Montenegro to introduce visa requirements for Turkish citizens
The Montenegrin government has approved the launch of procedures to terminate existing agreements regulating visa-free travel with Türkiye, Russia and Belarus.
The government said the move is part of Montenegro’s obligation to fully align its visa policy with that of the European Union as the country advances its EU accession process.
Montenegro had already amended its visa regime regulations on July 23, deciding that citizens of Türkiye, Russia, Belarus, China and Saudi Arabia would be subject to visa requirements from November 1.
However, because Montenegro has separate international agreements providing for visa-free travel with Türkiye, Russia and Belarus, additional steps are required to terminate those agreements.
For Türkiye, Montenegro plans to pursue a separate arrangement covering certain categories of passport holders. The government said it intends to begin negotiations with Türkiye on a new bilateral agreement that would allow holders of diplomatic, service and special passports to continue traveling without visas to the greatest extent possible.
According to the Montenegrin government, the planned exemption is intended to comply with provisions of EU visa legislation that allow member states to maintain certain exemptions for specific categories of travelers.
As a result, Turkish citizens traveling on ordinary passports are expected to lose visa-free access to Montenegro from November 1, while Montenegro and Türkiye are expected to negotiate a new agreement aimed at preserving visa-free travel for diplomatic, service and special passport holders.
