Under Art. 126 of the Civil Code (General Part), information is protected as a commercial secret where it has actual or potential commercial value because it is unknown and not lawfully accessible to third parties, provided that its holder takes measures to preserve its confidentiality. Persons who unlawfully obtain or disclose the information, including employees and contractual counterparties, must compensate the resulting damage. Arts. 1017 and 1018 of the Civil Code (Special Part) further protect undisclosed technical, organisational or commercial information, including know-how, against unlawful use and provide for compensation. Art. 28 of the Entrepreneur Code prohibits the unlawful acquisition, disclosure and use of commercial secrets, permits businesses to establish access controls and non-disclosure obligations, and protects trade secrets submitted to public authorities. Art. 223 of the Penal Code establishes criminal liability for the illegal acquisition, disclosure or use of commercial secrets.

Kazakhstan is a signatory of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Information Technology Agreement (ITA) of 1996 but is not a signatory of its 2015 expansion (ITA II).

There is no obligation for passive infrastructure sharing in the country to deliver telecom services to end users. However, it is practiced in the mobile sector and in the fixed sector based on commercial agreements.

It is reported that the Eurasian Economic Union, which includes Kazakhstan, imposed definitive anti-dumping duties on imports of aluminium strip (HS code subheadings 7606.11.91.00, 7606.12.20.09 and 7606.12.92.09) originating in Azerbaijan and China on 24 October 2020. The duty rate applicable to imports from Azerbaijan was set at 16.18%, while the corresponding rate for imports from China was established at 13.14%. On 17 October 2025, the Eurasian Economic Union published a notice extending the application of these definitive duties until 29 June 2026. These products are used to manufacture components of ICT goods, such as heat sinks, printed circuit boards (PCBs), charging cables, HDMI cables, and displays.

In 2016, Kazakhstan formally removed the general 49% foreign-equity cap for telecommunications companies, while retaining a 49% threshold for Kazakhtelecom and its possible successors. As of January 2025, the state controlled Kazakhtelecom through Samruk-Kazyna, its wholly state-owned sovereign wealth fund, which held 79.24% of the company’s issued ordinary shares.

Under Art. 9 of Law No. 106-VIII on Public Procurement, national treatment applies to foreign-origin goods and services supplied by non-resident potential suppliers only in the cases and under the conditions established by international treaties ratified by Kazakhstan. The Government may establish exceptions from national treatment for up to two years to protect the constitutional order, national defence and security, the domestic market and national economy, and to support Kazakhstani goods and producers.
Government Resolution No. 207 of 20 March 2024 establishes an exception from national treatment for foreign-origin goods and services covered by the Register of Trusted Software and Electronic Industry Products. Under para. 23 of the Public Procurement Rules approved by Order No. 687, procurement covered by an exception from national treatment must be conducted among persons included in the Register of Kazakhstani Commodity Producers or the Register of Trusted Software and Electronic Industry Products.

It is reported that the state-owned sovereign wealth fund Samruk-Kazyna holds 79.24% of Kazakhtelecom’s issued ordinary shares. Kazakhtelecom, the country’s principal telecommunications operator, provides a broad range of services, including fixed-line telephony, fixed broadband, pay television, data storage and processing, IT products, and other digital services. Kazakhtelecom also holds a 51% stake in Kcell, a mobile telecommunications operator offering voice, messaging, and mobile internet services, including through its 4G and 5G networks. In addition, Samruk-Kazyna directly holds at approx. 5.5% of Kcell’s shares.
The state also holds a 25% stake in Transtelecom through the wholly state-owned Kazakhstan Temir Zholy. Transtelecom provides fixed internet and telephony services, data transmission and channel leasing, as well as data-centre and cloud solutions and IT systems integration.

Under Art. 54(3-1) of Law No. 418-V of 24 November 2015 “On Informatization”, software and electronic industry products procured as goods or information and communication services under public procurement and procurement by certain quasi-state entities must be acquired from the Register of Trusted Software and Electronic Industry Products. Procurement outside the Register is permitted where the required product is unavailable.
The "Rules for the Formation and Maintenance of a Register of Trusted Software and Electronics Industry Products, as well as Criteria for Including Software and Electronics Industry Products in the Register of Trusted Software and Electronics Industry Products" previously required software to meet a minimum in-country value share of 70%, including under para. 10(3) of the version restated by Order No. 354/НҚ, published in October 2022. Order No. 829/НҚ, published in December 2024, subsequently reintroduced the localisation requirement, increasing the minimum share to 80% and requiring compliance to be evidenced through an industrial certificate in 2025. Order No. 567/НҚ, published in November 2025, maintained the 80% threshold but abolished the industrial-certificate requirement with effect from January 2026.

Kazakhstan does not require functional separation of telecommunications operators with significant market power. Accounting separation is nevertheless applied to telecommunications entities providing regulated natural-monopoly services. Under Sections 3, 4 and 7 of the "Rules for Conducting Separate Accounting of Income, Costs and Involved Assets by Subjects of Natural Monopolies in the Field of Telecommunications and Universal Postal Services approved by Order No. 121, these entities must maintain separate accounts for income, costs and assets for each regulated service and submit the corresponding reports to the competent authority. The obligation is linked to regulated natural-monopoly services rather than to a general SMP framework.

It is reported that, although Kazakhstan’s legal framework formally provides equal treatment for foreign and domestic investors, foreign businesses continue to face practical barriers in the market. Government contracts and procurement processes are reported to favour domestic firms in practice, while foreign companies may encounter difficulties related to licensing, taxation, and legal disputes due to bureaucratic hurdles and inconsistent regulatory enforcement.
It is further reported that practical challenges arise in accessing public tenders, particularly because of the structure and operation of Kazakhstan’s electronic procurement system.

Under Art. 17 of Law No. 567-II on Communications, licensing of activities in the communications sector is governed by the legislation on permits and notifications. Art. 20(2) of Law No. 202-V on Permits and Notifications provides that foreign applicants obtain permits on the same terms as Kazakhstani citizens and legal entities, unless otherwise provided by law or an international treaty. Item 12 of Appendix 1 requires a non-transferable Class 1 licence for long-distance and international telephone services, mobile satellite communications and cellular communications. Following Law No. 86-VIII, published in May 2024, this requirement also covers satellite communications using non-geostationary satellites. Therefore, the general licensing regime does not establish differentiated treatment based on nationality.
However, it is reported that telecommunications companies are required to purchase and install equipment related to the state’s System for Operational Investigative Measures (SORM) and to cover costs related to the database of International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) codes and to pay regular fees to the State Radio Frequency Service, which is the IMEI database operator. These obligations may deter new players from entering the market.

Kazakhstan is not a party to the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA). However, the country has been an observer of the WTO GPA since 2016.

Kazakhstan has appended the World Trade Organization (WTO) Telecom Reference Paper to its schedule of commitments.

Under Art. 15(2) of Law No. 93-VIII on Mass Media, foreigners, foreign legal entities and stateless persons may not directly or indirectly own, use, dispose of or manage more than 20% of the shares or other equity interests in a legal entity that owns a mass media outlet in Kazakhstan or operates in this sector. Under Arts. 1(6) and 19(1), the restriction covers Internet publications, defined as Internet resources, including information agencies, registered with the competent authority. The predecessor Law No. 451-I imposed the same 20% limit under Art. 5(2), however, expressly exempted Internet resources intended for electronic commerce. This exemption was not retained in Law No. 93-VIII.