Kazakhstan has reduced the time taken for customs clearance of cargo trains from three hours to just 30 minutes, as part of a pilot project to automate rail transit on the China–Central Asia and China–Europe routes, according to a report by the Kazinform News Agency, citing the State Revenue Committee.

Over the first ten months of 2025, freight rail transit from China via Kazakhstan to the Eurasian Economic Union, Europe and Central Asia showed an upward trend.

The Committee reports that the volume of goods transported by rail from China reached 11.04 million tonnes, marking an 11% year-on-year increase.

This growing volume of transit confirms Kazakhstan’s growing role as a key transport and logistics hub and highlights the importance of rail transport in maintaining the resilience of international supply chains.

Launched in December 2023, the pilot project automates rail transit by enabling the automatic submission and clearance of transit declarations for goods on the China–Central Asia and China–Europe routes.

From January to October 2025, the project processed 2.5 million tonnes of cargo. The project is designed to enhance transparency, streamline customs procedures and improve the efficiency of train operations on transit routes.

Consequently, the clearance time for a single container train has decreased from three hours to just 30 minutes.

During his speech at the 2nd Central Asia-Russia Summit in Dushanbe, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev also revealed that shipments from Russia to China via Kazakhstan had tripled to over 5 million tons.

Source: Kazinform International News Agency