A guardian or trustee may be appointed only with his/her consent, if it does not contradict the interests of a child. Close relatives have a preferential right to become guardians or trustees. Usually, custodianship is taken by grandmothers, grandfathers, adult brothers and sisters, less often by uncles and aunts of children. Also, any adult can undertake custodianship.

Only adults can become guardians and trustees, except for:

1. individuals recognized by court as legally incompetent or with limited legal capacity;
2. individuals deprived by the court of parental rights or restricted by the court in parental rights;
3. individuals relieved from the duties of a guardian or trustee for improper performance of the duties assigned to them by the laws of the Republic of Kazakhstan;
4. former adoptive parents, if the adoption was canceled by the court due to their fault;
5. individuals who, for health reasons, cannot perform the duties of a guardian or trustee;
6. individuals who do not have a permanent place of residence;
7. individuals who have an outstanding criminal record for committing an intentional crime at the time of establishing guardianship (custodianship), as well as persons specified in subclause 12) of this Clause;
8. stateless individuals;
9. males who are not in a registered marriage, except for cases of actual upbringing of a child for at least three years due to the death of a mother or her deprivation of parental rights;
10. individuals who, at the time of establishing guardianship or custodianship, do not have income that ensures a subsistence rate established by the legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan;
11. individuals registered in narcological or neuropsychiatric dispensaries.
12. individuals who have or have had a criminal record and have been subjected to criminal prosecution (except for individuals whose criminal prosecution was terminated on the basis of subclauses 1) and 2) of part one of Article 35 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan) for criminal offenses: murder, intentional injury to health, crime against public health and morality, sexual integrity, extremist or terrorist crimes, human trafficking;
13. citizens of the Republic of Kazakhstan permanently residing in the territory of the Republic of Kazakhstan who have not undergone psychological training in accordance with Clause 4 of Article 91 of the Code on Marriage and Matrimony (except for close relatives of a child).

If an urgent appointment of a guardian or trustee represented by a relative, stepfather (stepmother) is required, then the authorities performing guardianship or custodianship functions have the right to establish guardianship or custodianship without execution of psychological training, provided that a guardian/a trustee will undergo psychological training within one calendar year from the date of a child's admission to a family. If a guardian or trustee has not passed psychological training within the prescribed period, an authority performing guardianship or custodianship functions initiates revocation of guardianship or custodianship.

When appointing a guardian or trustee to a child, the following aspects are taken into account: moral and other personal qualities of a guardian or trustee, his/her ability to perform the duties of a guardian or trustee, relationship between a guardian or trustee and a child, attitude of family members of a guardian or trustee to a child, as well as, if possible, desire of a child himself/herself.

If a person appointed as a guardian or trustee over a minor is married, a mandatory consent of his/her spouse is required.

Guardians or trustees of minors are obliged to live together with a child, except in cases when a child is being brought up or treated in an educational organization or in a medical organization. Separate living of a trustee and a child who has reached the age of sixteen is allowed with the permission of an authority performing guardianship or custodianship, provided that this does not adversely affect the upbringing and protection of the rights and interests of a child.

The spouse, parents, relatives or other persons close to a child have a preferential right to be appointed as a guardian or trustee.

Orphans and children left without parental care are in particular need of support, education and protection of their rights and interests. It is for these purposes that guardianship, custodianship and foster care are established. Guardianship and custodianship imply the protection of property and non-property rights and interests, while foster care implies greater involvement into the upbringing of a child.

If you wish, you can become a guardian or trustee for several children, if there are no contradictions between their interests.

Thus, it is possible to become a guardian or trustee:

• for a child: an orphan or a child left without parental care;
• for an adult who has been declared legally incompetent.

You can become a guardian or trustee for an orphan or a child left without parental care who is in a hospital, orphanage, or other organization and is registered with the guardianship and custodianship authorities. Usually, the guardians and trustees are the relatives of a child who has lost his/her parents or was abandoned by parents, i.e. grandmothers, grandfathers, aunts, etc. But this does not mean that any other citizen cannot take custody of a non-blood child.

Pursuant to Article 125 of the Code, though a guardian/trustee performs his/her duties on a free-of-charge basis, such a person is not obliged to support a child at his/her own expense. The maintenance of a child is carried out at the expense of salary, alimony, pensions and other social payments received by a child, as well as at the expense of a property belonging to him/her. In the absence of sufficient funds for the maintenance of a child, the guardianship and custodianship authorities appoint an allowance for his/her maintenance.

Due to the fact that the guardians/trustees are obliged to take care of the maintenance of children, they have not only the right, but also the obligation to file a claim for the payment of alimony to the parents (parent) of a child, if they exist and do not fulfill their duties for his/her maintenance. Full information about the procedure for collecting alimony can be found here. 

The establishment of guardianship or custodianship is carried out in accordance with the rules for provision of the public service "Establishment of guardianship or custodianship

over an orphan child (orphans) and a child (children) left without parental care".

The service is delivered by the Education Departments of cities of republican significance and the capital, Education Departments of districts, cities of regional significance (hereinafter: a service provider).

Acceptance of applications and issuance of public service delivery results are performed via:

1. "Government for Citizens" Public Corporation (hereinafter: Public Corporation);
2. e-Government portal (www.egov.kz) (hereinafter: portal).

Public service delivery terms:

1. From the date of submitting documents to the Public Corporation, as well as when applying through the portal: 19 working days

When applying to Public Corporation, the day of documents acceptance is not included into the deadline for the provision of public services. A service provider ensures delivery of the public service result to the Public Corporation, no later than one day before the expiration of term of public service provision;

2. The maximum allowable waiting time for the delivery of documents to the Public Corporation is 15 minutes;
3. The maximum allowable service time in the Public Corporation is 15 minutes.
4. If necessary, a service recipient can apply for the public service "Assignment of benefits to guardians or trustees for the maintenance of an orphan child (orphans) and a child (children) left without parental care" based on "one application" principle and it will be delivered following the establishment of guardianship or custodianship over an orphan child (children-orphans) and a child (children) left without parental care.
5. The public service delivery result is an order on the establishment of guardianship or custodianship issued by Education Departments of districts and cities of regional significance, cities of republican significance and the capital or substantiated refusal to deliver the public service
6. The public service delivery format: Electronic (partially automated) /on paper/ delivered based on "one application" principle
7. If a service recipient has a digital signature, he/she can get the public services online via the portal.
   A service recipient can get information on the procedure and status of public service delivery by calling the Integrated Call Center: 1414, 8 800 080 7777. The Digital Documents service is available to users authorized in the mobile application. To use a digital document, one needs to log into the mobile application using a digital signature or a one-time password, then go to the "Digital Documents" section and select a required document.
8. Documents needed for the establishment of guardianship/custodianship over a child:

• application in the established format according to the public service standard;
• ID document (for identification);
• notarized consent of a spouse, if married;
• health certificates for a service recipient and spouse(s), if married that confirm the absence of diseases;
• copy of marriage certificate, if married;
• health certificates for a service recipient and spouse(s), if married, confirming the absence of diseases in accordance with the list approved by the Orderof the Minister of Health and Social Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan as of August 28, 2015 No. 692 "On approval of the list of diseases in the presence of which a person cannot adopt a child, take him/her under guardianship or custodianship, foster care", as well as certificates on the absence of registration at narcological and psychiatric dispensaries in accordance with the form approved by the Order of the Minister of Health of the Republic of Kazakhstan as of May 18, 2020 No. KR DSM-49/2020 "On certain issues of public service delivery in the field of healthcare";
• copies of documents confirming failure to ensure custody over a child by an only or both parents (death certificate or notification, court decision on deprivation of parental rights of parents, restriction of their parental rights, recognition of parents as missing, legally incompetent (with limited legal capacity), declaring them dead, court verdict on parents serving sentences in prison, documents confirming the search for parents, withdraw of a child (children) from the parents, presence of parents on long-term treatment in health care organizations, the act of throwing the child (children), application for abandonment of a child (children), a birth certificate (in the absence of information in the Civil Registry Office) in the form approved by the Order of the Minister of Justice of the Republic of Kazakhstan as of February 25, 2015 No. 112 "On approval of the Rules for organization of state registration of acts of civil status, amendments, restoration, cancellation of civil status records" 
• copies of documents confirming kinship of relatives, stepfather (stepmother) to a child (children);
• birth certificate of a child (children) in electronic form or its copy on paper, in the absence of information in the Civil Registry Office IS or if a child was born outside the Republic of Kazakhstan (an original copy is required for identification);
• information about the income of a service recipient and (or) spouse(s), if married;
• copies of documents confirming the right to use the housing of a service recipient and (or) spouse(s) (in the absence of ownership right for housing);
• opinion of a child (children) (upon reaching the age of ten);
• certificate on completion of training for individuals willing to adopt orphaned children and children left without parental care (except for close relatives of a child) (from July 1, 2020).

The guardianship or custodianship authorities performing transfer orphans and children left without parental care to relatives, stepfathers (stepmothers) under guardianship or custodianship in accordance with the requirements of of Article 122 of the Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan "On Marriage (Matrimony) and Family".

Based on the results of documents verification, a service provider conducts an inspection of housing within 3 (three) working days and based on its results draws an act on inspection of housing and living conditions for individuals willing to take a child (children) under guardianship or custodianship. 

At least once every 6 months, a guardian is obliged to submit a report on the health status of a child as well as on the upbringing process and property management to a guardianship and custodianship authority.