On signing the Agreement between the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Republic of Singapore on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters

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Decree of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan dated August 25, 2025 No. 972.

In accordance with subparagraph 1) of Article 8 of the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan "on International Treaties of the Republic of Kazakhstan", I HEREBY DECREE:

1. To approve the attached draft agreement between the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Republic of Singapore on mutual legal assistance in criminal matters.

2. To authorize the Prosecutor General of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Asylov Berik Nogaiuly, to sign on behalf of the Republic of Kazakhstan an Agreement between the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Republic of Singapore on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters, authorizing amendments and additions that are not fundamental.

3. This Decree shall enter into force from the date of signing.

President of the Republic of Kazakhstan

K. Tokaev

Approved by Decree of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan on August 25, 2025 No. 972

Project plan

Agreement between the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Republic of Singapore on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters

The Republic of Kazakhstan and the Republic of Singapore, hereinafter referred to as the Parties;

guided by the traditionally friendly relations between the two countries;

Desiring to establish more effective cooperation between the two countries in the prevention and suppression of crime through cooperation and mutual legal assistance in criminal matters,

About the following:

Article 1

Scope of assistance

1. The Parties, in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement and their national legislation, shall provide each other with the widest possible mutual legal assistance in criminal matters.

2. Assistance includes:

a) Obtaining information and evidence;

b) the presence of persons to give evidence or provide assistance, including, if appropriate, by videoconference;

c) the seizure of property, including monetary funds, as well as its confiscation or deprivation of ownership rights, used or obtained in the commission of criminal offenses;

(d) Conducting a search and seizure;

(e) Locating and identifying persons; and

f) service of procedural documents.

3. The Parties may agree to provide any other type of assistance that is consistent with the objectives of this Agreement and the national legislation of the Prohibited Party.

4. Assistance does not include:

(a) Arrest or detention of a person for the purpose of extradition;

b) the enforcement of judgments in criminal cases or the execution of sentences of the court of the Requesting Party, except in cases provided for in this Agreement and permitted by the legislation of the Requested Party;

(d) Transfer of criminal proceedings.

5. This Agreement is intended solely to provide mutual legal assistance between the Parties and does not grant any private person the right to obtain, conceal, seize or destroy any evidence, to prevent the fulfillment of any request for assistance or to send requests in accordance with this agreement.

Article 2

Refusal to execute requests

1. The requested Party refuses to provide assistance if it considers that:

(a) The request concerns the investigation, prosecution or punishment of persons for acts or omissions that, if they had occurred in the Requested Party, would have constituted a military criminal offence under the national law of the Requested Party, which is not a criminal offence under the customary criminal law of that Party;

b) the request is related to the investigation, criminal prosecution or punishment of a person for a criminal offense of a political nature;

(d) There are substantial grounds to believe that the request was sent for the purpose of investigating, prosecuting, punishing or otherwise harming the person on the basis of his race, religion, gender, ethnic origin, nationality or political beliefs;

e) the request is related to the investigation, criminal prosecution or punishment of a person for a criminal offense or for the same criminal offense with a different name or qualification, representing the same act or omission for which the person:

i) has previously been convicted, acquitted or pardoned by a competent court or other authority of the Prohibiting or Forbidding Party;

(ii) Previously served a sentence prescribed by the national legislation of the Requested or Requesting Party;

(f) The request concerns assistance related to the application of coercive measures, and the alleged acts or omissions, if they took place within the jurisdiction of the Requested Party, would not constitute a criminal offence in the Requested Party, except that the requested party may provide assistance in the absence of mutual recognition of the act as a criminal offence, if permitted by its national legislation;

g) the request does not comply with this Agreement;

(h) The execution of the request may prejudice the ongoing criminal case in the Requested Party; or

(i) The execution of the request would be contrary to the national legislation or international obligations of the Requested Party.

2. If the Requested Party considers that the execution of the request or any part of it may interfere with the ongoing investigation or proceedings before its courts, it may postpone its execution or implement it in accordance with conditions to be determined after consultation with the Requesting Party. If the Requesting Party accepts assistance in accordance with such conditions, it must comply with them.

3. The requested Party may refuse assistance if it considers that:

(a) The provision of assistance harms or is likely to harm the safety of a person; or

(b) The provision of assistance may incur substantial costs from the Requested Party.

4. The requested Party has no right to refuse assistance solely on the basis of bank secrecy.

5. If the Requested Party refuses to assist the Requesting Party, it is obliged to inform the Requesting Party of the reasons for such refusal.

Article 3

Central authorities

1. For the purposes of this Agreement, each Party must designate a Central Authority for sending and receiving requests. The central authorities should maintain direct communication with each other.

2. The central authorities are:

(a) For the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Supreme Court for requests in cases pending before the courts and the Prosecutor General's Office for all other requests; and

(b) For the Republic of Singapore, the Attorney General or a person duly authorized by the Attorney General.

3. Any changes related to the Central Authorities must be notified to the other party through diplomatic channels.

Article 4

Form and content of the request for help

1. All requests must be made in writing, and the original must be sent to the Requested Party. A digital copy of the request for assistance can be transmitted electronically at the same time.

2. In urgent cases, unless prohibited by the national legislation of the Requesting Party, the request may not contain all the information set out in this article. In case of an urgent request, the Central Authority must submit the request, which must contain all the information specified in this article, within 10 (ten) days, unless the Requested Party agrees in writing for a longer period.

3. A request for assistance must contain:

a) the purpose and nature of the prohibited assistance;

b) the name of the authority that initiated the request;

c) information that the request was sent in connection with a criminal case;

(d) A description of the current status of the criminal case, as well as information summarizing the relevant facts, circumstances of the criminal offence and national legislation;

(e) The text of the relevant national legislation of the Prohibiting Party describing the criminal offence and the penalty applied for it;

(f) To the extent possible, information on the identity, nationality and whereabouts of the persons indicated in the request, including those suspected of involvement in the commission of a criminal offence;

(g) Details of any specific procedures or requirements of the Requesting Party that, if possible, the investigator could comply with in executing the request, including information on the manner or form in which any information, evidence, document or object should be provided to the Requesting Party;

h) requirements for confidentiality of the request, indicating its reasons;

i) the period during which the investigator's request would have been satisfied, if possible;

j) any other information that may help in fulfilling the request.

4. Requests for assistance, where appropriate and as far as possible, should also be included.:

a) when assistance in obtaining statements or evidence is prohibited:

(i) Information setting out the justification of the Requesting Party that the person whose statements or evidence are being requested is related to the criminal case; and

(ii) A list of questions to be asked of the person concerned;

b) if the request concerns the search and seizure of a document or object:

(i) The location and description of the document or item, if known; and

(ii) Information setting out the justification of the Requesting Party that the document or object to be seized may be in the Requested Party, as well as relevant and essential to the criminal case;

c) if the request concerns the receipt of a document or item:

(i) A detailed description of the document or item to be obtained and, if possible, details of the relevant persons from whom it can be obtained; and

(ii) Information that sets out the justification of the Requesting Party that the document or object is relevant and likely to be significant to the criminal case;

(d) If the request concerns assistance involving a person traveling to the Requesting Party in accordance with the request, details of the payments to which that person will be entitled and the manner in which the person will be accommodated in the Requesting Party;

e) if the request concerns assistance related to property used in the commission of a criminal offense or obtained as a result of its commission:

(i) Information setting out the justification of the Requesting Party that the property in question may be located in the Requested Party and is relevant to the criminal case;

(ii) Where applicable, the court order to be enforced and information on the current status of that order; and

(iii) If judicial proceedings to obtain a court order for the confiscation of property used in the commission of a criminal offence or obtained as a result of its commission have not been initiated in the Requesting Party, information indicating when it is likely to be initiated; and

f) if the authorized representatives of the Requesting Party intend to arrive in the Requested Party in connection with the request, the initials and powers of the authorized representatives, as well as information about the purpose of the visit and the proposed dates.

5. If the Requested Party considers that the information contained in the request is insufficient to consider the request in accordance with this agreement, it may request additional information.

Article 5

Making requests for help

1. Requests for assistance are executed in accordance with the national legislation of the Requested Party.

2. Upon the request of the Requested Party, the Requesting Party undertakes to return to the Requested Party any document or object handed over to the Requesting Party upon completion of the criminal case to which the request relates.

Article 6

Additional requests

If the Central Authority of the Requesting Party sends an additional request for assistance ("additional request"), such additional request should include information about the main request and the relationship between the additional request and the main request. In order to comply with paragraphs 3 and 4 of Article 4 of this Agreement, an additional request may contain a reference to the information contained in the main request.

Article 7

Custom Proofs

1. Upon receipt of a request for evidence, including testimony or any document or object, including from banks and financial institutions, the Requested Party shall ensure that such evidence is obtained in accordance with its national legislation.

2. A person who is required by this article to provide such evidence may refuse to do so if permitted under similar circumstances by the national legislation of the Requested or Requesting Party.

3. If a person claims that he has the right to refuse to testify in accordance with the national legislation of the Requesting Party, the Central Authority of the requesting Party must, upon request, provide the Requested Party with a certificate of the existence or absence of such a right.

Article 8

The appearance of persons to provide evidence or assistance

1. The requesting Party may request assistance in organizing the voluntary appearance of a person staying in the Requested Party to provide evidence or assistance during an investigation or proceedings related to a criminal case in the Requesting Party.

2. The requested Party, if permitted by its national legislation and if it is satisfied that the Requesting Party is taking appropriate measures to ensure the safety of that person, shall invite that person to provide evidence or assistance to the Requesting Party. The person must be informed of any expenses or payments being paid.

3. The requested Party shall immediately inform the Requesting Party of the person's response and, if that person agrees, take the necessary measures to facilitate his stay in the Requesting Party.

Article 9

Immunity

1. A person who is in the territory of the Requesting Party in accordance with a request for assistance pursuant to Article 8 of this Agreement:

(a) Shall not be subject to criminal prosecution, detention, punishment or any other restriction of personal freedom in the territory of the Prohibiting Party in respect of any act, omission or conviction for any criminal offence under the national legislation of the Prohibiting Party that is allegedly being committed or could have been committed prior to the departure of the person from the territory of the requested Party;

(b) Must not be a defendant in any civil action in respect of any act or omission that is alleged to have been committed or previously committed prior to the departure of that person from the Requested Party, if that civil action could not have been brought against the person if he had not been in the locking party;

(c) Is not obligated to assist in any criminal case other than the criminal case to which the request relates without his consent; and

(d) Should not be subjected to any criminal prosecution based on his testimony, except in cases of perjury or contempt of court.

2. The immunity provided for in this Article shall terminate when a person, continuously for 15 (fifteen) days from the date when his presence is no longer required, having the opportunity to leave the territory of the Requesting Party, nevertheless remains in that territory or, having left it, voluntarily returned.

3. A person who does not consent to travel to the Requesting Party to give evidence or provide assistance is not subject to any punishment or liability or is otherwise infringed by national legislation solely on the basis of that person's refusal or disagreement to arrive on request.

Article 10

Confiscation of property used in the commission of a criminal offense or obtained as a result of its commission

1. The Parties shall assist each other to the extent permitted by their respective national legislation in connection with procedures for the confiscation of property used in the commission of a criminal offence or obtained as a result of its commission.

2. If such property is found in the territory of the Requested Party and at the request of the Requesting Party, the Requested Party shall take such measures as are permitted by its national legislation to restrict access to such property until a final decision is made on such property by a court.the requesting party.

3. At the request of the Requesting Party, the Requested Party, to the extent permitted by its national legislation, shall execute the final court decision on the confiscation of such property issued by the court of the Requesting Party.

4. When applying this article, the rights of third parties are respected to the extent permitted by the national legislation of the Prohibiting Party.

5. If necessary and without prejudice to the rights of third parties, authorized representatives of the Parties may agree on a case-by-case basis on the conclusion of agreements or Contracts regarding confiscated property, including the return, transfer and, when dividing it, taking into account, in particular, relevant international treaties to which the parties are parties, in order to return such property to its owners. to the rightful owner or payment of compensation to victims of a criminal offense, less the reasonable costs of executing a court decision on the confiscation of such property.

Article 11

Search and seizure

1. The prohibiting Party, to the extent permitted by its national legislation, shall comply with requests for the search, seizure and transfer to the Prohibiting Party of any document or object related to the criminal case.

2. The requested Party shall provide such information as may be used by the Requesting Party in relation to the results of any search, the location and circumstances of the seizure, as well as the subsequent storage of the seized document or item.

3. The requesting Party is obliged to comply with all conditions established by the Requested Party for the return and safe storage of any seized document or item that is transferred to the Requesting Party.

Article 12

Location or identification of persons

Upon receipt of the request, the requested Party shall, in accordance with its national legislation, take measures to establish the location or identification of any person identified in the request and believed to be on its territory.

Article 13

Procedural notice

1. The requested Party, upon receipt of the request and in accordance with its national legislation, shall take measures to organize the procedural notification of any person in its territory.

2. The requesting Party must send a request for the delivery of a procedural notice requiring a response or appearance to the Requesting Party no later than 60 (sixty) days before the expiration of the response or programmed appearance period. In urgent cases, the Requesting Party may waive this condition if the Requesting Party requests it.

3. The requested Party shall endeavour to ensure that the procedural notification is provided to the person located on its territory in the manner requested by the Requesting Party.

4. A person to whom a procedural notice is served in accordance with this article shall not be subjected to any punishment, liability or coercive measures in accordance with the national legislation of the Requesting Party or otherwise infringed by national legislation solely because of the refusal or inability of this person to accept or implement such procedural notice, despite any contrary content of the procedural notice.

5. The requested Party, in accordance with its national legislation, shall provide the Requesting Party with confirmation of the delivery of the procedural notice in accordance with the procedure established by the Requesting Party, indicating the method and date of such delivery. If the service cannot be performed, the Requesting Party must be informed about it, indicating the reasons.

Article 14

Provision of publicly available and official documents

1. Upon receipt of a request, the requested Party shall provide the Requesting Party with copies of publicly available documents or records held by its government agencies.

2. Upon receipt of the request, the requested Party may, in accordance with its national legislation and practice, provide the Requesting Party with copies of any documents or records held by public authorities that are not publicly available. In accordance with this paragraph, the requested Party may, at its discretion, refuse to comply with the request in whole or in part.

Article 15

Confidentiality and usage restrictions

1. The requesting Party shall not, without the prior written consent of the Requested Party, disclose or use information or evidence provided or obtained in accordance with this agreement for purposes other than those specified in the request. In the case of such consent, the disclosure or use of information or evidence for such other purposes is carried out in accordance with the terms and conditions that may be specified by the Requested Party.

2. Upon the request of the Requesting Party, the Requested Party shall take all necessary measures to preserve the confidentiality of the request, its content and the fact that it has been fulfilled. If the request cannot be fulfilled without violating confidentiality, the Requested Party informs the Requesting Party about it, which then decides whether to nevertheless fulfill the request.

Article 16

Legalization

1. Upon request, each Party confirms the authenticity of any document that must be provided to the other party in accordance with this agreement.

2. For the purposes of this Agreement, a document is considered to be properly legalized if:

(a) Signed or certified by a judge, magistrate or official of the Party providing the document, duly authorized by the national legislation of that Party; and

b) either

(i) Is confirmed by the oath or affirmation of a witness or official of that Party; or

ii) is sealed with the official seal of the competent authority of the Requested Party.

Article 17

Language

Requests and all accompanying documents sent by the Republic of Kazakhstan must be translated into English. Requests and all accompanying documents sent by the Republic of Singapore must be translated into Kazakh or Russian.

Article 18

Expenses

1. The requested Party shall take all necessary measures to represent the Requesting Party in any proceedings arising from the request for assistance and otherwise represent the interests of the Requesting Party.

2. The Requested Party shall bear all the usual costs associated with the execution of the request for assistance within its jurisdiction, with the exception of the following, which shall be borne by the Requesting Party:

a) expenses and fees of experts;

(b) Translation, interpretation and shorthand costs;

(d) Transportation costs and payments to persons staying in the territory of the Requesting Party upon its request; and

e) the cost of a video conference to assist individuals in providing evidence or assistance.

3. If it becomes apparent that the execution of the request requires substantial or unforeseen costs, the Parties should hold preliminary consultations to determine the conditions for assistance.

Article 19

Consultations

The Parties shall consult with each other through their Central Authorities on the interpretation or application of this Agreement.

Article 20

Regulation of discrepancies

Any differences that may arise in connection with the interpretation or implementation of this Agreement are resolved through negotiations directly between the Parties through diplomatic channels.

Article 21

The relationship of this Agreement with other international agreements

This Agreement does not affect the rights and obligations of the parties arising from any existing international agreements to which they are parties.

Article 22

Changes and additions

Amendments and additions may be made to this agreement by mutual agreement of the Parties. Such amendments and additions shall enter into force in accordance with the procedure provided for in paragraphs 1 and 2 of Article 23 and shall form an integral part of this agreement.

Article 23

Final provisions

1. Each Party shall notify the other Party of the completion of the internal procedures provided for by its national legislation for the entry into force of this agreement in writing through diplomatic channels.

2. This Agreement shall enter into force on the first day of the second month following the date of receipt of such last notification.

3. Either party has the right to terminate this agreement at any time by notifying the other party of the cease-fire in writing through diplomatic channels. Termination shall take effect on the first day of the sixth month following the date of receipt of such notification.

In witness whereof, the undersigned, being duly authorized thereto by their respective States, have signed this Agreement.

To clarify matters ________________ 2025 in two original copies, each in Kazakh and English, both texts being equally authentic.

In case of discrepancies between the texts of this Agreement, the English text shall prevail.

FOR THE REPUBLIC OF KAZAKHSTAN

FOR THE REPUBLIC OF SINGAPORE

President

Republic of Kazakhstan

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