Card or cash in Kazakhstan? Tenge, ATMs, Tax Free and scams

The tenge: old notes, new notes and the rate

Kazakhstan's currency is the tenge (KZT, written ₸). Notes of 500, 1,000, 2,000, 5,000, 10,000 and 20,000 tenge are in circulation, with coins of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 and 200 tenge.

The notes are changing. The National Bank is replacing them with a new series in the Saka style: the 5,000-tenge note came out in December 2023, the 10,000 in June 2024, the 2,000 in December 2024, the 1,000 in March 2025 and the 500 in December 2025, and the new 20,000 is due at the end of 2026 or the beginning of 2027. Each new value is 70 mm high and 5 mm longer than the one below it, from 125 mm for the 500 to 150 mm for the 20,000, so you can sort them by length. While the two series circulate together, old and new notes are both legal tender and accepted for all payments.

For the old 10,000-tenge note, that period has been extended to June 2027. When a note's period ends, all banks and Kazpost exchange old notes for new ones for another three years, and the National Bank's branches do so indefinitely, so an old note left over from an earlier trip is not lost.

For a sense of scale, the National Bank's official rate of 8 November 2026 was KZT 598.9 to the pound, KZT 499.54 to the euro and KZT 447.14 to the US dollar, so a 10,000-tenge note is worth about GBP 17. Our Kazakhstan trip-cost guide turns rooms, meals and transport into a daily budget.

Prices and times checked 8 November 2026

Card, cash and tips: what to use where

In the two big cities, a card does most of the work. International bank cards are accepted in Astana, where you can pay by card or phone almost everywhere; in Almaty, too, ATM withdrawals and payment by credit card are possible in many places.

Keep some tenge in notes all the same. For small purchases, and at markets and bazaars, it is better to have some cash.

Away from the cities, cash takes over. For trips to more remote regions, take cash in euros or US dollars and change it into tenge, preferably at a bank. Our first-trip guide to Kazakhstan helps you decide which regions fit into your trip.

No official guidance sets a tipping rate in Kazakhstan, so read the restaurant bill before you tip: some menus already include a service charge. The central Almaty restaurant priced in our trip-cost guide adds 10% for service, and that guide keeps a 10% buffer in its daily budget for snacks, tips and small extras.

Paying by phone and QR codes

In Astana you can pay by phone almost everywhere: Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay are accepted alongside contactless cards.

Kaspi, the local banking app, has its own QR codes for paying at the till. No official or bank page we found says whether a foreign card or phone wallet can pay one, or whether a visitor can open a Kaspi account, so pay by card, phone or cash instead.

Prices and times checked 8 November 2026

ATMs: where to withdraw

Visa, Mastercard and UnionPay cards are accepted in Astana, and its ATMs stand in all districts, in shopping malls, in hotels and on the street; in Almaty, too, cash withdrawals are possible in many places. Whether you can withdraw tenge with a foreign debit or credit card depends on your bank, and availability and fees may vary. No Kazakh bank tariff we found gives a fee or limit for cards issued abroad, so check with your own bank before you fly.

When an ATM or a card terminal offers to charge you in your home currency, decline and choose tenge. That offer, dynamic currency conversion, includes an exchange rate and additional fees; the ATM or shop should give you the choice and must not make it for you, and declining does not stop the payment or the withdrawal.

Choose the machine with care: use ATMs inside banks if possible, check machines on the street for signs of tampering, and keep your card in sight when you pay in shops and restaurants.

Withdraw in Almaty or Astana before you head for the mountains or the steppe. For scale, our Kazakhstan trip-cost guide budgets about KZT 32,000 to 68,000 a person a day for a week based in Almaty, with rooms, a lakes tour, meals and transport included; take tenge for the days you will spend away from card terminals, and carry a second card in a different pocket in case the first is refused.

Changing money: banks, exchange offices and old dollars

Change money only at banks or officially authorised currency exchanges, and bring your passport: you will be asked for it. Dollars, euros and other currencies can be changed at banks, exchange offices and at the airport. In Astana the rate is usually roughly the same everywhere, but in the city centre it may be a little more favourable; there is a currency exchange in Astana airport if you need cash on arrival.

Bring clean, recent notes. Official exchange booths may not accept damaged or marked notes, or US dollars issued before 2013, so leave the older dollar notes at home. Count the tenge at the counter before you leave it.

Metro, buses and taxis: fares and how to pay

Astana's city buses take an Astra Plat transport card or a contactless bank card. The same two work on the Tarlan Astana light rail from the airport, which runs every 5 to 7 minutes; Astra Plat cards are sold at the airport. A taxi from the airport, ordered through Yandex Go, Bolt or inDriver, takes 20 to 25 minutes to the centre and costs from KZT 2,000.

On the Almaty Metro, a ride costs KZT 120. The ticket offices take both cash and cards, and bank cards are read at a POS terminal; Onay transport cards work too. A smart token costs KZT 120 and is valid for one day; a reusable smart card costs KZT 180, and each trip on it costs KZT 120. Almaty's city buses and trolleybuses charge the same KZT 120 and have taken no cash since 3 August 2024: pay with an ONAY card, by text message or in the transport app. Our Kazakhstan transport guide covers the routes and the airport buses.

For taxis, do not flag a car down in the street: order a licensed taxi in advance, whenever possible, to avoid an unlicensed car or an inflated fare, and avoid unofficial taxis, day or night, because of the risk of assault or swindling. The transport guide lists the taxi apps and the official airport taxis.

Prices and times checked 8 November 2026

Fake police checks, false fines and pickpockets

Some payment demands are not real. Pickpocketing, robbery, trickery and fake police checks can occur in Astana, Almaty and other large cities, and outside the cities there have been isolated reports of police checks with unjustified demands for payment. Turn down any demand that may be unjustified.

One case is specific to the area around Almaty. Big Almaty Lake, Kolsai, Charyn, Alakol, Medeu and Shymbulak stay open to foreign tourists without a permit, yet in some cases local police have tried to fine travellers there. If that happens, refuse to pay the fine and point out that these sites are open to all. The permit zones elsewhere are covered in our Kazakhstan entry guide.

Pickpocketing is very common in crowded places such as markets and public transport. Pay by card where you can and go out with only the day's cash, split from your papers rather than in one bag, and without eye-catching jewellery; leave the rest in a safe place such as the safe in your room, and keep your phone and wallet out of view at the bazaar and on a full bus.

Tax Free refunds and cash at the border

Foreign tourists can get part of the VAT back on shopping. Under a pilot scheme set up in June 2026, visitors who are not citizens of an EAEU member state can claim a partial VAT refund on goods they take out of the EAEU when they leave. It applies in stationary shops in 16 cities, including Almaty, Astana and Shymkent, and in the village of Burabay, to non-food goods on a receipt of at least 10 MCI, the monthly calculation index, which is KZT 43,250 in 2026 (about GBP 72).

Show your passport when you buy, and ask for the Tax Free document on the same day: the seller generates it from a till receipt that shows the VAT separately, on paper or electronically. Food and drinks, medicines, used goods and goods for commercial use are excluded. The accredited operator, IT Analytics (taxfree.kz), gives up to 16% of the purchase price as the most you can get back. Its commission, including the bank's, is counted on the VAT, not on the price: no more than 20% of the VAT confirmed for refund, so of KZT 10,000 of VAT confirmed, at most KZT 2,000 goes to the operator.

The goods must leave through an international airport of Kazakhstan, in their original packaging. Arrive early, and before departure show the inspector the goods, your passport, your boarding pass and the Tax Free QR code. If you fly home through another EAEU country such as Russia, Belarus, Armenia or Kyrgyzstan, your final destination must be outside the EAEU. The refund goes to a Visa or Mastercard card from 14 days after the export is confirmed, with 30 to 45 days as the standard period.

Declare cash or traveller's cheques worth more than USD 10,000, in any currency, when you enter from or leave for a country outside the EAEU; undeclared money may be confiscated and you may be fined. You may not take out more than USD 10,000 in foreign cash; a larger declared sum may only leave in tenge. Our entry guide has the other customs rules.

Prices and times checked 8 November 2026