In June 2026 Kazakhstan's foreign minister signed two orders, and both change rules a foreign investor cannot avoid. The US law firm Morgan Lewis went through them in a note dated 14 July, and this piece draws mainly on it.
The first, Order No. 11-1-4/313 of 8 June, took effect on 18 June. According to the Adilet record it was registered with the Ministry of Justice on 15 June as No. 38956, and it restates the one-stop-shop rules in full, replacing the version approved by Order No. 11-1-4/327 of 26 June 2023. The range of eligible investment projects is wider: construction, expansion or modernisation of production facilities under concession projects, and tourism facilities in priority tourism destinations, are now in. The line between the pools is also spelled out. High- and medium-priority projects above KZT 500 million (about USD 1 million) go into the national pool, basic-priority projects up to KZT 500 million into the regional one. Projects above KZT 50 billion and those in the green corridor count as high priority.
The green corridor is a fast track for qualifying projects, giving them priority on permits and approvals. Entry is decided by a score that weighs investment size, technology level, and economic and social importance, and the cut-off has moved from 1.3 to 1.6. New grounds for removal were added too: the project being taken off the investment platform, false information that affects the score, and a major change in the project's parameters that leaves it short of the criteria.
Rules related to this news
The second, Order No. 11-1-4/363 of 26 June, has applied since 4 July and covers the investors register and the national digital investment platform. It introduces "initiating parties", which can be ministries, regional akimats, Kazakh Invest, the Atameken chamber of entrepreneurs, Baiterek and Samruk-Kazyna. Each keeps a project passport and roadmap and is responsible for the accuracy and currency of the data on the platform. A Smart Bridge integration service has also been added, to verify investors quickly when they enter the register.
For Chinese companies, a higher bar means the same project will find it harder to get the fast track. How much harder only the scoring method can show, and we have not gone through it here. We could not open the text of the second order. Its description comes only from the law firm's article and should be checked against the original on Adilet before use.
Source: Morgan Lewis, https://www.morganlewis.com/pubs/2026/07/kazakhstan-introduces-amendments-to-investment-project-regulations
Registration record of Order No. 11-1-4/313 (Adilet), https://old.adilet.zan.kz/rus/docs/V2600038956/info
Key facts
- Kazakhstan's Minister of Foreign Affairs issued Order No. 11-1-4/313 on June 8, 2026, which entered into force on June 18.
- The new rules expand the scope of investment projects, adding production facilities under concession projects and tourism facilities in key tourism destinations.
- Projects with investment amount exceeding 500 million tenge enter the national project pool, while basic-priority projects with investment of up to 500 million tenge enter the regional project pool.
- The green channel score threshold has been raised from 1.3 to 1.6.
- The second order is Order No. 11-1-4/363 of June 26, 2026, which entered into force on July 4 and governs the investor register and the national digital investment platform.
- Kazakhstan's national digital investment platform is connected to Smart Bridge for rapid identity verification when investors enter the register.
FAQ
What change has been made to Kazakhstan's green channel score threshold?
The score threshold has been raised from 1.3 to 1.6. Whether a project can enter is scored according to factors such as investment scale, technical level, and economic and social significance. The green channel is a fast-track administrative channel for eligible projects, giving priority when processing permits and approvals.
Which projects can enter Kazakhstan's national project pool?
Projects with high or medium priority and investment amount exceeding 500 million tenge enter the national project pool, while basic-priority projects with investment of up to 500 million tenge enter the regional project pool. Projects with investment amount exceeding 50 billion tenge, as well as projects entering the green channel, are considered high priority.
What has been added to the scope of investment projects in Kazakhstan?
Added are the construction, expansion, or renovation of production facilities under concession projects, as well as tourism facilities within key tourism destinations.
In which circumstances will a project be removed from the green channel?
These include a project being removed from the investment platform, submission of false information affecting the score, and no longer meeting the criteria after changes to key characteristics such as investment amount or sector priority.
What does the second order govern?
It governs the investor register and the national digital investment platform, introduces the concept of an 'initiator,' and connects to an interface service called Smart Bridge for rapid identity verification. The details in this part come from a law firm's account; before use, the original text should be checked on Adilet.