NUR-SULTAN – Kazakhstan will strengthen measures regarding the crossing of the state border. This was announced at the Nov. 2 Interdepartmental Commission headed by Prime Minister Askar Mamin.
Foreign citizens, who have a residence permit, and their family members as well as foreigners who are family members of Kazakh citizens can enter Kazakhstan no more than once in 90 days (previously it was 30 days).
Kazakhstan is extending the suspension of the visa-free regime for foreign citizens until May 2021. The country also is extending the suspension of 72-hour visa-free stay for transit passengers from China and India through Jan. 1, 2021.
Four Kazakhstan’s regions were reported as active infection zones, according to the Committee for Sanitary and Epidemiological Control. The red zone includes regions with more than 50 cases (one-day increase) per 100,000 residents (East Kazakhstan region). The yellow zone includes regions with 25-50 cases per 100,000 residents (Pavlodar, North Kazakhstan and Akmola regions). The green zone includes regions less than 50 cases per 100,000 residents. Click on the map to see the full picture.
The international flights with Turkey will be reduced from 33 to 20 flights per week from Nov. 9.
Minister of Healthcare Alexey Tsoi spoke about the recent increase in COVID-19 cases nationwide. Some 1,272 cases were reported from Oct. 5-18 and 3,352 cases were reported from Oct. 19 – Nov. 1. The growth rate stands at 0.4 percent and the reproductive rate is 1.4 percent. The rate of hospital bed occupancy stands at 22 percent and intensive care – 18 percent.
The East Kazakhstan, Akmola, Kostanai, West Kazakhstan and Pavlodar regions have observed the highest number of COVID-19 cases.
Prime Minister Mamin instructed his cabinet to increase the work efficiency of special groups who monitor people and companies to ensure compliance with the lockdown measures. The regional hospitals and ambulance services should also be pre-emptively equipped.
The Ministry of Digital Development, Innovations and Aerospace Industry and the Ministry of Healthcare are set tasks to develop and implement programs for tracking contact persons, patients and monitoring compliance with sanitary requirements.
On Oct. 27, it was reported that Kazakhstan’s airlines are prohibited from boarding foreign citizens heading to Kazakhstan without administering a COVID-19 PCR test result. Earlier this month, Kazakhstan reduced the number of international flights to prevent the rise of coronavirus cases.
