President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has signed a new Tax Code and accompanying Law "On Amendments and Additions to Certain Legislative Acts of the Republic of Kazakhstan on Taxation Issues".
According to the government press service, the tax code provides for a large-scale simplification of tax administration: the volume of tax reporting is reduced by 30% and the number of taxes is reduced by 20%.
"Significant changes have affected all key areas – from corporate and personal income taxes to stimulating investment and redistributing the tax burden," the statement said.
A new base rate of 16% has been set for value-added tax (VAT). A reduced VAT rate has been set for medicines and medical services – 5% from 2026 and 10% from 2027.
It has become known that services within the scope of the guaranteed volume of free medical care (GVFMC), compulsory social medical insurance (CSMI), treatment of orphan and socially significant diseases according to the list, services for publishing printed books, as well as archaeological work, are exempt from VAT.
It is noted that a reduced VAT rate of 10% has been set for periodical printed publications. The threshold for mandatory VAT registration has been lowered to 10,000 MCI (40 million tenge).
Pension payments from the UAPF have been exempted from personal income tax (PIT). Transport tax has been reduced for cars older than 10 years. The social tax deduction for persons with disabilities has been increased from 882 MCI (3.4 million tenge) to 5,000 MCI (19.6 million tenge).
"The number of taxes has been reduced: the single land tax is abolished, the number of rates and fees has been reduced for certain payments. Special tax regimes have been optimised – now there are only three: for the self-employed, based on a simplified declaration, and for farms," the statement said.
At the same time, the government reported that the corporate income tax remains at 20%, but differentiated rates are being introduced.
"25% – for banks (excluding lending to business entities) and the gambling business, 5% – for social sector organisations in 2026, rising to 10% in 2027. For agricultural producers, the rate remains preferential – 3%," the executive body noted.
It is reported that to stimulate the stock market, tax benefits on dividends paid on exchange-traded securities are retained.
"Until 2031, income from securities issued by the Baiterek holding is exempt from CIT. Additionally, preferences are provided for mineral processing and geological exploration, including a zero rate of mineral extraction tax (MET) for 5 years for new, low-margin sites," the statement said.
Among other things, progressive PIT rates are being introduced. An increased rate of 15% will apply to the total income of citizens exceeding 8,500 MCI (33.4 million tenge) per year. A similar rate is introduced for dividends and income of entrepreneurs exceeding 230,000 MCI (904.3 million tenge) per year. For farmers, taking into account the retention of the 70% benefit, the tax on income above this limit will be 4.5%.
Among other things, the country has introduced increased taxation for individuals with an excise tax of 10% on expensive products: cars worth over 75 million tenge, vessels worth over 100 million tenge, alcohol worth over 0.5 million tenge/litre, cigars worth over 10,000 tenge each.
Property tax is also increased if the total value of real estate properties exceeds 450 million tenge. At the same time, approaches to tax administration are changing significantly.
"Desk control will be of a preventive nature. Procedures for collecting tax debt and granting deferrals and instalments are simplified. Business accounts will not be blocked for minor amounts of debt. Notifications and measures will be applied in stages depending on the amount of debt," the statement said.
The new Tax Code comes into force on 1 January 2026.