Kazakhstan

VISA REGIME

ENTERING AND LEAVING THE COUNTRY
According to the new decree of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the permitted period of stay of foreigners in Kazakhstan is 3 months during any six-month period.
Foreigners without a visa will be able to legally stay in the country for 30 days, and for a total of up to 90 days during one calendar period of 180 days.
A foreigner who does not have a legal basis for staying in Kazakhstan will be able to cross the border again only after the 180-day calendar period has expired.
This innovation cancels the so-called "visa run", which allowed foreigners to stay in the territory of Kazakhstan for 30, 90 days, after which they would leave the country and immediately cross the border again, thus renewing the period of legal stay.
The new restrictions do not apply to foreigners who have arrived in Kazakhstan with a visa, as well as to those who have been issued a temporary residence permit.
The official decree, published on 16 January 2023, will enter into force on 26 January 2023.

SOCIAL SECURITY AGREEMENT
No social security agreement has been concluded.

USEFUL INFORMATION

HEALTH SITUATION — The Republic of Kazakhstan invests substantially in healthcare. Healthcare centres in major cities have modern medical equipment and well-organised medical services.
In Kazakhstan, occasional disease outbreaks occur. In 2016 and at the beginning of 2017, in northern parts of the country, an epidemic of Siberian anthrax was recorded. Travellers are, thus, advised to pay caution when consuming meat that does not come from major food supply chains. The number of reported cases of measles has been on the rise, but not on an epidemic scale. The situation with tuberculosis (TB) infection is worrying, given the large number of new cases yearly.
Water from the water supply system should not be consumed, but only bottled or filtered water. Smoking prevention has been a focus of the country’s efforts, so smoking is prohibited in all public institutions and the majority of restaurants.

SECURITY SITUATION — The Republic of Kazakhstan is a stable and safe country to a large extent, with certain regional diversity conditioned with its large surface area. In the last ten years, there have been several terrorist attacks in the territory of the Republic of Kazakhstan (the last ones occurred in 2016, in the cities of Aktobe and Almaty). All attacks so far have primarily been against members of the security forces, with some accidental civilian casualties.

TRANSPORT — During temporary stay in the Republic of Kazakhstan, Serbian nationals may use their national driver’s licence (issued on the new form) if it complies with the requirements of the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic (1968). Foreigners wishing to drive in the country must have a certified translation of their national (Serbian) driver’s licence into the Russian or the Kazakh language.
The most reliable form of transport is air transport. During the winter, due to harsh weather conditions, particularly in the northern parts of the country, rail and road traffic could be disrupted for several days.

OTHER INFORMATION — The national currency is the Kazakhstani tenge (KZT). The country has a developed network of banks and exchange offices which facilitates exchange of foreign currency for the local currency and vice versa. Money transfers to foreign countries is possible through Western Union. It is allowed to take 10,000 US dollars, in cash, out of the country. Daily budget for stay in Kazakhstan is approximately 50 US dollars or more, depending on the region, the standard of accommodation, the quality of food, and the method of travelling.

Contact information:
During your stay in the Republic of Kazakhstan, for consular assistance and protection you may contact the Embassy of the Republic of Serbia in Astana (Address: Sariarka 6, 010000 Astana), at the following telephone number: 00 7 71 72 99 00 27, and e-mail: amb.astana@mail.ru.