The legal system of Kazakhstan
A post-Soviet civil-law system built on a two-part Civil Code enacted in 1994 and 1999 on continental European models. Two features set it apart from its neighbours. First, the 2022 constitutional referendum restored a full Constitutional Court from 1 January 2023, replacing a Constitutional Council that only officials could petition — individuals may now apply directly. Second, the Astana International Financial Centre operates under a constitutional carve-out: the AIFC Court applies AIFC Acts modelled on English common law, is staffed by English and Commonwealth judges, and has expressly opted out of Kazakh substantive law, so a commercial answer here depends entirely on which forum the parties chose.
Legal tradition
Kazakhstan belongs to the civil law tradition. A post-Soviet civil-law system built on a two-part Civil Code enacted in 1994 and 1999 on continental European models. Two features set it apart from its neighbours. First, the 2022 constitutional referendum restored a full Constitutional Court from 1 January 2023, replacing a Constitutional Council that only officials could petition — individuals may now apply directly. Second, the Astana International Financial Centre operates under a constitutional carve-out: the AIFC Court applies AIFC Acts modelled on English common law, is staffed by English and Commonwealth judges, and has expressly opted out of Kazakh substantive law, so a commercial answer here depends entirely on which forum the parties chose.
How power is divided
Unitary. Seventeen regions (oblasts) and three cities of republican significance — Astana, Almaty and Shymkent — each headed by an akim appointed by the President. Local representative assemblies (maslikhats) have limited competence. Overlaid on this is the Astana International Financial Centre, a territorially delimited zone with its own court, arbitration centre, regulator and body of law that operates outside the national legal order.
Where law comes from
- The Constitution
- Supreme; enforced by the Constitutional Court restored in 2023.
- Codes and laws of Parliament
- The Civil Code, Criminal Code, Tax Code and Labour Code are the principal instruments.
- Presidential decrees
- Have the force of law in defined areas and rank above government acts.
- Ratified international treaties
- Article 4 gives them priority over domestic law, except where the treaty requires implementing legislation.
- AIFC Acts
- Apply only within the Astana International Financial Centre and are based on English common law.
The legal profession
Advocates are licensed under the Law on Advocacy and Legal Assistance 2018, which introduced mandatory membership of regional bar collegia coordinated by the Republican Bar Association, and separated advocates from other legal-services providers who must register separately. Entry requires a law degree, an internship and a qualifying examination. Notaries are a distinct licensed profession whose involvement is compulsory for many real-estate and corporate transactions. Practitioners in the AIFC Court are registered separately and may be foreign-qualified.
Law by topic in Kazakhstan
- Business & CorporateCivil-law companies nationally, English common law inside the AIFCOrdinary companies are formed under the Civil Code and the Law on Limited Liability Partnerships. The Astana International Financial Centre operates a separate common-law jurisdiction with its own court and arbitration centre.
- Tax LawA flat ten per cent personal rate and AIFC exemptions to 2066Personal income tax is a flat 10 per cent on employment income and corporate income tax is 20 per cent. AIFC participants enjoy statutory tax exemptions running to 2066.
- Constitutional LawA 2022 reform that restored a Constitutional Court and capped the presidencyThe 1995 Constitution was amended by referendum in 2022, replacing the Constitutional Council with a full Constitutional Court open to individual complaints and limiting the president to a single seven-year term.
- Family LawRegistry divorce where spouses agree and have no minor childrenThe Code on Marriage and Family sets 18 as the marriage age and provides community of marital property. An agreed divorce without minor children is registered administratively; otherwise a court decides.
- Employment & LabourA 2015 Labour Code that widened contractual freedomThe 2015 Labour Code replaced the 2007 statute, expanding the grounds for termination and the scope for individual agreement while retaining a 40-hour week and statutory leave.
- Property & LandPrivate ownership of buildings, but agricultural land closed to foreignersThe Land Code permits private ownership of land for citizens and Kazakh legal entities. Foreign nationals may own buildings and hold land on long lease, but not own agricultural land.
- Immigration & NationalityCategory-based work permits with an employer quotaThe Law on Population Migration governs entry and residence. Work permits are quota-limited and graded by category, with intra-corporate transferees and AIFC employees on lighter regimes.
- Civil ProcedureThree instances, plus an English-language AIFC court running its own rulesThe Civil Procedure Code provides first instance, appeal and cassation. In parallel, the AIFC Court applies its own common-law procedural rules in English with no jury and no appeal into the national system.
- Criminal LawDeath penalty fully abolished in 2021, with jury trial for serious offencesKazakhstan ratified the Second Optional Protocol to the ICCPR and abolished capital punishment for all crimes in 2021. Serious offences may be tried with jury participation.
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