Airlines from all EU countries gain access to flights to Kazakhstan

Photo: European Commission

Kazakhstan and the European Union have signed a so-called Horizontal Aviation Agreement, which expands opportunities for European airlines to fly to this Central Asian country.

The document was signed on June 23, 2026, in Brussels and allows any European airline to fly to Kazakhstan under the bilateral air services agreements previously signed with Astana. Previously, only national airlines could operate on these bilateral routes—now, they only need to be registered in the designating country and hold its air operator certificate, while they can be owned by individuals or organizations from any EU member state, as well as from associated countries: Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland.

The government of Kazakhstan must not discriminate between European Union air carriers on the grounds of nationality.

The new agreement applies to flights from 17 countries that previously had bilateral air services agreements with Kazakhstan: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, and Sweden.

The agreement explicitly states that it does not create additional commercial traffic rights beyond those already established in Kazakhstan’s bilateral agreements with specific EU countries, nor does it change the number of airlines that can be designated for the routes. The document will enter into force on the first day of the second month following the month in which notification was received confirming that the final party to the agreement completed its internal procedures for its entry into force.