2.2 million expats leave country through border gates

EDİRNE

More than 2.2 million Turkish expats have recently left the country through the border gates opening to Bulgaria and Greece.

As summer is coming to an end, many expats living in Europe return to their countries of work from Türkiye where they came for vacation.

According to the data of Thrace Regional Directorate of Customs and Foreign Trade, a total of 2.1 million expats left the country through the northwestern border gates, 1.3 million of which were from Edirne’s Kapıkule Border Gate to Bulgaria.

Customs officials stated that 2.5 million expats also entered the country through five border gates.

Typically, expatriates stay in the nation for four to six weeks, spending time with family in their hometowns and taking advantage of tourist attractions before heading back to the countries where they work. The rising cost of air travel is one of the main reasons people favor land routes.

“When we arrive here I feel exhilarated. When we return, I feel sad that there will be a one-year waiting period to come back to Türkiye again,” said Metin Uğur Bayraktar, who returned to Belgium from the northeastern province of Trabzon where he spent his vacation.