Central Asia / Kazakhstan
Auto export to Kazakhstan.
Kazakhstan is the largest car market in Central Asia and a real destination, not a passing-through hub. It's also landlocked and an EAEU member, so the routing is the whole story. The cheap way the rest of the market moves cars, through Russian ports or through Lithuania by rail, runs across Russia or Belarus, and a US-licensed forwarder can't use either. Dapex runs the two clean corridors instead: the Middle Corridor across the Caspian, and the rail corridor through China. Both avoid Russia. That keeps the chain clean and keeps your car off a route that could put the whole shipment at risk.
For reference purposes only. Regulations, policies, and procedures change constantly. Ensure you verify and validate all requirements for your specific shipments before initiating any.
The Kazakhstan lane, in four numbers.
No Kazakh seaport. The Caspian Middle Corridor through Aktau, or rail through China via Khorgos. Both avoid Russia.
Six container warehouses, five RoRo terminals. Cars move containerized for the rail legs, four to a box in the common case, up to five small ones.
Longer than a direct port. The Caspian ferry and the China rail crossings are the slow links. The desk prices it as a range.
Eurasian customs, a combined payment for individual imports, 12% VAT, and a recycling fee scaled by age and engine. Open border to Russia, so we screen.
Two clean corridors. Pick by where the car loads.
A US car can reach Kazakhstan two ways that don't cross Russia, and the right one depends on which US coast the car loads on. East Coast cars favor the Caspian. West Coast cars often favor China rail. Both end at Almaty or Astana for clearance. We run both and pick the one that lands cheaper for your car.
Across the Caspian via Aktau.
Sea to Poti in Georgia, road to the Azerbaijani coast at Baku or Alat, ferry across the Caspian to Aktau or Kuryk in Kazakhstan, then rail or road on to Almaty and Astana. The same corridor we run for the Caucasus, extended east. Best fit for East and Gulf Coast cars.
- Poti, then road to Baku or Alat, then Caspian ferry
- Lands at Aktau or Kuryk, then overland to Almaty
- No Russia, no Suez, no Red Sea
- The Caspian ferry is the slow, irregular link
Rail through Khorgos.
Sea to a Chinese port, with Lianyungang built as the eastern gateway for Kazakhstan traffic, then container rail across the border at Khorgos or Dostyk to Almaty. The car moves in bonded transit through China, never imported there. More predictable than the ferry, and a strong fit for West Coast cars.
- Sea to Lianyungang, then container rail to Almaty
- Crosses at Khorgos or Dostyk, roughly 12 days on rail
- Bonded transit through China, not a China import
- No Russia leg at any point
Same US loading. Two ways across the middle.
The US-side operation is identical to our other lanes. What changes is the corridor in the middle, and each has its own slow link to plan around. We containerize for both, since the car rides rail on the far side either way.
The Caspian corridor
Load at one of six container warehouses: NY/NJ, Savannah, Miami, Houston, Long Beach, Seattle. Weekly cuts on Maersk, MSC, CMA CGM, Hapag-Lloyd to Poti. Then road to Baku or Alat and a ferry across the Caspian to Aktau or Kuryk, then rail or road to Almaty and Astana.
The slow link: the Caspian ferry runs on an irregular schedule with limited capacity, and a falling sea level is squeezing the Kazakh ports. It's the part of the trip that varies most, so we price it as a range and flag current conditions on the quote.
Transit: roughly 45 to 60 days door to Almaty from the East Coast, depending on the ferry.
The China corridor
Load and sail to Lianyungang, the Chinese port built as the eastern terminus of the Kazakhstan rail corridor. The car then rides container rail across the border at Khorgos or Dostyk and on to Almaty, in bonded transit the whole way through China. West Coast cars reach the Chinese ports faster, which is what makes this corridor competitive for them.
The slow link: the border crossing and the gauge change from Chinese to Kazakh track. Rail from Lianyungang to Almaty runs around 12 days once moving.
Transit: roughly 40 to 50 days door to Almaty from the West Coast, often steadier than the ferry.
EAEU customs, a recycling fee, and the route screen.
Kazakhstan has no pre-shipment certification regime for used cars, but its landed cost has more moving parts than the Caucasus: Eurasian customs, a combined payment for individual imports, 12% VAT, and a recycling fee that's deliberately steep. The compliance line we hold is the route: nothing through Russia or Belarus, and nothing we believe is bound onward to Russia.
The clearance path
US-side preparation
AES filing, ISF where required, HBL issuance, commercial invoice, packing list. Clean title, or a salvage certificate where the car is sold and shipped as salvage. HBL consigned to the Kazakh buyer or their clearing agent.
Transit, no Russia leg
Either the Caspian corridor through Georgia and Azerbaijan, or bonded rail transit through China. The bill of lading releases against payment. The car doesn't import into any transit country, it passes through to Kazakhstan.
EAEU customs at Almaty or Astana
The car clears as an import from a third country. Expect the Eurasian customs tariff, and for an individual import a combined customs payment that runs steep, then 12% VAT, plus a recycling fee scaled by the car's age and engine size. Engines over 3,000 cc also carry an excise. The clearing agent runs the per-vehicle total before you commit.
The GLONASS module and registration
Registration requires the ERA-GLONASS emergency-call module fitted and activated, the same system Russia uses. Near-new cars imported commercially can also trigger a full type-approval requirement. The desk flags this where it applies, because it changes the cost and the timeline.
Required documents
Original title or salvage certificate
Clean title for a car that will register. Salvage certificate where the unit is sold and shipped as salvage for repair.
Commercial invoice on Dapex letterhead
Consignee, vehicle details, declared value, HBL number. Kazakh customs values closely and the recycling fee depends on accurate age and engine data.
Packing list
Standard format. Needed when personal effects are co-loaded in a container.
HBL
Consigned to the Kazakh buyer or their clearing agent. Released after payment of the quoted amount.
What Dapex files, US side
AES filing with US Customs. ISF where required. HBL under Dapex's NVOCC license, consigned to the Kazakh buyer or their clearing agent. Commercial invoice and packing list on Dapex letterhead. Title verification through our title team before pickup. Routing chosen to avoid any Russia or Belarus leg, and consignee and final-destination screening against the Russia direction. Pre-alert pack to the transit handlers and the Almaty or Astana clearing agent. The Russian-speaking desk owns the file end to end.
A real market, with a recycling fee to plan around.
Kazakhstan buys cars to keep, and the market is large and growing. The thing that shapes the economics is the recycling fee plus the combined customs payment on individual imports, which together favor cars whose value carries the cost, and increasingly favor electric.
Toyota, SUVs, and Korean.
Toyota across the board: Camry, RAV4, Land Cruiser, Prado. Lexus. Hyundai and Kia in volume. Mercedes and BMW higher up. Larger SUVs sell well given the roads and the buying power around Almaty and Astana. Repaired US auction cars compete on price where the landed math works.
EVs, with a catch.
Electric cars come in free of the Eurasian customs duty, which is a real advantage, but as of late 2025 they now carry the 12% VAT that used to be waived. Hybrids get no exemption and clear under the full rules. The desk checks the current EV treatment before quoting, since this is being adjusted.
Russia-bound, Russia-transit, and the rules.
We don't carry cars bound for Russia, and we won't route through Russia or Belarus to get to Kazakhstan. Beyond that, the standing Dapex rules hold: clean title or salvage certificate (25-year US Customs exception), no unreleased liens, no personal effects loose in RoRo. Quarter-tank fuel maximum on RoRo per SOLAS.
What moves the rate on this lane.
On Kazakhstan, two things drive the number that the freight doesn't: which corridor the car takes, and the customs-plus-recycling-fee stack at the far end. Here's what we lock, what passes through, and what to watch.
Our work, our cost.
- Warehouse operations
- Booking fee
- Documentation handling
- Title verification
- Routing and corridor selection
- HBL issuance
- Sanctions screening
Carrier and routing-driven.
- Ocean freight (carrier-set)
- Fuel and bunker surcharges
- Caspian ferry charges
- China rail and crossing charges
- Port and terminal handling
- Overland to Almaty or Astana
- Inland trucking to loading point
Service standards.
- Compliance
- Documentation accuracy
- Submission urgency
- Dispatch priority
Lane-specific drivers
Corridor choice by US coast
An East Coast car usually lands cheaper on the Caspian corridor; a West Coast car often lands cheaper on China rail. The desk runs both before quoting and picks the one that wins for your specific car and origin. This single choice can move the freight more than anything else.
The recycling fee and the combined payment
The recycling fee scales with age and engine size and is meant to discourage older, larger cars, and individual imports also carry a combined customs payment that runs steep. Together these are usually the biggest line in the landed cost, bigger than the freight. We get the per-vehicle number from the clearing agent before you commit.
The Caspian ferry, when you take it
On the Middle Corridor the ferry is the variable: irregular schedule, limited capacity, and falling water levels at the Kazakh ports. We price it as a range, not a point, and the China corridor is the alternative when the ferry is tight.
The GLONASS module
Registration needs the ERA-GLONASS emergency-call module fitted and active. It's a real line item and a step that has to happen before plates, so the desk flags it up front rather than leaving it as a surprise at registration.
Title quality and the route screen
The buyer runs their own VIN check, so we verify title before pickup. And every file carries the routing and destination screen against Russia, which is overhead we treat as non-negotiable, because a Russia leg anywhere on the chain is a problem for everyone on it.
Who handles Kazakhstan accounts.
The Russian-speaking desk runs every Kazakhstan account, which fits the market. The desk chooses the corridor, coordinates the transit handlers, runs the recycling-fee and GLONASS questions, and owns the route and destination screen.
Russian-speaking Desk
Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and the wider CIS. Business hours bridging US and Central Asian time zones, plus extended hours by request. Kazakh and Russian coordination through partner clearing agents in Almaty and Astana.
What the desk owns.
Corridor call: Caspian versus China rail, by car and origin. File management through BL. Title verification before pickup. The recycling-fee and combined-payment math, and the GLONASS step. Transit handler coordination on both corridors, including the Caspian crossing and the China border. Almaty and Astana clearing agent coordination. Routing and final-destination screening against Russia. Escalation on customs or ferry holds.
Things buyers ask about the Kazakhstan lane.
Two ways, both avoiding Russia. The Caspian Middle Corridor: sea to Poti in Georgia, road to the Azerbaijani coast, ferry across the Caspian to Aktau, then overland to Almaty. Or the China corridor: sea to a Chinese port, then container rail across the border at Khorgos or Dostyk to Almaty. We run both and choose by where the car loads.
Cheaper, yes, and that's how most of the market moves cars into Kazakhstan. But both of those routes cross Russia or Belarus, the Lithuania one by rail through Belarus. A US-licensed forwarder can't move cargo across either, so we don't. We take the Caspian or the China corridor instead. It costs more and takes longer, and it keeps the shipment clean.
It depends on where the car loads. East Coast and Gulf cars usually land cheaper on the Caspian corridor, since they're already heading to Poti. West Coast cars often do better on China rail, since they reach the Chinese ports faster, and rail tends to be steadier than the Caspian ferry. The desk prices both and picks the winner for your car.
More parts than the Caucasus. The Eurasian customs tariff, and for an individual import a combined customs payment that runs steep, then 12% VAT, plus a recycling fee scaled by the car's age and engine size, and an excise on engines over 3,000 cc. The recycling fee and the combined payment are usually the biggest lines, often bigger than the freight. The clearing agent runs the per-vehicle total before you commit.
Kazakhstan requires the ERA-GLONASS emergency-call module fitted and activated before a car can register, the same system Russia uses. It's a real cost and a step that has to be done locally. We flag it on the quote so it isn't a surprise. Near-new cars imported commercially can also trigger a fuller type-approval requirement, which the desk will tell you about if it applies.
Partly. EVs come in free of the Eurasian customs duty, which helps, but as of late 2025 they now carry the 12% VAT that used to be waived. Hybrids get no exemption at all. The treatment is being adjusted, so the desk confirms the current rules before quoting an electric car.
No. Kazakhstan is in the customs union with Russia, so historically cars cleared there could move on with no further border. Two things stop us: we screen the consignee and final destination and refuse anything Russia-bound, and as of late 2025 Kazakhstan itself blocks re-export of its lower-tariff cars to Russia and enforces it. Genuine Kazakh buyers are the business we want.
Roughly 45 to 60 days door to Almaty on the Caspian corridor from the East Coast, and roughly 40 to 50 days on the China corridor from the West Coast. Both are longer than a direct port country because of the crossing in the middle, the Caspian ferry on one and the border gauge change on the other. The desk gives current numbers on the quote.
Ready to ship to Kazakhstan?
Send VIN, lot number, vehicle year, engine size, the US loading point, and consignee details to the Russian-speaking desk. We'll price both corridors, pick the one that lands cheaper, run the recycling-fee and GLONASS math, check the title, and screen the routing before we book.