Since the beginning of 2026, 3,335 ethnic Kazakhs have returned to Kazakhstan and officially received kandas status, a designation for ethnic Kazakhs returning to their historical homeland. In total, since gaining independence in 1991, 1,168,200 ethnic Kazakhs have resettled in Kazakhstan for permanent residence, according to the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection.
Almost half of the ethnic Kazakhs who returned to Kazakhstan since the beginning of the year came from China (47.8%), 43.6% from Uzbekistan, 2.7% from Turkmenistan, 2% from Russia, 2.2% from Mongolia, and 1.7% from other countries.
Of them, 58.1% are of working age, 33.1% are minors, and 8.8% are of pension age.
Of the working-age kandas, 13.1% have higher education, 27.1% have vocational education, 51.9% have general secondary education, and 7.9% have no education.
The following regions experiencing labor shortages have been designated for resettlement of the kandas: Akmola, Abay, Kostanay, Pavlodar, Atyrau, West, East, and North Kazakhstan regions. The quota for kandas resettlement in these regions for 2026 is 2,281 people. In the first two months of 2026, 569 kandas have already been resettled in these regions.
Resettlement in the above-mentioned regions is supported by the state in the form of subsidies for relocation, housing rental, and utility bills.
To encourage voluntary resettlement, measures have been adopted to support employers involved in resettling people to the northern regions. A free economic mobility certificate in the amount of 7 million tenge per family has also been introduced for the purchase of housing.
