Kazakhstan proposes tax breaks for digital assets and businesses

Kazakhstan is proposing a temporary exemption from individual income tax for individuals earning income from digital asset transactions conducted through Kazakhstan-based providers. The Ministry of National Economy has submitted the relevant amendments to the Tax Code for public consultation.

Under the draft legislation, the exemption would apply from 1 January 2026 to 31 December 2028.

The amendments also propose changes for investors. In particular, they would introduce a separate taxation regime for Golden Visa holders and their family members and abolish a fee of 7,000 monthly calculation indices (MCI) for Astana International Financial Centre investors seeking a document confirming their status as Kazakhstan residents.

Investors could also be reimbursed for infrastructure development costs through tax payments.

For businesses, the proposals include exempting factoring and forfaiting transactions conducted by second-tier banks from value-added tax (VAT). Companies would also be allowed to deduct product labelling expenses at 150% of their actual costs.

The changes would also affect agricultural producers. An additional VAT credit of 80% is proposed to be gradually reduced and fully abolished by 2035.

For the oil industry, the amendments would clarify the method for determining the global oil price using a "Brent minus KEBCO discount" formula. They would also retain a transitional period for applying previously established reduced mineral extraction tax rates to the relevant oil fields.

Another amendment concerns the self-employed. Founders of limited liability partnerships and shareholders of joint-stock companies would no longer be eligible for the special tax regime for self-employed individuals.

The draft also proposes changes to tax administration, including rules governing electronic invoices, VAT credits and the taxation of non-residents.

The draft law has been published on Kazakhstan’s Open Legal Acts portal for public consultation.