He was born in 1953 in Nicosia. He graduated from the University of Arizona, USA, Faculty of Political Science, Department of International Relations.
Between 1983-91, he served in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Defense. Between 1986-91, he worked as the Officer in Charge of Political Affairs at the TRNC London Representation. In 1991, he became Undersecretary to the Prime Minister and served in this position until 1994. In 1995, he participated in the one-year Humphrey Fellowship program on Public Administration at the University of Minnesota, USA. In 1996, he was reappointed as Undersecretary to the Prime Minister. He served as a member and chairman of the BRTK Board of Directors. In the general elections held on 6 December 1998, he was elected as a UBP Member of Parliament for Nicosia and served as Minister of Foreign Affairs and Defense in the UBP-TKP and UBP-DP Governments between 1999-2003.
He was elected as a Member of Parliament for Nicosia from the National Unity Party in the general elections of 14 December 2003 and the early general elections of 20 February 2005. He was elected chairman of the National Unity Party at the UBP congress held on 16 December 2006. He held this position until 29 November 2008.
In the early general elections of 19 April 2009, he was once again elected as a Member of Parliament for Nicosia from the National Unity Party. Between June 2009 and April 2010, he represented the National Unity Party at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) meetings.
In the 2010 Presidential election, Ertuğruloğlu was deemed an independent MP on the grounds that running as an independent candidate was against the party’s bylaws. In 2011, he founded the Democracy and Trust Party and served as its chairman. At the end of 2012, he returned to his former party, the UBP. As of 31 December 2012, Tahsin Ertuğruloğlu served in parliament as an MP of the National Unity Party and was elected again as a UBP Nicosia MP in the early general elections held on 28 July 2013.
Ertuğruloğlu served as Minister of Transport between 15 July 2015 and 4 April 2016. In the newly formed UBP-DP government, he served as Minister of Foreign Affairs and has been serving in this role since 16 April 2016.
Ertuğruloğlu is married with two children and speaks English.
