Changes In The Licensing System Of The Republic Of Kazakhstan

At the end of December 2012 the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan approved several legal acts in the sphere of licensing. Also, the Government of Kazakhstan is actively conducting work on the draft Law 'On permissions and Notifications' as part of the Initiative of further reforming Kazakhstan's permit system for 2012-2015 (Initiative).

Following GRATA Law Firm's practice of informing clients about important legal changes, which may influence their activities, and in connection with the expansion of the range of services, rendered by us in the regions, we draw your attention to the recent modifications in Kazakhstani licensing law.

1. General information

   According to an Initiative approved by the Government, the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan ('Government') is conducting active work on simplifying the permit system and eliminating excess administrative barriers in order to develop entrepreneurship in Kazakhstan. Accordingly, at the end of 2012, the list of Regulations of the Government on licensing for several types of activities was adopted. These changes are described in more detail below.

   The Government has also set the Ministry of Regional Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan together with a working group, the task of drawing-up a draft law 'On Permissions and Notifications' ('Draft Law'), included in which will be a comprehensive list of all permit documents.

2. The Draft Law 'On Permissions and Notifications'

   Following the adoption of the Law 'On Amendments and Additions to Some Legislative Acts of the Republic of Kazakhstan regarding the Reduction of Permits and Optimization of Control and Supervisory Functions of State Bodies' dated July 10, 2012, which led to a significant (30%) reduction of licenses and permits, the Government actively began to formulate the Draft Law. Thus the working group was organized, which includes many licensor bodies such as the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of Oil and Gas, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Justice, as well as representatives of Atameken Union, JSC 'Economic Research Institute' , the World Bank and other organizations ('Working Group').

   The main activities of the Working Group are:

   introducing new principles in permit legislation; reducing the administrative burden on business; eliminating corruption in the licensing system. It should be noted that the Initiative of further reforming Kazakhstan's permit system...