Mobile phone registration law in Kazakhstan

[itfcfan]

According to news reports in Kazakhstan, a law requiring mobile phone registration came into force on 1st January 2019. This registration appears to require a Kazakh ID card - I don't know what options there are for foreign visitors / temporary residents.

I'm in Kazakhstan since last week, using a Beeline SIM I purchased a few years ago. So far my phone line is still working. I also have a KCell SIM also purchased a few years ago - this is also still working but has received an SMS requesting registration be carried out.

I'm due to leave Kazakhstan next week. If I get a chance (or if my line stops working) I'll attempt to register to see how it works for non residents. If anyone knows more, please reply.

[steven]

I am also curious to see how this pans out. Aggregating info here: https://caravanistan.com/phone-internet/kazakhstan/

[itfcfan]

A quick update. I left KZ on the weekend - both Beeline and Kcell SIMs kept working without registration.

Possibly something will change in the future, but for now unregistered SIMs are still working...

[Bakhtiyark]

I can confirm that sim-cards are still working without registration despite talks of rendering them unusable unless registered, At least for now.

[Granite2018]

I walked into a mobile phone shop in Almaty yesterday and bought a Beeline simcard and package without even showing my passport. Registration wasn't mentioned.

[trabuccoitalia]

At Almaty airport got a Beeline number, showed passport all was fine (except the shop assistant not speaking english, but that's another story)

[tonisl]

Hello. Bought beeline without registration at the border few days ago. No questions asked.

[basti.s]

I bought a Beeline SIM package right now in the store between the Friday's Mosque and the train station Almaty 2. It was easy, but they registrated me.

Interesting for travelers to the East: Beeline has an offer for SIM cards that work in Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Ukraine and (good for me) China. I paid 3000 Tenge (about 7 Euro) for 30 days and 20 GB. But until now I don't know how it will work in China.

[Bakhtiyark]

I bought a Beeline SIM package right now in the store between the Friday's Mosque and the train station Almaty 2. It was easy, but they registrated me.

Interesting for travelers to the East: Beeline has an offer for SIM cards that work in Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Ukraine and (good for me) China. I paid 3000 Tenge (about 7 Euro) for 30 days and 20 GB. But until now I don't know how it will work in China.

It will work reasonably well throughout China(not sure about Tibet tho) but without google, youtube, social networks and some other exceptions.

[ohnostopgo]

Ok, I have done this last year. The law is real, but registration is only required some time after activating a number, and the document you need is not an identity card but a tax identification number (IIN / ИИН / ЖСН). It's the same thing for KZ as an American SSN or a British National Insurance number. Foreigners are able to get an IIN but it could be complicated depending on your situation.

About IIN:
https://egov.kz/cms/en/articles/iin_info

As of spring 2019, anyone could request an IIN from the tax office of the oblast in which they have an address in Kazakhstan. A notarised copy of your passport is required, but not any proof of address. The IIN is free but you have to pay for notarisation (not expensive). You will have to give a reason why you want one, but wanting to open a bank account is enough.

Just obtaining an IIN does not make you liable for Kazakhstani taxes or require you to file a tax return.

In Nursultan there is a helpful English speaking office which deals with IINs for foreigners, called Astana International Financial Centre (https://aifc.kz/). It's in one of the offices around the Expo 2017 globe, south of the city centre. I was staying at a hotel in Nursultan, and I wanted an IIN to open a local bank account. At that time I didn't know it was also used for registering a simcard.

AIFC has a notary office within the building, but I didn't know that so I already notarised my passport before going there. Just do the personal details page, the visa page if you need a visa, and the migration card you filled in at the airport when you arrived.

The AIFC office staff speak English, but the guards at the front door don't. So you either need enough Russian to tell them you have an appointment, or just try waving your arms a lot and grinning

Officially you need an address within Astana oblast to use AIFC, but they accepted my hotel address with a warning that the police might call to check I am really staying there. Nobody called. Then once my IIN was issued, they warned me to only open a bank account at a branch within Nursultan, because IINs are tied to the oblast that issues them.

I guess you could try another oblast's tax office if that's where you are staying, but I was warned to expect long queues, no English spoken and a very Soviet attitude. At AIFC they actually want to help.

I was only planning to be in the city for 2 nights, and it turns out AIFC are not allowed to give out IINs by phone or email. I had to go back there on the train to collect it (cheap but sloooow) and open the bank account, then another train ride to collect my bank card once that was ready.

Anyway, about the simcard. I bought it from a local shop and was able to use it immediately, but after about a week, I received SMS telling me to register it with my IIN. I could do that in my account on the mobile network website.

So I now have an IIN, a phone number and a bank account, all working fine. The only strange thing is that I had to give the bank an address in Nursultan to match the IIN, so I used the hotel one again. The bank staff told me they never use the mail for anything so it doesn't matter.

Sorry for bumping an old thread btw.