Rules for overlanding in Kazakhstan

Our summary of the country advice published by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Viaggiare Sicuri) on 6 September 2026.

Which licence you need

All vehicles — A valid Italian licence is enough for a temporary stay, together with the personal and vehicle documents local rules require, but carrying an International Driving Permit on the 1968 Vienna Convention model is strongly advised, especially for car hire or roadside checks. Police or rental firms may ask for a certified Russian or Kazakh translation when the licence is not clear enough. Check what applies to the licence you hold.

An International Driving Permit states the categories it covers: check yours covers what you will actually drive. A car licence does not cover a motorcycle, and a heavy camper or a truck can need a higher category.

At the wheel

Insurance — Third-party motor liability cover is compulsory. Local insurers including Nomad Insurance, NSK and Eurasia Insurance sell policies that meet local rules, and the ministry says to arrange cover before you start driving.
Road conditions — Road safety is one of the main practical risks here. Other drivers' behaviour, poor lighting, winter road surfaces and the generally uneven state of the tarmac all count, and it gets worse outside towns and on secondary roads. Driving off the main arteries can be awkward because of deteriorating roads and weather, so plan remote or poorly served routes carefully.
Rescue times — Avoid little-used and secondary roads on internal trips: help can be slow to arrive after a crash. Where there are injuries, the wait for medical assistance can be long.
Fuel — Fill up at every petrol station you pass, given the distances between them.
Satellite phone — Carry a satellite GPS phone if you are heading well away from the main urban centres.
Winter and night — Take particular care after dark and during the winter months, because of the outside temperature and possible snowstorms.
Kyrgyz border crossings — Check with the competent authorities beforehand whether the crossings into Kyrgyzstan are open and under what regime, in particular Tomonku-Chuy/Kamyshanovka and Kichi-Kapka. Their status can switch from bilateral to multilateral, or they can close without notice.

What catches travellers out

Drugs — Kazakh criminal law punishes producing, trading and using narcotics very severely, soft drugs included. No mitigating circumstances apply and there is no amnesty or pardon; even modest quantities can bring long prison sentences, served in conditions that can be very hard.
Crossing a border illegally — Illegally crossing the border carries up to a year in prison, or a fine of up to a thousand times the Monthly Calculation Index, which in 2026 stands at 4,325 tenge and so makes about 7,350 euro. On top of the sentence or the fine comes a five-year ban from Kazakh territory.
Customs and cash — Cash and traveller's cheques up to the equivalent of 10,000 US dollars per person normally cross without a customs declaration; above that the whole amount must be declared, and taking out more than 10,000 dollars in foreign cash is prohibited. Cards and ATMs work in the main cities, but carry tenge in cash for rural areas. Weapons and ammunition need very specific prior authorisation, and importing religious literature or material judged extremist without permission means confiscation plus significant administrative or criminal penalties.
Visa days and ETA — Italians travel visa-free for up to 30 calendar days per entry and no more than 90 days in any 180, with both the arrival and the departure day counted. Overstaying is punished severely, with heavy fines and even prison. Since 24 August 2026 an Electronic Travel Authorisation applies to visa-exempt travellers: it is not compulsory during the pilot phase but strongly recommended, requested online at least 72 hours before arrival or at the border crossing itself.

Before you rely on this

This is our summary of advice written by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs for Italian travellers, published on 6 September 2026. We summarise in good faith, but we cannot guarantee it is accurate, current or complete, and we take no responsibility for decisions made on the basis of it. Rules change without notice and are applied by officials at the border, not by websites. Always read the original source and the travel advice your own government publishes for Kazakhstan before you travel. GuideMeet has no way of checking whether an individual guide meets any standard mentioned here — ask them directly.

Source: Viaggiare Sicuri — Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, updated 6 September 2026. Last checked by GuideMeet on 2026-09-20.