Kazakhstan to change military draft rules: New document published online

Tengrinews.kz - The Ministry of Defense of Kazakhstan has approved new draft rules for military conscription. The document was published on the Open NPA portal for public discussion.

The new rules introduce a unified approach to organizing and conducting conscription. Under the proposal, an SMS message sent to a potential conscript will be considered equivalent to a traditional paper summons.

According to the draft, citizens will also be able to request a deferral of military service through the eGov portal.

The rules have not yet taken effect. The draft resolution will remain open for public discussion until September 9.

Earlier, on July 16, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev signed amendments “on issues of military-patriotic education, military service, and redistribution of functions of certain central government bodies.”

What this means in practice:

A conscript must appear at the military enlistment office on the specified date and time — for a medical exam, commission meeting, or deployment.

The summons may be delivered:

• by SMS to a mobile phone number
• via personal account on eGov
• or, as before, in paper form, if digital access is unavailable

Electronic summonses must be sent at least three days before the reporting date.

Paper summonses will be delivered in person under signature or by mail. Refusal to accept a paper summons will not exempt an individual, as it will still be considered official notification.

Earlier, Kazakhstan’s Deputy Minister of Defense for Digitalization announced that artificial intelligence will soon be used to assist in selecting the most suitable military branch for conscripts.