Constitutional Reform and International Law in the Legal System of the Republic of Kazakhstan

INTRODUCTION. The subject of the study is the constitutional model of interaction between international and national law in the Republic of Kazakhstan, which underwent changes because of the adoption of the new version of the Constitution in the referendum of March 15, 2026. Relevance is determined by the need for theoretical reflection on the abandonment of the previously enshrined priority of ratified international treaties over laws and the transition to a model where international obligations remain part of the current law, but their application is mediated by legislation and subordinated to the supremacy of the Constitution.

MATERIALS AND METHODS. The materials include the texts of the Constitution of the Republic of Kazakhstan in the 1995 and 2026 versions, normative resolutions of the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court, sectoral legislation (criminal, criminal procedure), universal and regional international treaties to which Kazakhstan is a party, and doctrinal sources. The methodological basis comprises the formal-legal method (analysis of normative texts), the comparative-legal method (comparison of doctrinal concepts of monism, dualism, coordination), and the method of doctrinal interpretation and analysis of judicial practice.

RESEARCH RESULTS. The content of the article reveals the evolution of Kazakhstan’s constitutional model: from the priority of ratified international treaties over laws enshrined in the previous version, to a new construction in which international treaty obligations remain part of the current law, but their domestic effect is to a greater extent mediated by legislation and subordinated to the supremacy of the Constitution. It is established that the new Constitution (Article 5) includes international treaty obligations in the current law, while at the same time affirming the supremacy of the Constitution and stipulating that the procedure for applying international treaties is determined by law. Ratified treaties retain priority over laws (but not over the Constitution); however, their direct effect is limited by the need for legislative mediation in cases requiring specification. It is revealed that the proposed model does not contradict the 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, as it leaves the state free to choose domestic implementation mechanisms. Using the example of Kazakhstan’s participation in basic international treaties in the field of crime counteraction, it is shown that successful implementation requires the alignment of international norms with national criminal and criminal procedure legislation.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS. The new Constitution of Kazakhstan does not signify a rejection of international legal openness, but rather a transition to a constitutionally ordered model of implementing international obligations, in which international treaties are applied through clearly defined domestic procedures and under the supervision of the Constitutional Court. Such a model enhances legal certainty, preserves the structural integrity of the national legal system, and at the same time sets the perspective for further development of implementation mechanisms aimed at overcoming gaps between constitutional provisions and actual law enforcement practice.

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