The Republic of Kazakhstan offers impressive prospects for business development, becoming an increasingly attractive destination for investors worldwide. The country's position on the international stage is supported by a number of significant advantages, including:

In the current economic environment of Kazakhstan, entrepreneurs are offered a wide range of legal forms for conducting business, each distinguished by its unique characteristics and benefits. Let’s explore the key options available for business owners to choose from.

Individual Entrepreneur (IE):
The IE is the simplest and most accessible way to organize entrepreneurial activity, particularly attractive for novice entrepreneurs and self-employed individuals. An IE can be registered electronically using the eGov service. The procedure takes from 5 to 15 minutes, significantly simplifying and speeding up the process of starting a business.

An IE bears full responsibility for obligations with personal property. However, this form has several advantages: minimal reporting requirements, the possibility to operate under a patent system, and no need for complex accounting. IE is an optimal choice for small businesses not aiming for significant expansion, but it is not the preferred option for innovative startups or enterprises associated with higher risks.

Limited Liability Partnership (LLP):
In Kazakhstan, the LLP is the most in-demand legal form for entrepreneurial activity. Essentially, it is similar to the Russian LLC and represents an optimal choice for both small and medium-sized enterprises.

An LLP is a legal entity established by one or more persons. The charter capital is divided into shares, the size of which is defined by the founding documents. Participants are liable for the LLP’s obligations only within the limits of their contributions. Exceptions are possible under the Civil Code and the LLP Law.
The LLP is considered established for an indefinite period unless otherwise specified in the founding documents. The LLP is a legal entity.

LLP Liability: 

The same person can be both a participant and the director of an LLP; there are no restrictions in this regard. However, attention should be paid to restrictions related to a single participant if that participant is another legal entity. For example, the legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan prohibits an LLP with a sole participant from being established by another business partnership that also has a single participant.

Example:   

If the LLP has a sole participant (individual or legal entity), then:  

Branches and Representative Offices:
Foreign companies can operate in Kazakhstan by opening branches and representative offices. 

Branch is a separate structural unit with extended authority. This form allows not only representing the interests of the parent company but also conducting the main type of the organization’s activity. The branch has the right to:

Since an LLP is the most common legal form for company registration in Kazakhstan, let us take a broader look at the advantages and disadvantages of this type of legal entity.

Reasons why an LLP is a beneficial choice:

Financial Security of Participants:
Limited liability of participants is one of the main advantages of the LLP legal form. This feature significantly distinguishes a partnership from the status of an individual entrepreneur, where the business owner bears full personal liability for obligations.

In the case of an LLP, the founders are legally protected: their liability is strictly limited to the amount of invested capital. This means that in the event of financial difficulties or debts to creditors, the personal assets of the participants remain untouchable.
This system creates an important financial buffer that:

Step 1: Obtaining a Migration Permit for LLP Founders
Residents who plan to open or become participants in an LLP in Kazakhstan must undergo the procedure for obtaining a special migration permit.

Citizens of EAEU Countries
Entrepreneurs from countries that are members of the Eurasian Economic Union (including Russia, Belarus, Armenia, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan) and have visa-free agreements with Kazakhstan must obtain a temporary residence permit (TRP) as business migrants. This document allows them to stay in Kazakhstan without a visa and conduct entrepreneurial activities.

Citizens of Other Countries
For businessmen from countries not belonging to the Eurasian Economic Union, a business visa of category C5 is required. This document is necessary in the following cases:

Step 2: Appointment of the LLP Director
When registering an LLP in Kazakhstan, it is necessary to appoint a company director. The document requirements depend on the citizenship of the appointed director.

Director – Citizen of Kazakhstan
When appointing a Kazakhstani citizen as director, no additional permits or visas are required. The director can fully exercise their powers without any restrictions.

Director from EAEU Countries
Citizens of Eurasian Economic Union countries have a special legal status when managing Kazakhstani companies. They can hold the position of director without additional approval from labor and migration authorities regarding the involvement of foreign specialists. They exercise their managerial powers fully without restrictions.
However, if a prolonged stay in Kazakhstan is planned (more than 90 consecutive days or more than 180 days in total per calendar year), it is necessary to obtain a temporary residence permit. The basis for its issuance is a concluded employment contract. The TRP acquisition process is significantly simplified if a complete set of correctly prepared documents is submitted, allowing the processing time to be minimized.

Director from Other Countries
For citizens of countries outside the EAEU planning to take the position of LLP director, a visa of category "C3" is required. This visa is intended for foreign specialists arriving in Kazakhstan to perform labor activities, including their family members (except citizens of EAEU countries). Holding a "C3" visa grants a foreign citizen the legal opportunity to work in the country, but only if all necessary conditions are met and a work permit is obtained according to the established procedure.

Step 3: Preparation of the Document Package
Successful registration of a legal entity with foreign capital in Kazakhstan requires a specific set of documents.

For individuals acting as founders, the following are required:

Step 8: Determining the Size of the Charter Capital
LLP Charter Capital is the initial capital of the company formed from the founders' contributions. It serves as:

Step 9: Choosing the LLP Name

LLP Name must meet the following requirements:

When organizing a business in Kazakhstan, it is important to consider the tax burden. Let's look at the main tax obligations for an LLP.
Corporate Income Tax in Kazakhstan
 One of the key taxes faced by legal entities in Kazakhstan is corporate income tax. The general rate of this tax is 20%.
 This levy is collected on the profits of organizations of all forms of ownership - from LLPs and Additional Liability Partnerships to Joint-Stock Companies. It is paid by both residents and non-residents if they carry out activities in Kazakhstan through a permanent establishment or receive income from sources located within the country.

• It is important to note that foreign companies with a permanent establishment in Kazakhstan, in addition to corporate income tax, must pay a tax on the net income of branches, which is 15% of the remaining amount after paying corporate income tax.

However, tax legislation provides for special regimes that can significantly reduce the tax burden, especially for representatives of small and medium-sized businesses.
One such regime is the simplified taxation system.
 Under this scheme, entrepreneurs pay only 4% of the income received for a six-month period. This regime, known as the "simplified regime," is designed to significantly reduce the administrative and financial burden on entrepreneurs. However, its application is strictly regulated and not available to everyone.
The Essence of the Regime and Key Advantages
 Taxpayers who choose the Special Tax Regime based on a simplified declaration receive a number of significant preferences:

• Single Payment: A single aggregate payment is made, replacing corporate or individual income tax. The rate is 4% of the semi-annual income amount.
• Exemption from Key Taxes: Enterprises under this regime are not payers of social tax or value added tax (VAT).
  
  • Exception for VAT: An important clarification — the VAT exemption does not apply to import operations. VAT on the import of goods into the territory of the Republic of Kazakhstan is paid in the generally established manner.

Who can apply the special regime based on a simplified declaration in Kazakhstan?
 The right to apply the regime is available to both individual entrepreneurs and resident legal entities of Kazakhstan, subject to the simultaneous fulfillment of three criteria:

• Income Limit: The total annual income must not exceed 600,000 MCI. Considering the MCI amount in 2026 (4,235 tenge), this is 2.541 billion tenge.
• Permitted Types of Activities: The company must carry out types of activities that are not included in the prohibited list approved by the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
• "Purity" of the Business Structure: A number of restrictions are related to the corporate structure:
  
  • The share of participation of other legal entities in the authorized capital must not exceed 25%.
  • The founders/participants of the company themselves must not apply the SRT or be founders in another company on the "simplified regime."
     The regime is not available to non-profit organizations, residents of special economic zones, and participants in joint activity agreements.

Prohibited List of Activities
 The Government has approved a list of 44 types of economic activities (according to OKED) for which the use of the simplified declaration is prohibited. This list traditionally includes:

• Activities in the financial and insurance sector.
• Extraction of crude oil and natural gas.
• Production of excisable goods.
• Trade in precious metals and stones.
• Auditing and legal practice.
• Gambling business.
   Before switching to the SRT, it is critically important to check your OKED codes against the current prohibited list.

Tax Period and Reporting
 The tax period for calculating the single aggregate payment is six months. This means that the tax calculation and submission of the simplified declaration are done twice a year, which reduces the volume of regular reporting.
SME Support Measures from 2026
 As part of further debureaucratization, additional guarantees are provided for conscientious taxpayers under the SRT:

• Limitation of Tax Audits: A moratorium has been introduced on conducting scheduled documentary and on-site tax audits on compliance with tax legislation.
• Simplified Tax Control: The grounds for unscheduled control have been significantly narrowed, creating more stable and predictable conditions for doing business.

The special tax regime based on a simplified declaration is an effective tool for legally reducing the fiscal burden for small businesses in Kazakhstan. Its application requires careful preliminary analysis for compliance with the criteria for income, types of activities, and ownership structure. For those who meet all the conditions, the regime opens up the opportunity to focus resources on business development, rather than on administering complex tax reporting.

Abolition of Tax Regimes from 01/01/2026 in Kazakhstan
 From January 1, 2026, large-scale changes to the system of special tax regimes in Kazakhstan came into force, aimed at its unification and simplification. As part of the tax reform, four previously existing special regimes were completely abolished:

• SRT using a fixed deduction — a regime that allowed applying a fixed deduction to income.
• SRT of retail tax — a special regime for retail trade entities.
• SRT based on a patent — a taxation system based on purchasing a patent for certain types of activities.
• SRT using a mobile application — an experimental digital regime for micro-businesses.

The key goal of the reform is to reduce the number of regimes to minimize confusion, lower administrative barriers, and concentrate support for small and micro-businesses within the enhanced regime based on a simplified declaration, which remains the main one.
Entrepreneurs who applied the abolished SRTs needed to switch to another valid tax regime (in most cases — to the SRT based on a simplified declaration or the generally established procedure) before January 1, 2026, and adapt their accounting and tax records to the new rules.
Value Added Tax (VAT) in Kazakhstan
 One of the factors contributing to business development in Kazakhstan is the relatively low value-added tax rate - 16%. This favorably distinguishes Kazakhstan from countries such as Belarus (25%) and Russia (22%).
However, it is important to consider that not all participants in economic activity are required to pay VAT. For example, tax is not levied on:

• government organizations;
• subdivisions of residents;
• enterprises whose annual turnover does not exceed 10,000 monthly calculation indices (MCI).
• enterprises applying the special tax regime based on a simplified declaration.

In addition, certain types of services and transactions are exempt from taxation or are subject to a zero rate. For example, this applies to museum services, international transportation, and export operations.
Important: even if an organization is not registered as a VAT payer, it is still obliged to pay tax when importing goods. At the same time, some categories of imported goods are exempt from VAT - these include, for example, computer equipment, color monitors, storage devices, and certain types of machine tools.
Value Added Tax is paid four times a year, i.e., quarterly.
All businesses whose turnover exceeds 10,000 MCI must be registered for VAT. This rule applies regardless of whether the company applies the general tax regime or a special tax regime.

Taxes and Deductions from Wages in Kazakhstan
 From January 1, 2026, key changes in the taxation of the wage fund come into force in Kazakhstan. Employers on the general regime and individual entrepreneurs hiring employees need to take into account new rates, limits, and the principle of progressive taxation. All calculations are based on indicators established by the state:

• Minimum Wage: 85,000 tenge (maintained at the 2025 level).
• Monthly Calculation Index: 4,235 tenge (increased from 3,932 tenge).

1. Individual Income Tax (PIT): progressive scale
 The main innovation is the introduction of a second PIT rate for high incomes.

• Annual income up to 36.76 million tenge (8,500 MCI): Rate 10%.
• Annual income over 36.76 million tenge: A rate of 15% applies to the excess amount.

How does this work in practice? Tax is calculated monthly on a cumulative basis. For example, with an annual salary of 50 million tenge, the PIT would be: 10% of 36.76 million tenge (3,676,000 tenge) plus 15% of 13.24 million tenge (1,986,000 tenge). Total — about 5,662,000 tenge for the year.
Important: For all employees, there is an increased standard tax deduction of 30 MCI (127,050 tenge per month), on which income is not subject to PIT. This is the first money that the employee receives "net".
2. Social Tax (ST): new calculation base
 From 2026, social tax is calculated differently for individual entrepreneurs and legal entities (LLP, JSC).

• For individual entrepreneurs for themselves: A fixed amount of 1 MCI (4,235 tenge) per month.
• For LLP/JSC per employee: Rate of 6%, but not on the entire salary. The base for calculation is the employee's salary minus their pension contributions minus their medical insurance contributions. At the same time, the resulting base must not be less than 14 MCI (59,290 tenge).
   Example: With a salary of 600,000 tenge, after deducting pension contributions (60,000 tenge) and medical insurance contributions (12,000 tenge), the base will be 528,000 tenge. Social tax = 528,000 * 6% = 31,680 tenge (paid by the employer).

3. Mandatory Social Payments: rates and limits
 In addition to taxes, the law requires the employer to make contributions to social funds. There are minimum and maximum limits tied to the minimum wage. The minimum base for calculation is 1 minimum wage (85,000 tenge), the maximum varies (e.g., 50 minimum wages for pension contributions).

• Pension system:
  • MPC (mandatory pension contributions): 10% of salary, withheld from the employee (maximum 425,000 tenge/month).
  • EPC (employer's pension contributions): 3.5% of salary, paid by the employer (maximum 148,750 tenge/month). Not accrued for employees born before 1975 and pensioners.
• Social Insurance (SI): 5% of salary, paid by the employer. Minimum payment — 4,250 tenge, maximum — 212,500 tenge per month. These contributions form the fund for sick leave, pregnancy, and childbirth benefits.
• Health Insurance (HI): Bilateral financing.
  
  • EEHI (employee's health insurance contribution): 2%, withheld from salary (max. 85,000 tenge/month).
  • ERHI (employer's health insurance contribution): 3%, paid by the employer (max. 254,100 tenge/month).

4. Total Burden: example of a full calculation
 Let's take a salary of 500,000 tenge per month for clarity.
A. What the employee receives (deductions from salary)?

1. MPC (10%): 50,000 tenge
2. EEHI (2%): 10,000 tenge
3. PIT: (500,000 - 127,050 (deduction)) * 10% = 37,295 tenge
4. Total withheld: 50,000 + 10,000 + 37,295 = 97,295 tenge
5. Take-home pay: 500,000 - 97,295 = 402,705 tenge

B. What the employer pays additionally (on top of the salary)?

1. Social Tax (ST): (500,000 - 50,000 - 10,000) * 6% = 26,400 tenge
2. Social Insurance (SI) contributions (5%): 25,000 tenge
3. Employer's Pension Contributions (EPC) (3.5%): 17,500 tenge
4. Employer's Health Insurance (ERHI) contributions (3%): 15,000 tenge
5. Total additional employer expenses: 26,400 + 25,000 + 17,500 + 15,000 = 83,900 tenge

C. Total cost of the employee for the company:
 Salary 500,000 tenge + Additional expenses 83,900 tenge = 583,900 tenge.
Key conclusion for business: The real cost of an employee for a company exceeds their official salary by more than 16-17% (in this example, 83,900 tenge from 500,000 tenge). At the same time, the employee receives only about 80% of the accrued amount in hand. Accounting for this total burden is critically important for correctly forming the financial model, budgeting, and pricing. All calculations, especially for PIT and ST, must be carried out taking into account the new rules from the beginning of 2026.