How to get Kazakhstan citizenship in 2026

Who can get Kazakhstan citizenship

No residence period is required for minors, legally incapacitated persons, people with special merits to Kazakhstan and specialists in professions on a list approved by the President, and their family members.

What you need to get Kazakhstan citizenship: the whole path

The most common mistake is counting the five years from your first day in the country. The clock starts only with permanent residence permission, so years on temporary grounds do not count. The whole path looks like this.

The total for one adult is about $50 in state fees plus a reserve of about $13,000 in a Kazakh bank account. Translations, certificates and leaving your previous citizenship are paid separately. The first steps are covered on Kazakhstan residence permit and in the guide moving to Kazakhstan in 2026.

How much Kazakhstan citizenship costs in 2026

State fees for the whole path to a passport come to about $50 per adult. They are set in calculation indices, a notional unit for state fees, worth about $10 in 2026.

• permanent residence permit - about $40;
• processing documents for acquiring citizenship - about $10;
• money in a Kazakh bank account for a permanent residence permit - about $13,000. This is not a payment but a balance confirmed annually for five years.

Besides fees, you pay for notarised translations into Kazakh or Russian, a medical certificate, criminal record certificates, the exam and, if needed, renouncing your previous citizenship in your passport country. For a family the requirements apply to each member, and the total depends on the family and grounds. Dollar amounts use the National Bank of Kazakhstan rate of 6 October 2026, rounded up.

Compare with all programs: second passport cost in 2026

Can you buy Kazakhstan citizenship

Kazakhstan has no citizenship by investment programme, and a passport cannot be legally bought. Offers of a passport within a month mean forged documents, not a shortcut.

The closest legal substitute is the investor visa. An investment from $300,000 into the charter capital of a Kazakh company or local securities gives the right to apply for permanent residence. After that the path is the general one: 5 years, an exam and giving up your previous citizenship.

The law keeps a simplified procedure for ethnic Kazakh returnees, rehabilitated victims of political repression and their descendants, ethnic Kazakh students at Kazakh universities and widows of Kazakh citizens. The investor visa needs company registration in Kazakhstan and a business account, and the reserve for permanent residence is held in a personal account at a Kazakh bank.

Step one: a permanent residence permit

Citizenship comes after five years of permanent residence, so first you obtain a permanent residence permit from the police migration service where you stay. Applicants from countries with visa-free access to Kazakhstan apply locally; others apply through a Kazakh consulate. A foreigner's residence permit is issued from age 16 for ten years, but not beyond the passport's validity.

• an application form and a CV in Kazakh or Russian;
• a passport valid for more than 180 days;
• your country's consent to permanent residence abroad or a deregistration document;
• a bank certificate of the account balance, unless exempt;
• a criminal record certificate from your country of citizenship or residence;
• a notarised agreement or consent providing housing and permanent registration;
• a medical certificate showing no diseases that bar entry;
• for children aged 14 to 18, their notarised consent.

The bank, criminal record and medical certificates are valid for no more than 180 days. Former compatriots, investors, minors, people entitled to simplified citizenship under international treaties and their family members are exempt from proving the account balance.

The exam: language, Constitution and history

Since 31 May 2024 a citizenship application must include a certificate of elementary Kazakh and basic knowledge of the Constitution and history of Kazakhstan. The scope is set by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education. Without the certificate the application is rejected.

Minors, legally incapacitated persons, people with special merits, specialists from the presidential list and ethnic Kazakhs are exempt. Start preparing for the language part early: elementary level means introducing yourself, answering simple questions about yourself and understanding everyday phrases.

Dual citizenship: what to know

Kazakhstan does not recognise another citizenship held by its citizens. An applicant who keeps another passport is refused. The exception is certain groups, such as ethnic Kazakh returnees or people with a close relative who is a Kazakh citizen, who file a notarised renunciation request addressed to an official of their own country.

Kazakh citizenship is lost if a person acquires another country's citizenship or uses its documents after obtaining a Kazakh passport. Russian citizens renounce Russian citizenship under Russian rules, which takes months, so plan it together with the Kazakh application.

Documents for citizenship

• an application to the President in the prescribed form;
• passport and foreigner's residence permit;
• the certificate on language, Constitution and history;
• a written undertaking to observe Kazakhstan's Constitution and laws;
• a renunciation request or document confirming renunciation of the previous citizenship;
• a marriage certificate or proof of kinship, if applying on those grounds;
• the fee receipt and photos.

Foreign-language documents are translated into Kazakh or Russian with the translator's signature notarised. Applications for children under 18 are filed by legal representatives with notarised consent.

What to check before applying for Kazakhstan citizenship

• holding another citizenship without a formal renunciation;
• no certificate on language, Constitution and history;
• an unexpunged conviction for an intentional crime in Kazakhstan or abroad;
• an economic offence in the past five years;
• repeated migration violations in the past five years;
• false information, or documents not filed on time without good reason;
• an international wanted notice, or links to terrorist or extremist organisations;
• loss of Kazakh citizenship on certain grounds in the past five years.

After a refusal, a new application is considered no earlier than one year later unless significant new circumstances arise.

How the five years are counted

Only lawful permanent residence counts. Military service, study and business trips abroad count if the person lived in Kazakhstan before leaving and returned within three months. Time serving a sentence and temporary stays in Kazakhstan on business trips, for treatment and similar cases do not count. So years before the permanent residence permit do not count.

Send your residence dates to a manager, and we calculate when you can apply.

Taxes for Kazakhstan residents

A new Tax Code applies from 1 January 2026. Personal income tax is 10% on annual income up to about $81,000 and 15% on the part above. You become a tax resident by spending 183 days or more in Kazakhstan within 12 months. See taxes in Kazakhstan.

Risks and what can change

• Requirements are tightening. An exam since 2024 and, from 26 July 2026, an account balance for permanent residence to be confirmed for five consecutive years.
• You must give up your passport. Renunciation is irreversible and in some countries takes up to a year.
• Military service. Male Kazakh citizens are subject to conscription between 18 and 27.
• Not automatic. Citizenship is granted by presidential decree, and an application can be rejected even if formal conditions are met.

Alternatives to Kazakhstan citizenship

• Residence in Kazakhstan - live and work without giving up your passport.
• Kyrgyz citizenship - a neighbouring Eurasian Economic Union country.
• Armenian citizenship - allows dual citizenship.

What changed and what we rely on

A law signed on 16 May 2024 introduced, from 31 May 2024, the exam on language, Constitution and history and new refusal grounds. A new Tax Code and a new calculation index for fees and thresholds apply from 1 January 2026. From 26 July 2026 a permanent residence permit requires proof of an account balance of about $13,000.

What a Kazakh passport gives

How to get Kazakhstan citizenship: step by step

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