Signing off,
Your Turkish resident,
Permit Number 889374
(or is it No. 1-166972?),
Silvia"
"It took six trips from August to November to Ankara Police Headquarters and 2000 YTL (which we still haven’t been reimbursed) to get our residence permits. When I told Michael he should write a blog on this endless process, he said it was too frustrating to write about and he didn’t want to jinx it at this point, since we’re not really sure if the permits we finally got are enough to legitimize our stay and his work. You see, we finagled our way into getting tourist permits and even had to sign that within a certain amount of time we would apply for and get work permits, although Michael is not earning any Turkish lira (YTL) here. (He’s getting paid his US salary in the US...) In total to date, we’ve had to front about US$4000 for expenses for which we eventually get reimbursed, as in this case we hope to do, but the uncertainty of putting one’s limited finances on the (slow bureaucratic) line, no interest earned, of course, is a high risk financial investment. The only, yet abundant, returns are the experiences of a year in this country, almost high yield, one could argue. But definitely not financial.
This story began a few days after Michael arrived in Turkey early August and one of his ever-helpful colleagues took him by Police Headquarters to get the permits. Back then we used to talk in such absolute terms: get, do, finish. Now we know better. We say, “start the process, begin getting, or see what we need to do.” The Police bureaucrats gave him forms, to fill out in duplicates and return with 5 pictures each and about 2000 YTL, cash only, no credit card. In shock at having to pay this large fee (so soon after spending the NON-reimbursable 300USD on Visas and 6000USD on airfare for his family), Michael telephoned the Fulbright Ankara office to see what could be done on the permit costs. “I’ll look into it,” the person responsible said. He never heard from her again on the permit subject, that month or the next, and all the while fretted as he slowly withdrew YTL fund from his US account through an ATM as his salary account balance permitted.
At a Turkey Fulbrighters Orientation Program on Sept. 28, he received a handout entitled “Reimbursements” for Fulbrighters. Below the two categories Tuition and Housing (a grad student category which doesn’t apply to us) and Turkish Language Instruction (which we haven’t been able to schedule yet and have not received a reply as to whether or not it is spouse transferable) is the category that both relieved yet angered Michael: Residence Permit. It reads: “All grantees and family members may be reimbursed for the cost of their Residence Permit, but not for Visas.” We both wondered why we were not informed of this sooner, as there is a one to three month deadline (depending on the source) from the moment on enters the country for obtaining the permits without a fine being added for delinquency.
Looking at the reimbursement quote again, now more carefully after the initial mixed anger and relief, the words “may be” as in “may be reimbursed” concern me; so do “their Residence Permit” in the singular, which could be interpreted to our disadvantage as only one per family or not both tourist and work permits, as we may be required to obtain. Oh well, with five blue residence permit booklets in hand, looking much like our passports, one feels a certain safety and security, a legitimacy only a bureaucracy can give one with signed, sealed, far-dated (valid until October 2007!), laminated, photographed, and completely in Turkish (i.e. not understandable to us) documentation.
But back then, upon reading the reimbursement policy quote pertaining to Residence Permits for Fulbright grantees and their families, we were angry that no one at either office had told us this before, that we were left to handle the money and the bureaucracy by ourselves (good thing for the untiring help of Michael’s colleagues), yet relieved that it might be that easy. Alas, even reimbursement is a process to start, since our ATM withdrawals in August, to our attempted applying and paying in August, Sept, and Oct, to our receipt and cover letter submittal in mid October, to being told we need to physically show our issued permits in late Oct, to getting the permits in early November, to scheduling a visit to the office to prove we have the permits, to currently awaiting confirmation that the reimbursement is ready for disbursement to the grantee Michael. And then we can only hope we’re fully reimbursed for all of our costs, minus psychological and emotional tolls, since we cannot get receipts for those.
Yet even our submitted cost in that mid Oct cover letter do not account for the accumulated transportation costs of six round trips to Police Headquarters and then to the Fulbright office (mostly by bus to minimize our cash outlay costs, hence very time consuming—Can get a receipt for that?), do not account for e communication costs (among landlines and cell phones and translators, between us and police and office and school, you do the permutations of possibilities), and definitely do no account for the cost of frustration. Like the first time when Michael was told he needed to complete the application for residence permit form in duplicate, we spent hours filling out a detailed form listing all the ID info for all five family members on each of the five forms, one for each person, twice. Do you get what that means?! It means on Michael’s form, for example, not only is all his ID info required, but so is it for each of the four accompanying members of his family, cross-referenced on his form so to speak, as well as on all of the other four forms, one for each other person; then hand-duplicate them all again. It is no wonder I did not memorize everyone’s visa and passport number, place and date of issue; luckily for me one already has in RAM everyone’s birthdate, place, social security number, parents’ maiden names and their birthplaces, as well as all the relevant permanent, local, temporary, and work/school addresses and telephone numbers/fax and emails. In the end, well past 1am, I just availed myself of power of attorney to sign off on all ten forms, all with the exact same information in different order, to be done with them all (only to wonder if they needed to be signed in the presence of a policeperson or some notary-like person with a seal). Then the Police took only one fully-filled form for each person, and told us to keep the other, maybe as a souvenir.
Same with the other fluctuating requirements, which always made us err on the side of excesses in case more was needed. Got the five photo of each person, actually purchased 7 just in case, then they only took three. Cash they took no problem, but official-looking receipts were impossible to get. So along with that cover letter we submitted the scraps of paper with numbers the police attendants scribbled and multiplied times 5, for applying, for the permits, for the photocopies, for the very file folders the Police filed our records in, and for the permit mug shots.
So many inconsistencies, changes of policy or procedures from one attendant to the next, from one telephone conversation to the next, from before lunch to after lunch. You the family head may apply alone. You cannot apply alone; bring your wife and children. We all go. Tamam (OK), the wife signs here and needs not return. Next time: Your wife need to come again and bring your marriage certificate. Tamam, yes, that’s the copy we awaited. Meanwhile, a translator/mediator calls before each attempted trip: what do they still need to bring, how much or many, who needs to come? And there’s always the incalculable risk of finding long lines at the Police, everyone like us foreigners trying to stay legally. And sane.
If we’re lucky and persistent, we may see that reimbursement before December, or it might be safer to say by December or this year, or heck, just make it all-inclusively vague: within the school year or our stay in Turkey. Hope that doesn’t jinx anything, anyway, anywhere.
Signing off,
Your Turkish resident,
Permit Number 889374
(or is it No. 1-166972?),
Silvia"
# posted by Michael Strich @ 7:46 AM 
