Extradition to Türkiye 2025 – Legal Assessment & Defense in Hamburg

Our criminal law firm in Hamburg advises and represents those affected nationwide in extradition proceedings involving Turkey.

The basis for extraditions between Germany and the Republic of Türkiye is the European Extradition Convention of 1957, to which Turkey is also a party. Extradition of its own citizens is excluded for both countries.

If extradition to Turkey appears to be legally permissible in an individual case, a German court can order provisional detention pending extradition.

In light of recent political developments in Türkiye, German higher regional courts are increasingly exercising restraint in ordering provisional extradition detention.

Extradition Agreement Türkiye

Extradition to the Republic of Turkey for the purpose of criminal prosecution or the execution of a sentence is permissible in principle. However, given the current situation in Turkey, it appears legally problematic or inadmissible in numerous cases. There is currently no consistent approach in German jurisprudence on this matter.

In principle, extradition to the Republic of Turkey for criminal prosecution or for the purpose of executing a sentence is legally possible. However, given the current political and human rights situation in Turkey, such a measure is considered inadmissible in many cases. German case law has so far been inconsistent. A recent example is a decision I obtained from the Federal Constitutional Court on January 8, 2024 (case no. 2 BvR 1368/23), in which the court prohibited extradition to Turkey.

In other cases, extradition to the Republic of Turkey was also successfully stopped by decisions of the Federal Constitutional Court. In the cases with file numbers 2 BvR 1838/22 and 2 BvR 1694/23, the court clarified that extradition was inadmissible. The central argument in each case was the lack of guarantees of minimum procedural rights in Turkey. The constitutional complaints cited expert opinions from a Turkish university professor and reports from Turkish-speaking lawyers based in Germany.

In numerous cases, German higher regional courts have refused to extradite Turkish citizens to Turkey – even in cases involving serious, non-politically motivated charges. The decisive factors were often inadequate detention conditions and the lack of guarantees of minimum procedural rights in Turkey. However, there is still no consistent line of case law. In many cases, a constitutional complaint remains the last effective means of preventing extradition in the final instance.

Our criminal law firm in Hamburg offers legal assistance in cases of threatened extradition to Turkey – with in-depth expertise in extradition law and experience in proceedings before the Federal Constitutional Court.