On bankruptcy

The Law on Restoring Solvency and Bankruptcy of Citizens of the Republic of Kazakhstan provides three types of procedures – out-of-court bankruptcy, court bankruptcy and restoration of solvency.

When does out-of-court bankruptcy apply?

If an individual borrower has debts to banks, microfinance organisations, collection agencies not exceeding 1,600 monthly calculation indexes (KZT 5,520,000), he/she may consider an out-of-court bankruptcy procedure. The borrower must comply with the following conditions:

• there must be no property registered on him/her, including in common ownership;
• on the date of application, within 12 consecutive months, he/she must not have any repayments of obligations to creditors, collectors;
• the debtor has been subject to procedures to settle or recover outstanding obligations under the loan agreement within a period not exceeding 18 months from the date the overdue debt arose;
• the bankruptcy has not been applied for within 7 years as of the date of application.

Individual borrowers who have not paid their debts for more than 5 years as of the date of application can also apply for out-of-court bankruptcy. The listed conditions do not apply to such debtor.

Attention! A debtor who has been a recipient of targeted social assistance (TSA) for six months may apply for this procedure without reference to the period of delay. Once this procedure has been carried out, the debtor will be declared bankrupt.

How to submit an application?

You can apply through the e-government web portal.

When does court bankruptcy apply?

Citizens may apply the procedure for debts over 1,600 MCI (5,520,000 tenge) and for all types of debts to creditors.

Attention! During this procedure, the debtor is not allowed to:

• carry out transactions involving the alienation of property;
• undertake new obligations (obtaining loans, issuing guarantees and sureties);
• go abroad.

After this procedure has been applied, the debtor is given the status of “bankrupt”.

How to submit an application?

The application is taken to the court at the debtor's place of residence.

When does the restoration of solvency procedure apply?

Citizens with a stable income can apply this procedure. It allows you to get an instalment plan to pay off your debts for up to 5 years in court. The only condition for a debtor who plans to apply for restoration of solvency is that the amount owed must not exceed the value of the property owned by the borrower.

Attention! The advantage of this procedure is that the debtor is not given bankruptcy status. They will not be subject to "bankruptcy" restrictions. The citizen will be able to go abroad.

How to submit an application?

The application can be submitted to the court at the debtor's place of residence.

What are the consequences for the "bankrupt"?

Debtors who have decided to take out-of-court or court bankruptcy proceedings need to know

• there will be a 5-year ban on loans and microcredits (except for pawnshop microcredits);
• a second bankruptcy is only possible after 7 years;
• the financial situation of the bankrupt will be monitored for 3 years after the bankruptcy.

Attention! Debts for alimony, compensation for injury to the life or health of another person and damages for criminal offences cannot be written off.