Public Procurement Disputes in Kazakhstan: Disqualification and Cancelled Results
30.08.2026
Public procurement is a steady source of revenue for many LLPs and sole proprietors in Kazakhstan. But decisions here are made quickly, and the time to defend yourself is even shorter. A bid can be rejected, the results can be revised, and a company can be put on the register of unfair participants, which shuts it out of public procurement for 24 months. Here is how to act in each of these situations under the law currently in force.
The 30-second summary
- If you disagree with the results of a tender or an auction, file a complaint via the procurement web portal with the customer or organiser that adopted the results protocol within 3 business days of the protocol being posted (Article 25(1) of the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On Public Procurement”).
- While the complaint is under review, the deadline for signing the contract is suspended. The decision on the complaint is due within 3 business days after the complaint period ends (Article 25(2)).
- If the complaint is rejected, file a claim with the administrative court within one month of receiving the decision (Article 136 of the Administrative Procedural and Process Code). You cannot go to court without the complaint: the pre-trial procedure is mandatory (Article 25(6)), and a court case does not suspend the procurement (Article 25(3)).
- Companies are put on the register of unfair participants by a court decision; a winner who evaded signing the contract is put on it by the customer’s decision. The ban lasts 24 months (Article 8(5) and 8(7)).
- A winner listed for evading the contract may ask the conciliation commission to remove it from the register within 10 business days of learning about the listing (Article 8(6)).
This is general information, not legal advice on your specific case. We checked the provisions against the texts of the laws, linked in the text. It is best to show your actual procurement to a lawyer.
Two different conflicts — do not mix them up
In public procurement a business defends itself on two different fronts, and the tactics differ.
Disagreement with the procurement results. The company’s bid was rejected or found non-compliant, the contract was awarded to a competitor in breach of the procedure, or the results were revised against you. Here the business is on the offensive: it challenges a decision of the customer, the organiser or the commission.
The threat of the register of unfair participants in public procurement (the “register”). The customer or organiser believes the company provided false information, evaded signing the contract or failed to perform it. Here the business is on the defensive, and the consequences are worse than one lost tender: two years without public contracts.
Both situations are governed by the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On Public Procurement” No. 106-VIII of 1 July 2024. It has been in force since 1 January 2025, and the previous 2015 law is no longer in effect (Article 29). The complaint procedure is detailed in the Public Procurement Rules approved by Order No. 687 of the Minister of Finance of 9 October 2024 (Chapter 19).
A complaint against the results: the clock runs in days
The complaint procedure is set out in Article 25 of the Law and Chapter 19 of the Rules:
- To whom and how. The complaint is filed via the web portal with the customer, organiser or single organiser that adopted the results protocol (paragraph 589 of the Rules). You can challenge actions, inaction and decisions of the customer, organiser, single organiser and the expert commission (expert).
- Deadline. 3 business days from the day the protocol on the results of the tender or auction is posted (Article 25(1)). A late complaint is not considered (paragraph 599 of the Rules).
- Contents. Who breached the law and in which procurement, the specific facts of the breach and the decisions being challenged (paragraph 596 of the Rules). A complaint without this information or without a proper signature is returned within 2 business days (paragraph 598) — by which time the 3 days to file may already have passed.
- Review period. The decision is made within 3 business days after the complaint period ends (Article 25(2)). A rejection is posted on the portal with a detailed explanation of the reasons (paragraph 595 of the Rules).
- If the complaint is upheld, the commission revises the results within 2 business days (paragraph 594 of the Rules).
While the complaint is under review, the deadline for signing the contract is suspended (Article 25(1)): the contract with a competitor will not be signed during that time.
This procedure has limits:
- it applies to the results of tenders and auctions;
- results where the web portal determines the winner automatically cannot be challenged this way (Article 25(7));
- the portal complaint requirements do not apply to procurement under the special procedure (Article 25(5));
- arguments that are checked by desk control of the state audit bodies are not considered in a complaint under Article 25 (paragraph 591 of the Rules).
Separately from the complaint to the customer, there is control by the authorised body: a complaint from a potential supplier about the actions of the customer, organiser or commission is one of the grounds for such control (Article 23(3)(1) of the Law). As a result, the body may issue an order to remedy violations or sue to invalidate the contract (Article 23(4)). But the mandatory pre-trial procedure for a court dispute is the complaint under Article 25 (Article 25(6)).
Rejected complaint or cancelled results: what next
The complaint was rejected. The decision on the complaint can be challenged in court (Article 25(3)) under the Administrative Procedural and Process Code: the claim is filed within one month of receiving the decision on the complaint, or, if there is no decision, within one month after the review period expires (Article 136(1) and 136(6) of the Code). Importantly, going to court does not suspend the procurement (Article 25(3)). The contract with the winner may be signed while the case is pending, so do not delay the claim.
A business has a strong position in the administrative court. In a claim challenging a burdensome act, the burden of proof is on the defendant (Article 129(2)(1) of the Code), and the defendant may rely only on the grounds stated in the act itself (Article 129(3)). The court is not passive: if the evidence is insufficient, it collects evidence on its own (Article 130(2)).
The results were revised or the procurement was cancelled. A win can be lost if the customer upholds a competitor’s complaint and the commission revises the results (paragraph 594 of the Rules), or if the authorised body issues an order after a control check (Article 23(4) of the Law). Decisions of the authorised body can also be appealed (Article 23(6)). The customer may abandon a procurement only before the results are summed up and only on two grounds: spending cuts when the budget is revised, or changes to the strategic plan, budget or financing plan that make the purchase unnecessary (Article 6(10)). The customer or organiser must give notice of that decision within 5 business days (Article 6(11)). Abandoning a procurement for any other reason is grounds for a dispute.
The register of unfair participants: a two-year threat
The register covers four categories (Article 8(4) of the Law):
- potential suppliers or suppliers that provided false information;
- winners that evaded signing the contract;
- suppliers that failed to perform the contract;
- suppliers that performed the contract improperly.
A winner is deemed to have evaded the contract if it did not submit the signed contract within the period set by the Rules, or, having signed it, did not provide the performance security or the anti-dumping amount (Article 17(5)).
How a company gets listed depends on the ground:
| Ground | Who decides | Deadline for the customer or organiser to act |
|---|---|---|
| False information (item 1) | the court, on a claim by the organiser, single organiser or customer | no later than 30 calendar days after learning of the breach |
| Evading the contract (item 2) | the customer; the authorised body maintains the register | — |
| Non-performance (item 3) | the court, on a claim by the customer | no later than 30 calendar days after the contract is terminated or expires |
| Improper performance (item 4) | the court, on a claim by the customer | no later than 30 calendar days after learning of the breach |
Once it receives the court decision that has taken effect, the customer has no more than 3 business days to apply via the portal to the authorised body to have the company entered in the register (Article 8(5)).
When the customer must not sue. For improper performance, no claim is filed if three conditions are all met: the supplier has paid the penalty, has performed its contractual obligations, and the customer has suffered no damage (Article 8(4)). So in a dispute over performance, it is important to close all three points and gather documents confirming them.
Defending in court. The claim to declare a company an unfair participant is filed by the customer or organiser; the company is the defendant. Under the Civil Procedure Code, each party proves the circumstances it relies on (Article 72): the customer must prove the breach, and the company must prove its objections, such as performance of the contract and absence of damage. A first-instance judgment can be appealed through the court that issued it within one month of the judgment being issued in final form (Article 403(1) and 403(3) of the Civil Procedure Code).
Evading the contract: the conciliation commission. If the customer listed the company for evading the contract, the company may, within 10 business days of learning about the listing, petition the conciliation commission for removal (Article 8(6)). The commission is set up by the customer and must include representatives of the National Chamber of Entrepreneurs (Article 3(9), Article 8(6)). If the commission decides to remove the company, the final decision is made by the authorised body. In addition, the decision to enter a company in the register can be appealed under the law (Article 8(9)).
How long it lasts and what it means. For 24 months the company is barred from public procurement. The period runs from the day the court decision takes effect, or, for companies that evaded the contract, from the day of the authorised body’s decision (Article 8(7)). The consequences reach beyond the company itself: a supplier whose head, founder or major shareholder is connected with a legal entity on the register is also barred (Article 7(1)(3), (5) and (6)). And if a supplier was on the register at any time in the 5 years before the bid acceptance date, the web portal reduces its conditional discount in tenders by 0.2% (paragraph 266-1 of the Rules).
How to get off the register (Article 8(7) and 8(8)):
- when the 24 months expire — the information is removed no later than one business day after the period ends;
- when a court act cancelling the decision declaring the company an unfair participant takes effect;
- by a decision of the authorised body after the conciliation commission has considered the petition (for companies that evaded the contract).
Deadlines at a glance
| Step | Deadline | Provision |
|---|---|---|
| Complaint against tender or auction results | 3 business days from posting of the protocol | Law, Article 25(1) |
| Decision on the complaint | 3 business days after the complaint period ends | Law, Article 25(2) |
| Return of a defective complaint | 2 business days from receipt | Rules, paragraph 598 |
| Revision of results if the complaint is upheld | 2 business days | Rules, paragraph 594 |
| Claim to the administrative court | one month from receipt of the decision on the complaint | Code, Article 136(1) and 136(6) |
| Customer’s claim to declare a supplier unfair | 30 calendar days; the starting point depends on the ground | Law, Article 8(4) |
| Petition to the conciliation commission (evading the contract) | 10 business days from learning of the listing | Law, Article 8(6) |
| Appeal against a court decision declaring the company unfair | one month from the judgment in final form | Civil Procedure Code, Article 403(3) |
| Ban on participating in public procurement | 24 months | Law, Article 8(7) |
Why you cannot wait in these disputes
Three business days is less than it takes to gather documents and write a complaint from scratch. If you start early, a lawyer has time to:
- record procedural breaches while the protocol and procurement documents are available on the portal;
- write a complaint that meets the Rules so it is not returned, and that can be relied on in court;
- where the register is a risk, gather evidence of performance, payment of the penalty and absence of damage before the customer sues;
- where the company is accused of evading the contract, meet the 10-business-day deadline for the conciliation commission.
It is especially important to bring in a lawyer if:
- the customer has sent a claim or is writing about terminating the contract;
- the breach was committed by the customer or the commission, and evidence has to be gathered quickly;
- a large contract or your reputation as a regular bidder is at stake;
- the complaint has already been rejected and the one month for a claim is running.
Step-by-step plan
- Record the dates. The day the protocol was posted, the day a claim was received, the day you learned of the listing — every deadline runs from these.
- Identify the dispute. Tender or auction results, abandonment of the procurement, a register claim or a listing for evading the contract — each has its own procedure.
- Build the position. For results — a complaint via the portal; for the register — evidence of performance and absence of damage; for evasion — a petition to the conciliation commission.
- Court. After the complaint is rejected — an administrative claim under the Code; in a register case — defence as the respondent.
- Appeal. If the court declares the company an unfair participant, assess the prospects of an appeal within one month.
How KORGAN helps in public procurement disputes
KORGAN Law Firm has been working since 2014. In public procurement disputes we:
- quickly review the results protocol or the customer’s claim with the procurement deadlines in mind;
- prepare a complaint via the portal that can be relied on in court;
- represent the company in proceedings to declare it an unfair participant;
- gather evidence of contract performance, payment of the penalty and absence of damage;
- handle the case at every stage, from the complaint to the appeal.
More about disputes with government authorities, including public procurement, is on the service page “Disputes with government agencies“. The general APPC appeal procedure is covered in our article “Disputes with Government Agencies: How a Business Can Challenge a Decision“, and all deadlines are collected in our checklist of appeal deadlines. For court representation, see “Representation in court for businesses in Kazakhstan“.
The first consultation is free.
To discuss your procurement: +7 700 500 05 53 or WhatsApp.
Frequently asked questions
How much time is there to challenge the results of a tender or auction?
3 business days from the day the results protocol is posted (Article 25(1) of the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On Public Procurement”). A late complaint is not considered (paragraph 599 of the Public Procurement Rules).
Where is a complaint against public procurement results filed?
Via the public procurement web portal, with the customer, organiser or single organiser that adopted the results protocol (paragraph 589 of the Rules). The decision on the complaint is made within 3 business days after the complaint period ends (Article 25(2) of the Law).
Can the contract be signed with a competitor while the dispute is ongoing?
Not while the complaint is under review: the deadline for signing the contract is suspended until the review ends (Article 25(1)). A court claim, however, does not suspend the procurement (Article 25(3)), so after the complaint is rejected you need to go to court without delay.
Can I go straight to court without complaining to the customer?
No. The pre-trial procedure under Article 25 of the Law is mandatory (Article 25(6)). The claim to the administrative court is filed within one month of receiving the decision on the complaint (Article 136 of the Administrative Procedural and Process Code).
How can a company avoid the register if the contract was performed with breaches?
For improper performance, the customer does not sue if the supplier has paid the penalty, has performed its obligations, and the customer has suffered no damage — all three together (Article 8(4) of the Law). If a claim is filed anyway, these circumstances have to be proved in court.
How can a company get off the register before 24 months?
If a court cancels the decision declaring the company an unfair participant, the information is removed from the register (Article 8(8)(2)). A winner listed for evading the contract may petition the conciliation commission for removal within 10 business days (Article 8(6)).