Obtaining a passport turned out to be less about paperwork and more about extortion. My application was repeatedly rejected for alleged errors until I paid a 1,500 TK bribe to a broker right outside the office. He wrote a secret code on my papers, signaling to the officials inside that the price had been paid. Instantly, my previously 'flawed' documents were accepted without a second look—proving that without grease in the palm, legitimate applications are deliberately kept stuck.