Kazakhstan's child pension fund cuts 12,000 after citizenship revocations

Timur Suleimenov, Chairman of the National Bank of Kazakhstan, has asked whether it is true that nearly 12,000 children have been removed from the list of beneficiaries under the National Fund for Children program. The affected children are those who have lost Kazakhstani citizenship, reports our correspondent.

"Today, the Unified Accumulative Pension Fund (UAPF) announced that 12,000 children have been stripped of payments from the National Fund, and these funds have been redistributed to other children. How much extra did the remaining children receive?" Suleimenov was asked in the corridors of the Mazhilis, the lower house of parliament.

In response, Suleimenov said he did not know the exact number of children no longer participating in the program. However, he confirmed that those who renounced Kazakhstani citizenship are indeed no longer receiving payments.

"Accruals in children's individual accounts may be canceled if a child moves to another country, changes citizenship, and so on. That is likely what happened here. It's difficult to say exactly how many children were affected by the redistribution. It's unclear when these children entered the system and when they left. If a child gives up Kazakhstani citizenship and leaves, that is their decision—or their parents' decision. In such cases, the funds remain in our system and are redistributed to other children."

Under the National Fund for Children program, each child received $130.71 in their account in 2025. By the end of that year, the total number of program participants reached 6,918,656 children.

The National Fund for Children initiative was launched on January 1, 2024. Over three years, the total accumulated amount per child—including investment returns—has reached $370.56.