Kazakhstan grants citizenship to nearly 11,000 since January
10,965 people obtained Kazakhstan citizenship between January and September 2026, Qazinform News Agency reports.
In the first nine months of 2026, Kazakhstan granted citizenship to 10,965 people. 3,335, or 30.4%, were minors.
The majority of new citizens were kandas — ethnic Kazakhs returning to their historic homeland. Over the period, 8,769 kandas received citizenship, accounting for 80% of the total.
Another 1,088 people (9.9%) obtained citizenship under a simplified procedure under an agreement between Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Russia.
Under the Convention on the Nationality of Married Women, 796 people (7.3%) received Kazakhstan citizenship. Another 305 people (2.8%) acquired citizenship by presidential decree, and seven more were granted it as ethnic Kazakhs studying at universities in Kazakhstan.
The largest number of new citizens was registered in the Almaty region — 3,276 people, or nearly 30% of the national total.
Rounding out the top five were Astana (1,038), the Zhetisu region (1,036), Almaty (861), and the Zhambyl region (684).
Notably, 8 out of every 10 people granted Kazakhstan citizenship over the nine months were kandas. Nearly a third of new citizens were children under 18.
Qazinform previously reported that Kazakhstan is home to forty-four residents who have turned 100.