In Kazakhstan, a housing deposit used for obtaining a mortgage can be seized and the funds withdrawn. For more details on how to act in such situations, reports the website infohub.kz.
The republic has special bank accounts that are protected from seizures and collections. For example, benefits, social payments, and alimony are deposited into them. However, a housing savings account (HSA), as Otbasy Bank reminds, does not have such protection. It can be seized and the money withdrawn.
What can happen to a housing deposit: seizure of funds; write-off and collection under an inkasso order; imposition of a payment request; suspension of debit transactions. Simply put, the quasi-state status of Otbasy Bank does not exclude the possibility of imposing restrictions on HSA.
Seizure of funds is a restrictive measure at the request of authorized persons. An inkasso order (IO) is a write-off or collection under an established requirement. A payment request (PR) is a demand for payment in accordance with the law. Suspension of debit transactions (SDT) is a temporary halt on outgoing operations.
A housing savings account (HSA deposit) does not belong to the accounts on which collection is not allowed. Therefore, in cases provided for by the legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan, funds in HSA may be subject to collection measures and restrictions.
It is important to understand that Otbasy Bank takes all these actions not on its own initiative, but at the request of third parties who may do so on legal grounds. The bank itself cannot lift restrictions on its own.
What to do if your housing deposit is seized? There are times when restrictions are imposed on a housing savings deposit. In this case, you need to: contact the authority that imposed the seizure; clarify the reasons for the seizure and the procedure for lifting it; provide the necessary documents required by the party that imposed the restrictions.
The seizure will be lifted if: the bank receives a document canceling the seizure; the payment request is withdrawn; the inkasso request is withdrawn; the bank receives a document stating that the suspension of debit transactions is lifted.
Thus, it is important for Kazakhstanis to understand that a housing deposit is not a basis for exemption from collection measures. The money in it can be seized and collected to pay off debts. At the same time, we remind that housing deposits that serve as collateral for interim and preliminary loans are protected from seizures. The same guarantee applies to pension funds held in deposits.