Obtaining Refugee Status in Kazakhstan: What Ukrainians Should Consider.

There are 520 people in Kazakhstan seeking asylum and 325 people who have already obtained refugee status. To obtain status, one must meet a number of conditions and go through a special commission. This information was published by the publication "Kursiv", citing data from the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Population of Kazakhstan.

Refugees arrive in Kazakhstan from different countries, including Afghanistan, Ukraine, China, Syria, and Uzbekistan. However, since 2022, the largest number of applications for refugee status have come from Ukrainian citizens, who make up almost half of all asylum seekers in the country.

According to the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Population of Kazakhstan, currently, 233 Ukrainian citizens and 21 Russian citizens have refugee status. Among them, 63 Ukrainian citizens have received refugee status.

The publication "Kursiv" explained that the difference between refugees and asylum seekers is that refugees are granted status if they fear persecution in their country for various reasons and cannot or do not want to avail themselves of the protection of their state. Asylum seekers are those who have applied for assistance in Kazakhstan but have not yet received a final decision.

There are also a number of reasons why Ukrainians may be denied asylum. Applications for refugee status are reviewed by a special commission formed by government structures. The commission decides on each application individually. The characteristics applied are in accordance with Article 12 of the Law "On Refugees". Among them:

• providing false information or forged documents;
• having citizenship of another state that can provide protection;
• arrival from a safe third country where asylum can be provided;
• participation in activities of terrorist, extremist, or banned religious organizations;
• committing crimes against peace, humanity, and war crimes;
• committing a serious crime outside of Kazakhstan before arrival;
• engaging in actions that contradict the goals and principles of the UN and international organizations of which Kazakhstan is a member.

It is worth noting that Kazakhstan plans to prohibit Russians from massively obtaining bank cards. The government will likely require residence permits in the country for Russian citizens when opening an account. The National Bank of Kazakhstan has already prepared corresponding changes to the legislation to combat illegal operations such as drug trafficking and gambling.

Under the new rules, the issuance of cards will depend on personal presence and confirmation of legal residence in Kazakhstan.