Kazakh First Deputy Interior Minister Baurzhan Alenov has announced that Kazakhstan recorded more than 7.5 million foreign visitors in the first half of 2025, reflecting a 600,000-person increase compared to the same period last year.
Alenov shared the figures during a government meeting, The Caspian Post reports via Kazakh media.
The vast majority-90 per cent-of these arrivals were from CIS countries, with Uzbekistan leading at 2.8 million entries, followed by the Kyrgyz Republic (1.7 million) and Russia (1.5 million).
Kazakhstan’s permanent foreign resident population has also grown significantly, reaching 212,000 individuals-a 42 per cent increase over the past three years. The highest numbers are concentrated in Almaty (42,000), the Almaty Region (32,500), and both Astana and the Karagandy Region (17,500 each).
Currently, Kazakhstan maintains a visa-free regime with 87 countries, while citizens of 107 nations are eligible to apply for electronic visas, reaffirming the country’s commitment to openness and international connectivity.
Speaking at the same meeting, Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov underlined the need for comprehensive migration policy reform in the face of global geopolitical shifts.
“In line with the president’s instructions, we must implement a strictly regulated migration policy. This means auditing the regulatory framework, assessing the roles of government agencies, and addressing key challenges such as illegal migration, regional disparities, and the lack of an integrated migration database,” he said.
To that end, the prime minister announced the upcoming launch of a unified digital platform for migration management, fully integrated with national databases and scheduled for rollout by November 2025.
Minister of Digital Development, Innovation, and Aerospace Industry Zhaslan Madiyev presented progress updates on digitalization in the migration sector. Madiyev noted that in 2025, individuals and organizations accessed 23 public services, with 13 available online, totaling 2.4 million digital transactions.
The most requested services included:
Issuance of passports and ID cards to citizens
Residence registration and deregistration
Temporary residence permits for foreigners and stateless persons
Madiyev also pointed to two key initiatives-Digital Nomad Residency and the Digital Nomad Visa-designed to attract highly skilled IT professionals and enhance Kazakhstan’s global tech appeal.
To further improve the experience for foreign visitors, Kazakhstan launched the QazETA mobile application on July 15 via the Google Play Market.
The app offers a comprehensive suite of digital government and tourism services, including:
Visa applications and residence registration
Information on attractions, tours, hotels, and transportation
SIM card purchases, car rentals, taxi bookings, and public transit integration
Access to investment, startup, and B2B platforms such as Astana Hub and the MCC
An iOS version of the QazETA app is expected to be launched on the App Store by the end of July.
