Kazakhstan streamlines and enhances customs procedures

Kazakhstan's budget was replenished by nearly two trillion tenge in six months due to customs payments and taxes at the country’s state border. This represents a growth of over 20 percent compared to the same period last year. Yeldos Saudabayev, the Director of the Control Department of the State Revenue Committee of the Kazakh Finance Ministry, announced this during a press briefing. According to him, an integrated control system with a one-window principle is currently being implemented at customs posts throughout the country. The work on modifying the information system is planned to be completed by the end of the year. Saudabayev also noted that to date, Kazakhstan has concluded international agreements with nine states, including China, Turkey, Iran, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and some Central Asian countries. These agreements provide for the exchange of preliminary information on goods and vehicles, creating favorable conditions for participants in foreign economic activities. For example, they expedite customs operations, including by reducing the number of documents. Additionally, Saudabayev stated that an electronic queue system has been introduced at 10 automobile checkpoints on the state border with third countries.

“In general, the electronic queue concept provides for the maximum number of format and logical controls using electronic databases. As of today, there are 17 such databases. SMS notifications are provided via the 1414 info service for the convenience of participants in the transportation process. To date, more than 27,000 users have used the electronic queue, with about 90,000 vehicles having passed through it,” Saudabayev said.

According to Saudabayev, the reconstruction of all checkpoints at the customs border of the EAEU is planned to be completed by the end of 2024. This will lead to an increase in their capacity by up to eightfold. Additionally, the duration of all customs procedures will be reduced from two hours to 25 minutes.