Amnesty not applied automatically: how many Kazakhstanis have already been released

Tengrinews.kz — The Interior Ministry has explained how many people have been covered by the criminal amnesty and reminded which categories it will not apply to.
The ministry said 620 people have already been released from penal system institutions under the amnesty. After release, all of them are under administrative supervision.
Another 724 people registered with the probation service have also been released from further serving their sentences. Courts have reduced the sentences of more than 730 other convicts.

“I would like to emphasize in particular: the criminal amnesty is not applied automatically. A legal assessment is carried out for each person, and the final decision is made only by a court,” said Niyaz Ryspayev, first deputy chairman of the Interior Ministry’s Committee of the Penal Correction System.

He added that convicts are prepared for release in advance. Together with local executive bodies, they are helped with obtaining documents, finding employment and receiving necessary social and legal assistance. After release, people registered with the probation service are supported and monitored to ensure they comply with the obligations imposed by the court.
The committee reminded that the law clearly defines the categories of people to whom the amnesty does not apply. These are people:

convicted of corruption, extremist and terrorist crimes;
crimes against the sexual inviolability of minors;
the use of torture;
crimes committed under dangerous and especially dangerous recidivism.

It is important to note that the amnesty, both criminal and administrative, is a one-time measure. If amnestied individuals commit an offense again, they will be held liable on general grounds.
As a reminder, on July 1, 2026, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev signed the Law “On Amnesty in Connection with the Adoption of the New Constitution of the Republic of Kazakhstan.”
The law provides for two amnesties at once — criminal and administrative. While the former has already been applied in Kazakhstan before, the administrative amnesty will be the first in the history of independent Kazakhstan. Under the amnesty, more than 590,000 Kazakhstanis were exempted from administrative fines.