Photo: sqbconsulting.uz
Uzbek entrepreneurs will be granted a tax amnesty until November 1. This means that if errors are found in reporting, they will be given until that date to correct them without penalties. President Shavkat Mirziyoyev announced the measure during a meeting with business representatives, according to his press service.
The head of state explained the relevance of the initiative by noting that errors have already been identified in the documents of more than 20,000 entrepreneurs. In total, they were facing penalties amounting to 16 trillion soums ($1.2 billion). Moreover, fines negatively affect the “track record” of business owners.
“Therefore, we are declaring a kind of amnesty. No penalties will be imposed for these inspections. Instead, until November 1, entrepreneurs are given the opportunity to voluntarily correct mistakes. From that moment, businesses will start their rating, as it were, from a clean slate,” Mirziyoyev said.
Another reform is that, starting in 2026, tax reports will be prepared by the fiscal authorities themselves. This will apply to land, property, social, and income taxes. Civil servants will generate the necessary declarations free of charge, after which entrepreneurs will have five days to review the data and make corrections if necessary.
At the same time, beginning November 1, the system of fines for each overdue tax report will be abolished. Instead, a single monetary penalty will be imposed, with the amount reduced threefold for small and medium-sized businesses.
Mirziyoyev also noted that many entrepreneurs who have switched from turnover tax to value-added tax (VAT) fear that it will complicate accounting, require hiring accountants, and increase expenses.
To address this, additional benefits will be introduced for such businesses:
✅ exemption from profit tax for one year;
✅ exemption from penalties for reporting errors for one year;
✅ exemption for up to six months from payroll taxes on accountants earning up to 5 million soums ($400) per month.
In addition, the procedure for advance profit tax payments has been simplified. Until now, companies with turnover above 10 billion soums (about $800,000) were required to make such payments. Now, the threshold has been raised to 20 billion soums (nearly $1.6 million) in annual revenue. Thanks to this change, about 14,000 entrepreneurs will collectively retain nearly 1 trillion soums ($80 million) as additional working capital.
The president also announced the elimination of several bureaucratic barriers. He recalled that in recent years, 120 permit requirements for entrepreneurs have been canceled, with another 120 shifted to electronic format. In 2024 alone, the elimination of 16 types of licenses saved businesses 350 billion soums ($28 million).
In 2026, the government plans to abolish another 10 types of permits. For example, auditors, tourism artisans, and vehicle inspection companies will switch to notification-based procedures.
Also, starting next year, the “Business in 15 Minutes” procedure will be introduced. At the company registration stage, entrepreneurs will automatically receive a digital signature and a bank account; if they wish, they will also be able to register a rental agreement and register a cash register with the tax authorities online. Currently, these steps can take up to a week, but under the new system, the process will be reduced to 15 minutes.
