What if I rent a private apartment?

The private host is the receiving party and has the same 3 working days. Mention it to them before you arrive, as a host who does not notify can receive a warning under article 518.

Can registration be done online?

Hosts can use vmp.gov.kz, egov.kz with a digital signature, or e-Qonaq at eqonaq.kz. Migration service offices and post are also listed.

Do I need a migration card?

A portal page still mentions one, but the current text of Decree No 148 does not. The Decree takes priority.

Kazakhstan registration for foreigners: rules, fines

Q: Do tourists need to register in Kazakhstan?

Usually not personally. Your hotel or host must notify the internal affairs authorities within 3 working days of arrival. With a visa you are recorded automatically at the border.

Your hotel or host notifies the authorities within 3 working days. You only register yourself if you are an immigrant staying over 30 days.

As of 05.11.2026, most visitors to Kazakhstan never register in person: your hotel or host notifies the internal affairs authorities within 3 working days of arrival. You register yourself only if you are an immigrant staying more than 30 days, by the 30th calendar day. This page rests on Decree No 148 as amended by Decree No 890 of 10.10.2026 and on the Law on Population Migration No 477-IV, with changes to 24.06.2026.

We are not a visa centre and cannot notify anyone for you. Rules change, so check with a Kazakh embassy and qazeta.kz before your trip.

Not verified yet We could not read the Law on the Legal Status of Foreigners: adilet returned an error and a mirror says the text is being updated. This page relies on the Migration Law and Decree No 148. If your case falls outside the table below, ask the migration service.

Your situation and what to do

You are	Who acts	Deadline	What you do
Visa-free tourist in a hotel	The hotel	3 working days from arrival	Ask at check-in that it will notify
Visa-free tourist with a private host or in a rented flat	Your host	3 working days from arrival	Raise it before arrival and ask how they will file
Moving to a new city or address	The new host	3 working days from the move	Do not skip it because the stop is short
Visa holder with an invitation	Automatic at the border	Address from the invitation	Check the address on the invitation
e-Visa holder	Foreign Ministry says exempt	While the visa is valid	Keep the visa accessible
Immigrant staying over 30 days	You	By the 30th calendar day, unless a treaty says otherwise	Go to the internal affairs authorities
Immigrant changing address	You	5 working days	Update your address

Illustration Engraving: a traveller at a guest-house desk while the host fills in a ledger

The 3-day and 30-day rules apply to different people

Three working days is your host’s deadline (Decree No 148, paragraphs 17 and 18; Migration Law, article 6(4)). The 30th calendar day is the deadline for an immigrant staying more than 30 days (article 6(5)). A guest who hears only about the 30 days may assume nothing is due before then, while their host’s clock started on arrival.

Working days also stretch differently from calendar days, so a Friday arrival gives your host more time than a Monday one. We found no separate rule for very short stays. If your stop is shorter than the deadline, ask your host how they handle it.

Portal directory fields showing 5 or 30 days without registration conflict with the Decree, and we do not use them. A portal page also still mentions a migration card, which the current Decree does not.

How your host files the notice

Annex 2, paragraph 4 of Decree No 148 lists these channels:

the vmp.gov.kz portal
egov.kz with a digital signature
migration service offices
post
e-Qonaq at eqonaq.kz

If your host has not done this before, these names are what you can point them to. We could not confirm whether a guest receives proof that a notice was filed, so ask.

Moving around the country

Each change of place restarts the host’s 3 working days, so a multi-stop route means a duty for every new host. Annex 2 lists where checks happen: hotels, streets, transport, workplaces and places of study. Keep your passport and your current address with you.

With a visa or e-Visa

A visa holder is recorded automatically on crossing the border, at the address in the invitation (annex 2, paragraph 4). If you plan to stay somewhere else, tell your host beforehand. Annex 2 does not say what to do when the addresses differ, but article 6-1 of the Migration Law forbids living anywhere other than the place your host named for the visa.

The Foreign Ministry says valid e-Visas exempt you from registration with migration authorities. Its page has no date, so a long stay is worth checking with an embassy. For visa types and limits, see the Kazakhstan visa page.

Fines in MCI: article 517 and article 518

Penalties are set in the Monthly Calculation Index; the MCI page gives its value. Article 517 was last changed by Law No 327-VI of 13.05.2020, and article 518 by Law No 292-VI of 27.12.2019.

Offence	Who answers	Penalty	Norm
Overstay up to 3 days	Foreigner	Warning	517, part 3(1)
More than 3 to 5 days	Foreigner	10 MCI	517, part 3(2)
More than 5 to 10 days	Foreigner	15 MCI	517, part 3(3)
More than 10 days	Foreigner	25 MCI or removal	517, part 4
Repeat of part 3 within a year of the penalty	Foreigner	15 MCI or removal	517, part 6
Failure to notify	Host	Warning for an individual; 10, 15 or 20 MCI for organisations by size	518, part 1
Housing a violator	Host	25 MCI for an individual; 40 to 75 MCI for organisations	518, part 2
Repeat of article 518	Host	30 MCI for an individual; 40 to 100 MCI for organisations	518, part 3

Removal brings a 5-year entry ban once the decision is carried out, and an unpaid penalty is separately grounds for a ban.

Not verified yet Which part of article 517, if any, applies to the tourist personally when a host fails to notify on time. We could not confirm this and give no figure. Ask the migration service or an embassy.

Next: the pre-trip checklist.