Turkish truck drivers switched off their engines at three border gates in Türkiye’s northwestern province of Edirne on Oct. 29, intermittently blocking crossings to Bulgaria and Greece to protest Schengen stay limits and hours-long queues.
Drivers carrying exports to Europe protested at Kapıkule and Hamzabeyli on the Bulgarian border and İpsala on the Greek border. International haulage company representatives met drivers at Kapıkule. The protesters sought relief from restrictions they said prevented them from working despite holding visas.
Driver Tuğrul Bozkurt said Bulgaria was turning trucks back because of the limit of 90 days within any 180-day period. “We do business; we are not tourists. We want a solution to our problems as soon as possible,” he said.
Burak Vural said visas covering 180 days harmed drivers and Türkiye’s economy. “We want to do our jobs, but unfortunately they do not let us,” he said, explaining drivers needed to use their visas to handle imports and exports rather than travel as tourists.
Schengen short-stay rules generally limit non-EU visitors to 90 days within any rolling 180-day period, even if their visas remain valid for longer.
The Trade Ministry said on Oct. 29 it was working with the Foreign Affairs and Transport ministries, with Trade Minister Ömer Bolat, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu holding talks with Bulgarian counterparts and European Commission officials to seek easier visas and priority processing for drivers. It said firms and drivers should observe current visa rules and stay limits when planning trips and staffing to prevent congestion and disruption to foreign trade.
