ROME - On Nov. 14, students and families held a peaceful press conference in front of the Italian Consulate in Istanbul for the nearly 1000 Turkish students who have not been given their visas. All these students now have an urgent problem with many Italian universities closing their registration on Nov. 30, meaning that if the students do not receive their visas by then they will lose their right to register and study. 

 Students’ main complaint is that the visa evaluation process is inconsistent and lacks transparency. A press release for those affected stated that “some students who initially received rejections were later granted visas upon reapplying, while others continued to face unjustified denials. In particular, Izmir İtalian Consulate does not allow students to nominate a sponsor except parents whereas Ankara & Istanbul Italian consulates do allow their siblings, aunts, uncles or grandparents to do so. Yet, some students have lost either their mother or father or parents who are divorced and not seeing their child for a long time. So, their financial sufficiency is lowered still to remain above €6,200 irrespective of their academic achievements and doomed to be rejected.”

 There have been many seemingly unviable reasons for rejections. One example involves a female graduate in psychology from Koç University, who had been admitted to a Clinical Psychology master's program in Milan, was denied a visa by the Italian Consulate in Istanbul on the grounds that “there is no correlation between the undergraduate and graduate fields of study.”

 It has also been reported that many students are being rejected on the grounds that they are an “asylum risk.” However, representatives for the students argue that they students clearly do not fit the asylum-seeker profile, as evidenced by their official Turkish population registry, which shows that they are not Syrian or other at-risk groups. Even Erasmus students, guaranteed by the European Union, have received rejection letters citing “asylum risk.”  

 These unfair rejections have led the students and families to announce their intention to file class-action lawsuits if visas are not issued in time. They say that under the Ankara Protocol Annex Article 41(1), which guarantees “right to service,” the Italian government has violated universal rights to education and free movement. Its failure to conclude visa processes before university classes began on September 20, or to provide timely approvals or denials, is legally flawed. This breach makes Italy potentially liable for compensation at the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) and the European Court of Justice (ECJ).  

 As well as potential legal action, students are now calling on Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs for immediate support. They also request measures to ensure that similar problems do not recur, including:

·      increasing consular staff during peak periods, 

·      appointment of an Education Attache to the Italian Embassy to Ankara 

·      addressing discriminatory treatment and violation of the right to education, and 

·      providing accurate information on consular websites to ensure unified processing of student visa applications; 

·      obligation to block min.6200Euros in a bank account to prevent any arbitrary minimum financial standards setting by Consulates. 

·      creation of an Express Student Visa Units solely in charge of them at Izmir, Istanbul & Ankara Consulates of Italy.

·      Improvement of consular services, including urging the recruitment of more qualified staff at IDATA knowing Italian procedures; re-classification of the Central Anatolian cities to Ankara that are 1-2h drive, instead of 7-14 h drive to Izmir. Use of Artificial Intelligence AI Co-Pilot technology in consular affairs to measure and ensure efficient working of consular staff; take necessary measures including part-time employment during peak periods and share data on the number of students granted with visa or rejected. 

The issue of Italian student visas is not just confined to Turkey, with students in the United Kingdom also having difficulties.

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