If a foreign guest stays in your apartment in Kazakhstan, you as the receiving person must inform the internal affairs bodies (the migration service) within three working days of the guest's arrival. The usual way is a notification in the eQonaq system, on eqonaq.kz or in its mobile app. This guide is a summary of public sources as of October 2026, not legal advice; rules change, so check the current acts or ask the migration service.

Who must do it

The duty lies with the receiving person, not with the guest. The Law on Population Migration counts as a receiving person a citizen of Kazakhstan, a foreigner or stateless person permanently residing there, or a legal entity registered in Kazakhstan that invites immigrants or provides a place for them to live. Under Ministry of Internal Affairs rules, the notification is sent by the receiving person who provides the place of stay.

The eQonaq help section says the notification is filed whatever the guest's citizenship, purpose of entry and number of days, even for a one-day stay, and that visa-free entry does not release the host. For tourists it normally comes from the hotel, the hostel or the travel agency that arranged the visa invitation; when a foreigner rents housing, the owner files.

Deadline

Three working days, counted from the day of the guest's arrival. According to the eQonaq help section, a notification is needed at each entry into Kazakhstan, when the guest travels to another region and when the address of stay changes; a change of temporary address is also reported within three working days. A new passport means a new notification.

What you need before you start

  • An eQonaq account. The registration page offers three types: individual, legal entity and individual entrepreneur, so a private owner can register.
  • An electronic digital signature (EDS). The user agreement describes a user as a person or company registered in the system with an EDS; the website login offers EDS, email or QR.
  • The eQonaq mobile app from the App Store or Google Play, if you prefer to file from a phone.
  • The guest's passport details, the address where the guest will actually stay, and the purpose and period of the stay. The instruction on gov.kz asks for a valid passport that does not expire earlier than three months after the registration period ends.

Step by step

  • Register on eqonaq.kz as an individual, an individual entrepreneur or a legal entity, or install the eQonaq app.
  • Sign in on the website or in the app.
  • Scan the guest's document with the phone camera or type the details in yourself.
  • Enter the address where the guest actually stays, not your own registered or office address, plus the purpose and dates of the stay.
  • Check every field before sending. A submitted notification cannot be corrected or deleted, and the receiving person answers for the data.
  • Find the result in your personal account.
  • If the dates change during the stay, open the guest list in the app, press the details button next to the guest and choose departure or extension. If the guest leaves on the date stated in the notification, nothing else is needed.

These steps follow the instructions on eqonaq.kz. The rules also allow a notification through the Visa and Migration Portal (vmp.gov.kz or egov.kz) with a personal EDS, or on paper handed to the internal affairs bodies.

Cost

The official instructions and the acts listed below mention no fee for filing the notification.

The tourist fee for foreign citizens is a separate matter. Under the Ministry of Tourism and Sports rules in force since 25 August 2026, it is collected in tourist accommodation except hostels, guest houses and rental housing, at a rate of 0 percent of the cost of the stay.

Penalties

Article 518 of the Code on Administrative Offences covers late informing of the internal affairs bodies about immigrants staying with a receiving person. For a first offence an individual gets a warning, while officials, small businesses and non-profit organisations are fined 10 monthly calculation indices (MCI), medium-sized businesses 15 and large businesses 20. A repeat offence within a year costs an individual 30 MCI, officials and small businesses 40, medium-sized businesses 70 and large ones 100.

The MCI for 2026 is 4,325 tenge, so 10 MCI is 43,250 tenge and 30 MCI is 129,750 tenge.

The same article fines an individual 25 MCI for housing a foreigner who is in Kazakhstan in breach of migration law. And under the Law on Population Migration, applications to invite foreigners are not considered if the receiving person was held liable for late notification two or more times in the previous twelve months.

What the guest gets

The result appears in the host's personal account. eQonaq describes the document as a notification only: its dates give the guest no right to stay longer than the period allowed in Kazakhstan. They do matter on departure: according to the help section, the days of stay in the notification serve as proof that the guest left the country on time.

Since 1 July 2026 there is also a separate registration that the guest does personally. The Law on Population Migration requires immigrants who enter for more than thirty calendar days to register with the internal affairs bodies no later than the thirtieth calendar day after crossing the border. Under Order No. 923 of the Minister of Internal Affairs, the person who provides the place of stay receives a notice in a mobile application and confirms or refuses the registration at their address.

Common mistakes

  • Assuming a visa-free guest needs no notification.
  • Skipping a one-night stay. The number of days does not matter.
  • Entering the company's legal address or your home address instead of the address where the guest actually stays.
  • Sending the form with a typo: it cannot be edited or deleted afterwards.
  • Forgetting a new notification when the guest moves to another of your apartments, comes back after a trip abroad or changes passport.
  • Registering with an EDS on a computer and then signing in to the app by phone number. eQonaq treats this as a new user and shows an empty guest list; the help section advises signing in by email and resetting the password.

How to make it routine

  • Ask for passport details before arrival, not at the door.
  • File on the day of check-in instead of using up the three working days.
  • Keep the notification with the booking record: guest, dates, apartment.

Roomi's guest page asks the guest for passport details before check-in, so you already have them when it is time to file. The notification itself remains the host's job.

Sources