Submission of notification on arrival for foreign nationals in Kazakhstan

For all foreign citizens, regardless of age, nationality, citizenship, purpose of entry and other details, the inviting party must submit a notice of stay to the migration services.

This does not depend on the availability of a visa or a temporary residence permit (RVP), since the submission of a notification is a procedure that complements the main document, visa or RVP, and not interchangeable.

The inviting party is always responsible for submitting the notification. The host party is an inviting company (employer) in Kazakhstan, a hotel or an individual providing housing to a foreign citizen, i.e. the owner of the apartment, if he rents an apartment.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION: The notification must always be submitted within three business days. If you arrived in Kazakhstan at 23.50 on Friday, this will be considered the first day of your stay in Kazakhstan. Accordingly, Monday is the second working day, and Tuesday is the third, that is, the deadline

In which cases is the notification served?

The notification is served in three cases:

• Upon each arrival of a foreign citizen to Kazakhstan from abroad;
• When changing the residence address of a foreign citizen within the region;
• When a foreign citizen leaves for other regions of Kazakhstan.

How long does the notification have to be submitted?

The notification of arrival must be submitted within 3 working days from the date when a foreign citizen crosses the border of the Republic of Kazakhstan, changes his address, or leaves on a business trip.

How to submit the notification of arrival?

The notification is submitted online via visa-migration portal vmp.gov.kz or eqonaq.kz . It is also possible to send notifications via the E-Qonaq mobile app in the App Store and Play Market.

To submit a notification online, you must:

• Log in to the visa and migration portal vmp.gov.kz or eqonaq.kz by means of an electronic digital signature (EDS) of a company/individual. In the case of submitting a notification for the first time, you must first register on the portal also via EDS.
• Go to the “Services” section and receive notification of the foreigner’s stay.
• Fill in the information on the foreign citizen: citizenship, purpose of stay, full name according to the passport, gender, date of birth, passport number with validity period, address of residence in Kazakhstan, date of entry and period of stay in Kazakhstan.
• Sign the completed application using an EDS.
• Go to the “Personal Account” section and receive a notification of arrival, then download the result of the service from the “Help” link. The notification will be issued in an electronic document with a QR code.

Notifications are served online only. As before, paper notifications to the Migration Service Department are not accepted.

Which law regulates the submission of an arrival notification?

Notifications of foreign citizens staying in the Republic of Kazakhstan must be submitted in accordance with the requirements of several legislative documents:

1. Rules for the provision by receiving persons of information about immigrants staying with them, as well as transit travel of foreigners and stateless persons through the territory of the Republic of Kazakhstan: Chapter No. 2: “Receiving persons are obliged to inform the internal affairs bodies about immigrants staying with them within three working days from the date of their arrival”
2. The Law on Population Migration: paragraph 4, Article 6: “Registration of immigrants is carried out by internal affairs bodies on the basis of information from receiving persons, as well as the National Security Committee of the Republic of Kazakhstan, coming from checkpoints across the State border of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The receiving persons are obliged to inform the internal affairs bodies about the immigrants staying with them within three working days from the date of their arrival”
3. Rules of entry and stay of immigrants in the Republic of Kazakhstan, as well as their departure from the Republic of Kazakhstan: paragraph 9, Chapter 2: “Registration of immigrants is carried out by internal affairs bodies on the basis of information from receiving persons, as well as the National Security Committee of the Republic of Kazakhstan, coming from checkpoints across the State border of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The receiving persons inform the internal affairs bodies about the immigrants staying with them within three working days from the date of their arrival.”

What are the consequences of late notification of arrival?

The responsibility for the absence of notification or its late submission is always borne by the inviting party.

According to Article 518, paragraph 1 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Republic of Kazakhstan: in cases of violation of the deadline for submission, if the violation period is less than three days, the inviting party is issued only a warning, otherwise, if the deadline is more than three days, an administrative fine is issued. The size of the fine for small, medium and large businesses varies: the fine for small businesses ranges from 10-40 MCI*, for medium from 15-50 MCI and for large from 25-75 MCI.

*The MCI for 2024 is 3692 tenge.

In accordance with article 48 of the Migration Law, the inviting company is included in the “blacklist” (a ban on inviting foreign citizens for 1 year from the date of detection of the violation) due to late notifications: applications from receiving persons for inviting foreigners to the Republic of Kazakhstan are not considered if, within twelve consecutive calendar months before submitting such an application, the receiving Persons have been prosecuted two or more times for late informing the internal affairs bodies about immigrants staying with them, failure to take measures to process documents for their right to stay in the Republic of Kazakhstan and ensure departure from the Republic of Kazakhstan after a certain period of stay.

FAQ

1. if a foreign citizen has a residence permit in the Republic of Kazakhstan, do I need to issue a notification of arrival? No, it is not required. A residence permit gives all rights, as well as citizens of the Republic of Kazakhstan, except the right to vote. So holders of a residence permit are exempt from all migration requirements.
2. If we cannot submit a notification online, where can we contact? The notification of the arrival of a foreigner is submitted only online. The wrist feed has been canceled in the Republic of Kazakhstan.
3. Which passport should I submit a notification for if a foreigner has several passports? You will need to apply according to the document through which you crossed the border.
4. Is the receiving person obliged to submit notifications about the departure of a foreigner from the Republic of Kazakhstan? No, filing a notification of departure of a foreign employee outside the Republic of Kazakhstan is not provided for by law.
5. How can I find out that the notification of my arrival has been accepted? After submitting the notification of the arrival of the foreigner, the inviting party will receive a notification (certificate) of acceptance of the notification. This notification will be sent by e-mail or to your personal account on the Visa and Migration Portal/eqonaq.
6. Do I need to submit a notification of the arrival of family members of a foreign employee? Yes, notification of the arrival of family members of a foreign employee must also be submitted.

Other immigration procedures that may interest you

1. Obtaining a category C 5 visa for business immigrants
2. Obtaining an electronic visa to Kazakhstan
3. Obtaining an IIN
4. Temporary Residence Permit (RVP)
5. Obtaining a C3 work visa
6. Obtaining a work permit