Kazakhstan Quadruples Social Assistance Budget for 2025 as Utility Costs Rise

Vice Minister of Labor and Social Protection of Kazakhstan Olzhas Anafin announced at a government press conference that this year's funding for TSA payments is four times higher than last year, reports Orda.kz.

He noted that utility rate increases will affect the non-food portion of the subsistence minimum (55% food portion, 45% non-food portion).

Thus, the increase in utility costs will lead to an increase in the subsistence minimum and, consequently, changes in the poverty line that affects TSA amounts, explained Olzhas Anafin.

He assured the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection is prepared for these changes.

All Kazakhstanis with incomes below the poverty line will receive targeted social assistance.

While in 2024, 39.5 billion tenge was spent on TSA payments for 413,700 people from 78,100 families, in 2025, 132.9 billion tenge has been allocated for one million people.

Kazakhstanis with low incomes are eligible for these types of state support:

• Housing and social assistance for utility payments for citizens whose utility and housing maintenance expenses exceed the maximum allowable share set by local representative bodies.
• The maximum allowable share is no more than 10%.

Targeted Social Assistance (TSA) is aimed at helping families overcome challenges.

TSA includes:

• Quarterly social assistance for citizens whose income doesn't exceed the poverty line
• Monthly additional payment of 1.5 MCI for each child aged one to six from low-income families
• Employment assistance through job placement, grants for families motivated to start their own business, professional development courses (if needed), etc.

Original Author: Rimma Karatayeva