Kazakhstan is introducing mandatory electronic entry permits for foreigners. An initial draft of the document proposed charging a "differentiated fee" for the service, but the final government resolution dropped the charge altogether, the website infohub.kz reports.

Under the rules, citizens of EAEU countries, nationals of visa-free states and foreigners entering under special lists are required to obtain an electronic permit. The document is issued free of charge and is valid for 180 calendar days.

"The fee for issuing an electronic entry permit to the Republic of Kazakhstan is zero tenge," the document states.

Applications must be submitted through a digital platform no later than 72 hours before the planned entry.

The system will be rolled out in stages:

from November 1, 2026 — Aktau International Airport and the road checkpoints of Urlyutobe (Pavlodar Region), Aukhatty (Zhambyl Region), Atameken (Turkistan Region) and Nurly Zhol (Zhetisu Region);

from January 1, 2027 — the international airports of Astana and Almaty;

from March 1, 2027 — all remaining checkpoints on Kazakhstan's state border;

from July 1, 2027 — the permit becomes strictly mandatory: not having one will be an official ground for refusing entry into Kazakhstan.

Who will be exempt from obtaining a permit

The document approves a list of 29 categories of people who do not need to obtain an electronic permit. They include:

children under 16 and people aged 65 and older;

foreigners holding a valid Kazakh visa, permanent residence permit or temporary residence permit (TRP);

heads of state, diplomats, members of governments and parliaments, and official delegations;

transit passengers who do not leave the sterile area of airports;

crew members of aircraft and ships, train crews and drivers of international trucks and buses;

people arriving to respond to emergencies, provide emergency medical care or take part in humanitarian missions.

The full list of those exempt from obtaining a permit can be found at the link.

Recall that the Interior Ministry of Kazakhstan was responsible for drafting the project. The ministry expects the system to help track the movement of migrants across the country more clearly, quickly and transparently.

Earlier, Kursiv wrote that Kazakhstan's Interior Ministry plans to verify the legality of foreigners' stay and residence when issuing an IIN. The ministry published the corresponding draft order on the Open NPAs portal. The ministry plans to cross-check foreigners' data against the reference database of immigrants both when an IIN is first issued and when it is amended.