Employment Contract with a Foreign Employee in Kazakhstan: Mandatory Terms, Duration, ESUTD Registration and Termination

An employment contract with a foreign national in Kazakhstan is concluded under the same Labour Code rules as with a Kazakh citizen: in writing and with the 13 mandatory terms listed in Article 28. There are three differences. The contract may be signed only once the employer has a legal basis for hiring, usually a permit to engage foreign labour. Its term cannot run past the term of that permit. And the contract must be recorded in ESUTD, the national employment contract register, which requires the employee to have an IIN.

When the contract can be signed

Article 26(1)(4) of the Labour Code prohibits concluding an employment contract with temporarily staying foreigners and stateless persons before the employer receives the local executive authority's permit to engage foreign labour. The exceptions are the cases where no permit is needed:

• citizens of the EAEU (Armenia, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Russia), who are hired without permits or quotas under Article 97 of the EAEU Treaty;
• foreigners holding a certificate of qualification compliance for self-employment (C4 visa);
• intra-corporate transferees, who follow their own procedure;
• residence permit holders, who work on general terms.

The practical rule is simple: first the permit (or the document that replaces it), then the contract. The position, specialty and region in the contract must match the permit. The full "permit → invitation → visa" sequence is covered in our article on the C3 work visa and work permit.

Mandatory terms

Article 28(1) of the Labour Code lists what every employment contract must contain:

1. details of the parties;
2. the job function: specialty, profession, qualification or position;
3. place of work;
4. term of the contract;
5. start date;
6. working hours and rest periods;
7. amount and other terms of pay;
8. working conditions, protections and benefits;
9. rights and obligations of the employee;
10. rights and obligations of the employer;
11. procedure for amending and terminating the contract;
12. liability of the parties;
13. date of conclusion and serial number.

For a foreign employee, items 2–4 matter most. The position is checked against the category in the permit, the place of work against the region the permit covers, and the term against the permit's validity. Mismatches here are a common finding during inspections, and using a worker in a position other than the one in the permit is a separate administrative offence.

Contract term: tied to the permit

As a general rule, a fixed-term contract runs for at least one year. Article 30(1)(6) of the Labour Code makes an exception: with foreign nationals the contract is concluded within the term of the foreign labour permit, the labour immigrant permit or the qualification certificate.

The C3 visa or temporary residence permit is issued to match the permit term. When the permit is extended, the contract (by addendum) and the visa or residence permit must be extended too. If the extension is refused, the employee loses the basis to work and the employer loses the basis to keep them on staff.

Form and language

Article 33 of the Labour Code requires a written contract in at least two copies signed by both parties. An electronic contract signed with a digital signature is allowed.

The Code has no specific rule on the contract language. The general framework is set by the Law "On Languages in the Republic of Kazakhstan", under which organisations work in the state language (Kazakh) and Russian. In practice, contracts with foreigners are bilingual or trilingual: Kazakh and/or Russian plus a language the employee understands (English, Turkish, Chinese). State clearly which version prevails if the texts differ. This prevents a later argument that the employee "did not understand what they signed".

ESUTD registration

Article 23(2)(27) of the Labour Code obliges the employer to record the conclusion and termination of contracts in the unified employment contract register (ESUTD, via enbek.kz). Under the ESUTD Rules (Ministry of Labour Order No. 353 of 3 September 2020), a new contract is entered no later than five working days after both parties sign it. Deadlines for amendments and termination are also set by these Rules; check the current version at the time.

Two points matter for foreign employees:

• An IIN is required. Without it the contract cannot be entered, so get the IIN right after arrival.
• ESUTD is needed for the residence permit. Since December 2024, a work-based temporary residence permit requires an ESUTD-registered employment contract (or a civil-law contract). Previously this applied only to EAEU citizens.

Probation

Article 36 of the Labour Code allows a probation period for foreigners as well. It cannot exceed three months, or six months for heads of organisations and their deputies, chief accountants and their deputies, and heads of branches and representative offices. Probation counts towards length of service and is suspended while the employee is actually absent.

Probation is a contract term, not a way to try someone out before the paperwork is done. Working "on probation" without a permit is working without a permit, with all the consequences for both sides.

Termination and notifying the authorities

A foreign employee is dismissed on the general grounds of the Labour Code: by agreement, on expiry, at the employee's or employer's initiative. There is also a special ground: under Article 57(1)(1) the contract terminates when the local executive authority revokes the foreign labour permit.

What the employer should do when the contract ends:

1. Formalise termination with an order and record it in ESUTD within the deadline set by the Rules.
2. Ensure departure. Under Article 36-1(6) of the Migration Law, the employer ensures the foreign worker leaves Kazakhstan when the permit ceases to be valid.
3. Inform the migration service about terminating employment with a worker hired on a qualification certificate (Article 36-1(7)).
4. Decide on the permit. Under paragraph 28 of Rules No. 279, if the contract is terminated the permit can be reissued to another foreign worker; the decision takes five working days. It cannot be transferred to another company.
5. Check the employee's status. The C3 visa or residence permit was issued for this job, so after dismissal the person no longer has a work basis to stay. If they are moving to another employer, see our guide on changing employers in Kazakhstan.

Common mistakes

• Contract signed before the permit. This breaches Article 26 and risks a fine under Article 519 of the Administrative Code. See employer fines for illegal foreign workers.
• Open-ended contract with a permit-based worker. The term must stay within the permit.
• A broader job title than the permit. Inspectors compare them word for word.
• No IIN, no ESUTD entry, and without ESUTD there is no residence permit.
• Permit extended, contract and visa forgotten. All three are extended together.

Quick checklist

• Legal basis obtained (foreign labour permit, C4 certificate, EAEU citizenship, residence permit).
• Position, region and term match the permit.
• The employee has an IIN.
• Contract signed and entered in ESUTD on time.
• Employee arrived and the arrival notification is filed.
• Expiry dates of the permit, visa or residence permit are in the calendar.

Visa Navigator helps employers set up this sequence: we check the basis for hiring, prepare documents for the permit and C3 visa, and compare the contract terms with the permit and the extension deadlines. Decisions on permits and visas are made by the akimat and the internal affairs bodies. More on the Work Permit service page.

This material is for information only and does not constitute legal advice. Rules and practice change — verify the current requirements as of the date you apply.