USA
Kazakhstan trade laneAmerican auction cars have been arriving in Kazakhstan in volume for years. The economics are straightforward: US salvage and clean-title pricing is low, Kazakh demand for well-specified sedans, crossovers and pickups is high, and a repairable vehicle bought at Copart or IAAI can land in Almaty for meaningfully less than the equivalent car on the local market.
What catches people out is never the ocean freight. It is what happens after the car reaches Kazakhstan — the EAEU duty, the recycling fee, and the safety certification a vehicle needs before it can be registered. Those three together frequently exceed the entire cost of shipping. This guide sets out both halves, because a quote that covers only the freight is not a number you can plan around.
AGF ships from any US auction or dealer, handles the CBP title formalities and AES filing that stop first-timers at the port, and routes to Kazakhstan through the Caucasus or the Baltic — the same Caucasus network we already run every week for our Armenia and Georgia vehicle traffic.
How Vehicles Ships from USA to Kazakhstan
Vehicles move in containers on this lane, not RORO. There is no roll-on/roll-off service to a landlocked country, so the car is secured inside a 40ft box — commonly three or four vehicles to a container with racking — and stays in it through the ocean leg and the overland continuation. This suits the trade well, because salvage and non-running units ship the same way as clean ones, with winch or forklift loading.
Two routings dominate. Via Georgia: ocean from a US port to Poti or Batumi, roughly 25–35 days from the East Coast, then overland east across the Caucasus and the Caspian to Almaty. Via the Baltic: ocean to Klaipeda, Riga or Bremerhaven, then rail east into Kazakhstan — often quicker for East Coast cargo. Total door-to-door time on either is realistically 8–12 weeks, and the inland US leg from auction to port frequently decides how much of that you actually control.
- Three to four sedans per 40ft container — the lowest cost per car, and the standard structure for dealers
- Salvage and non-running vehicles load by winch or forklift, same as clean-title units
- Nationwide pickup from Copart, IAAI, Manheim and dealer lots, with photo documentation at loading
- CBP title presentation at least 72 hours before export, and AES filing, handled as standard
- Routing via Poti/Batumi or via the Baltic, chosen on your port of departure and your deadline
What Drives the Cost
- How many vehicles share the container — a solo car in a 40ft box is the most expensive way to do this
- Inland trucking distance from the auction yard to the export port
- Running vs non-running condition, which decides the loading equipment needed
- Vehicle size — a pickup or large SUV consumes container space a sedan does not
- Routing choice: via Georgia or via the Baltic, which changes both transit time and the overland cost
- Kazakh-side charges, which are the larger half: EAEU import duty, 12% VAT, the recycling fee, SBKTS certification and registration
HS Codes and Duty Notes
Classification guidance only — duty rates change and depend on your exact product. Our licensed customs brokers verify every code before you commit to an order.
| HS Code | Products | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 8703 | Passenger cars and other vehicles principally for carrying persons | The applicable EAEU duty depends on engine type, capacity and the vehicle's age, and the treatment of an individual importing one car differs from that of a company importing several. There is no single rate to quote — we work the actual figure with Kazakh brokers against your specific vehicle before you bid. |
| 8704 | Motor vehicles for the transport of goods — pickups and light trucks | Classification between 8703 and 8704 is not always obvious for crew-cab pickups, and it changes the duty. Worth settling before purchase rather than after arrival. |
| 8706 / 8707 | Chassis fitted with engines; bodies for motor vehicles | Relevant when a damaged vehicle is imported in a form that is no longer a complete car. The classification consequences are significant and are a common source of disputes at clearance. |
Regulations and Compliance
US export clearance — the 72-hour rule
Every vehicle exported from the United States must be presented to CBP with its original title, or an acceptable substitute, at least 72 hours before export. Titles must be free of liens or accompanied by lien-holder authorization. Missed title formalities are the single most common cause of a missed sailing, which is why we manage the CBP submission at the export port ourselves rather than leaving it with the seller.
AES filing
Electronic Export Information must be filed in the Automated Export System for used vehicle exports. We file it on every shipment as part of the booking.
EAEU import duty and Kazakh VAT
Kazakhstan applies the EAEU common customs tariff at the external border, plus Kazakh import VAT, currently 12% — lower than the equivalent rate in Armenia or Russia, and one of the genuine advantages of importing through Kazakhstan. Duty on vehicles varies by engine type, engine capacity and age, and the regime for individuals differs from the commercial one.
Recycling fee (утилизационный сбор)
Kazakhstan charges a recycling fee on vehicles entering the country, calculated from a base rate multiplied by coefficients that depend on the vehicle's age and engine capacity. For older and larger-engined vehicles this fee can be a very substantial part of the total landed cost — for some cars, more than the freight and duty combined. It is the number that most often turns a good auction purchase into a bad one, and it is the first thing we tell buyers to price before bidding. Coefficients are revised periodically, so we confirm the current calculation for your specific vehicle rather than quoting a figure that may have moved.
SBKTS safety certificate and the electronic vehicle passport
Before a vehicle can be registered in Kazakhstan it needs an SBKTS — a certificate of conformity of vehicle design safety — issued under the EAEU technical regulation on wheeled vehicle safety, and an electronic vehicle passport (ЭПТС) generated from it. Imported vehicles generally must meet at least the Euro-5 emissions standard. A car that cannot obtain an SBKTS is a car that cannot be registered, however cleanly it cleared customs, so this needs checking against the specific vehicle before purchase.
Export controls and end-user screening
We screen every shipment on this lane against denied-party lists and check the end use and end user. Ordinary vehicle traffic is entirely unaffected by this. It exists because Kazakhstan sits on routes that have been used to move goods onward to restricted destinations, and a shipment that raises those questions is one we would rather decline at booking than explain later.
Door-to-Door Shipping Service
Send us the auction lot number or the seller's address and we handle the chain from there: collection anywhere in the United States, delivery to the export port, CBP title processing and AES filing, container loading with photo documentation at each stage, ocean freight to Poti, Batumi or a Baltic port, and the overland continuation to Almaty, Astana or your city.
On the Kazakh side our authorized representative and local brokers manage EAEU clearance, the recycling fee, SBKTS certification and the electronic passport, so the car arrives registrable rather than merely delivered.
Dealers shipping regularly get consolidated container programmes — three or four cars per box on a schedule, at per-unit pricing that beats single-car rates by a wide margin.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to ship a car from the USA to Kazakhstan?
What is the utilization fee and why is it so large?
Can I import a salvage or non-running car into Kazakhstan?
How long does it take to ship a car from the USA to Kazakhstan?
Does the car have to meet Euro-5?
Can I ship spare parts or personal items inside the vehicle?
Vehicles is just one example. AGF ships whatever your business moves — on this lane and beyond. If your commodity isn't covered by one of our guides, tell us what you ship and we'll build the logistics around it.
China Office