eSignature Legality Guide

Situations where a standard electronic signature (SES) may be suitable include:

• Commercial contracts between legal entities, such as NDAs, procurement documents (excluding procurements by state agencies and state-owned companies, which require a QES in accordance with the E-Signature Law), and sales contracts
• Consumer contracts, including documents for opening new retail accounts

NOTE: The E-Signature Law in Kazakhstan only recognizes the “electronic digital signature,” which is comparable to a QES. Because of this, the acceptance of documents signed with other types of electronic signatures may be subject to the discretion of local courts.

Examples where a type of electronic signature other than SES is required include:

• Qualified Electronic Signature (QES) - Commercial contracts, including NDAs, procurement documents, and sales contracts
• QES - Consumer contracts, such as documents for opening new retail accounts
• QES - Submission of bids for procurement tenders by state authorities and state-owned companies
• QES - Court filings, such as appeals and motions submitted electronically
• QES – Transactions involving the sale and purchase of goods and services

Certain transactions are specifically excluded from digital or electronic processes, or require explicit formalities such as handwritten (wet ink) signatures or notarial procedures, which are generally not compatible with electronic signatures or digital transaction management.

• Formal notarization - specific corporate documents, such as agreements for the sale and purchase of participation interests in the charter capital of Kazakhstani limited liability partnerships
• State registration (with or without notarization) - real estate documents, including lease agreements for terms longer than one year
• State registration (with or without notarization) – contracts for the transfer of real property
• State registration (with or without notarization) - transfers of intangible property that require state registration, such as patent and copyright assignments
• Handwritten - certain human resources documents

[1] An AES, or “advanced electronic signature,” is a type of electronic signature that: (a) is uniquely linked to the signer; (b) can identify the signer; (c) is created using means under the sole control of the signer; and (d) is connected to the signed data so that any changes to the data can be detected.

[2] A QES is a specific type of digital signature that meets government requirements, including the use of a secure signature creation device, and is certified as ‘qualified’ by the government or an authorized party.

Kazakhstani law recognizes locally certified digital signatures, which are equivalent to qualified electronic signatures (QES), as legally valid and automatically admissible as evidence. Other types of signatures may be accepted on a case-by-case basis. A QES is a digital signature that fulfills specific government standards, including the use of a secure signature creation device, and is certified as ‘qualified’ by the government or an authorized entity. A foreign electronic signature with a foreign certificate will be recognized as a qualified “electronic digital signature” in Kazakhstan if (a) there is an international treaty in place, (b) the foreign certification authority is registered with the trusted third party of the Republic of Kazakhstan (such as the state enterprise "State Technical Service" under the Ministry of Transport and Communications of Kazakhstan), or (c) the relevant foreign trusted third party is registered with the trusted third party of the Republic of Kazakhstan.