Presence in Kazakhstan
Foreign company registration in Kazakhstan
We set up a legal entity for foreign businesses in the Republic of Kazakhstan end to end: choosing the form of presence, drafting constitutive documents, providing a legal address, obtaining the BIN and digital signature, tax registration and opening a bank account.
- LLP, branch or representative office — with a reasoned choice
- Legal address in Astana
- BIN, digital signature and tax registration
- Bank account and VAT registration where required
Choosing the form of presence
There are three workable options for a foreign company: a limited liability partnership (LLP), a branch and a representative office. An LLP is a standalone legal entity — it can trade, sign contracts, employ staff and bid in tenders. A branch carries on the parent company's activity but is not a separate legal entity. A representative office may only represent interests and cannot carry out commercial activity.
The choice drives taxation, reporting, the parent company's exposure and whether you can invoice Kazakhstan customers at all. We start with that conversation rather than with filing: changing the form of presence later costs more than getting it right at the outset.
Services
What we do
The full cycle of setting up and activating a legal entity.
Registration
- Advice on the form: LLP, branch or representative office
- Drafting constitutive documents and the charter
- Legal address in Astana
- Registration with the justice authorities
- Obtaining the business identification number (BIN)
- Obtaining the IIN for foreign founders and directors
Getting operational
- Tax registration
- VAT registration where required
- Obtaining the electronic digital signature
- Opening a bank account
- Access to government e-services
- Initial accounting and reporting setup
Step
How company formation runs
From choosing the form to a working bank account.
Step 1
Form and structure
We work through what the business will actually do in Kazakhstan: trading, importing, bidding in tenders, employing staff. We then select the form of presence, the ownership structure and the activity codes, so nothing has to be redone six months later.
Step 2
Documents and identification
We draft the constitutive documents, founder's resolution, charter and powers of attorney, arrange translation and legalisation of the parent company's corporate documents, and obtain IINs for foreign individuals.
Step 3
Registration and BIN
We file the documents, register the legal entity, obtain the BIN, provide the legal address and complete tax registration.
Step 4
Account and launch
We obtain the digital signature, open the settlement account, register for VAT where required and set up access to government e-services. The company is ready to trade.
What we need from the founder
The list depends on whether the founder is a company or an individual.
- Constitutive documents of the foreign company, legalised or apostilled
- Extract from the commercial register of the country of incorporation
- Resolution of the competent body to establish a presence in Kazakhstan
- Passports of the founders and of the appointed director
- Notarised translations into Kazakh and Russian
- Power of attorney to act in Kazakhstan
- Intended activities and ownership structure
For a non-resident individual the set is considerably shorter: in many cases a passport, an IIN and a resolution to incorporate are enough.
Indicative timelines
Most of the time usually goes not into the registration itself but into preparing the parent company's documents.
| Legalisation of parent company documents | 1–4 weeks | Depends on the country and on whether an apostille applies |
|---|---|---|
| Obtaining an IIN for a foreign individual | a few days | A prerequisite for registration |
| Entity registration and BIN | a few working days | With a complete and correct document set |
| Digital signature and bank account | a few days | Depends on the bank and its compliance procedures |
A realistic turnkey timeline for a foreign company is a matter of weeks, and it is set by how fast documents can be legalised in the founder's country.
What the service covers
We run the process end to end; you do not need to travel for each step.
Choice of form
We match LLP, branch or representative office to the real business task and its tax consequences.
Documents
We draft the charter, resolutions and powers of attorney and arrange translation and notarisation.
Legal address
We provide an address in Astana and ensure correspondence is received.
BIN and digital signature
We complete registration and obtain the BIN and the electronic digital signature.
Tax and VAT
We complete tax registration, register for VAT where needed and explain the applicable tax regime.
Bank account
We support account opening and the bank's compliance process.
FAQ
Company formation FAQ
What foreign founders ask most often.
Do I need to travel to Kazakhstan to open a company?
In most cases no: the procedure runs under a power of attorney and documents are filed electronically. Personal attendance may be required to open the bank account — requirements differ between banks, and we choose the bank with that in mind.
LLP or branch: which is better for a foreign company?
If you plan to trade, import, employ staff and bid in tenders, an LLP is almost always the answer: it is a separate legal entity with a status counterparties understand. A branch makes sense when the Kazakhstan activity is a direct continuation of the parent's business and unified reporting matters. A representative office suits non-commercial presence only.
Can a foreigner be the sole founder and director?
Yes, one hundred per cent foreign ownership is permitted. A foreign national can also serve as director, but this requires an IIN and, in some cases, work authorisation documents. We work through this when choosing the structure and tell you upfront what will be needed.
Do we need to register for VAT immediately?
VAT registration is mandatory once turnover exceeds the statutory threshold, but voluntary registration is often worthwhile — particularly when importing and dealing with large buyers who want to recover input VAT. We assess this against your sales model.
Do you open companies for product registration projects?
Yes, and it is a common scenario: a manufacturer from China, the EU or Türkiye sets up an LLP and registers its products at the same time. Running both in one place is simpler — the manufacturer's documents serve both files and the timelines stay in step.
Services
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These usually run together in a single project.
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Let us match the form of presence
Tell us what the company will do in Kazakhstan — we will propose the right form and a realistic timeline.
Mon–Fri 09:00 — 18:00