Turkey Closes Bilgi University, Home to the Country's First LGBT Student Club

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has revoked the operating license of Istanbul Bilgi University. The decree was published in the Official Gazette on May 22, 2026. The university has effectively ceased operations.

The decision was based on the higher education law, which allows for the closure of private universities if a trustee is appointed to their founding foundation. In September 2025, a criminal case for money laundering and fraud was opened against Can Holding, which the university had been part of since 2019. The holding’s assets were confiscated, and the management of the university passed to a court-appointed administrator.

Bilgi was founded in 1996. About 20,000 students from Turkey and other countries studied there. The university was considered a center for independent academic work in the country and held a special place in the history of the local LGBT movement.

In 2007, Bilgi opened the first officially registered LGBT student club in a Turkish university. The university administration stated at the time that banning such a club would be a human rights violation. In recent months, following the appointment of the trustee, students had complained about increasing censorship and the cancellation of academic events.

By law, current students will be transferred to the state-run Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University (MSGSÜ). They will keep their academic credits and previous tuition conditions. The diplomas of Bilgi graduates remain valid.

The university’s staff are in a more vulnerable position. Their employment contracts have been terminated, and the law does not provide for the automatic transfer of academic staff to state positions. The payment of severance packages and salary arrears depends on whether sufficient funds remain after the liquidation of the university’s assets.