Uzbekistan, Republic of

The following notable changes were recently introduced to Uzbek legislation:

• Abolition of export privileges from 1 January 2025. The 0% corporate income tax (CIT) rate for the export of goods (services) is abolished, and income from exports is included in the tax base for turnover tax.

• Starting from 1 January 2025, a 1% turnover tax is available for wholesale and retail pharmacy organisations and taxpayers in the retail trade sector located in remote and mountainous areas.

• From 1 January 2026, increased tax rates apply for companies engaged in e-commerce (including marketplaces, online stores, and subscription services): CIT rising from 10% to 15% and turnover tax from 3% to 4%.

• From 1 July 2025, the rates for imported and local cigarettes are equalised. Starting 1 February 2026, the excise tax on tobacco products increased by 7%.

• From 1 February 2025 to 1 January 2030, foreign companies that are not tax residents of countries with which Uzbekistan has a double taxation treaty (DTT) are exempt from CIT if their annual volume of export IT services to residents of the IT park (including services for which royalties are paid) exceeds 10 million dollars United States dollars (USD).

• Since 1 January 2025, the excise tax on mobile communication services has been abolished.

• Effective from 1 April 2026, carbonated drinks containing sugar or other sweetening or flavouring substances and packaged in consumer packaging (except for energy and tonic drinks) are subject to excise tax at UZS 500 per litre for products with sugar content up to 5 g per 100 ml (up to 5 g - UZS 500 per litre; from 5 to 10 g - UZS 515 per litre; above 10 g - UZS 535 per litre). Energy drinks are subject to excise tax at UZS 2,150 per litre effective from 1 April 2026.

• From 1 April 2026, excise tax applies to chips packaged for retail sale at the rate of UZS 15,000 per kilogram.

• Effective 1 January 2026, fixed water tax rates were increased by an additional 7% for water users, including power plants, utilities, producers of soft drinks and alcoholic beverages, except beer and wine, and industrial enterprises. In accordance with the presidential decree (PP-107) dated 1 April 2023, water tax rates for other sectors are gradually unified with industrial tariffs.

• From 1 April 2026, water-use tax incentives for enterprises with foreign investment and FEZ participants were abolished.

• As of 1 January 2025, tax benefits available to textile and knitwear enterprise exporters (earning at least 80% of revenue from foreign supplies) were not extended and considered abolished.

• Starting from September 1, 2025, for a period of three years: (i) set the social tax rate for cotton-textile clusters, textile enterprises, and knitwear/garment industry enterprises at 1 percent, and (ii) exempt from customs duties the blended fabrics and cloth not produced in the Republic of Uzbekistan, as well as the necessary raw materials for the leather and silk industries, imported according to lists formed in the prescribed manner, are exempt from customs duties.

• Starting 1 January 2026, a fully automated system powered by artificial intelligence analyses electronic invoices in real time and assign each invoice a risk level: low, medium, or high.

• From 1 January 2025 to 1 January 2028, companies that hire low-income employees with salaries above 1.5 times the minimum wage pay a Social Tax (ST) rate of 1%.

• From 1 September 2024 to 1 September 2027, the ST for companies that employ students from schools, colleges, and technical schools under the age of 30 for vocational training is paid at 1% on income paid to them in the form of wages.

• Companies that hire foreign teachers are exempt from ST until 1 January 2030.

• Starting from April 2025, the Tax Code is amended to reflect that the seller (excluding the issuer) of securities is required to remit fees to the authorised state body responsible for securities market regulation, calculated at 0.3% for organised over-the-counter trades and 0.01% for exchange trades with equity securities based on the transaction amount. The income derived from these transactions, including that of non-residents of the Republic of Uzbekistan, is exempt from CIT and personal income tax (PIT). From 1 January 2026, taxpayers switching from turnover tax to CIT for the first time are exempt from CIT for one tax period.

• From April 2025 to 1 January 2028, the CIT rate for business entities selling fruit and vegetable products in modern packaging and meeting the prescribed conditions, as well as the ST rate for their employees, is set at 1%.

• From 1 January 2025 to 1 January 2028, the CIT rate for food service enterprises is reduced to 7.5%.

• Profits generated from the sale of electricity to the general grid using renewable energy installations with a total capacity of up to 100 kW are subject to a 0% CIT rate. This rate applies for a period of three years from the month the renewable energy installations are commissioned. If solar panels are installed with an energy storage system having at least 25% of the capacity of the solar panels, the 0% tax rate is applicable for 10 years from the month these panels are commissioned.

• From 1 January 2025 to 1 January 2029, taxpayers engaged in publishing and printing activities are exempt from paying CIT for this type of activity, excluding income in the form of interest. During this period, revenues from publishing and printing must account for at least 90% of their total income for the reporting (tax) period.

• From 1 May 2025 to 1 January 2031, residents of the Park of Creative Industry pay ST and PIT at a reduced rate of 6%, which is a 50% reduction, and they are classified as turnover taxpayers regardless of the size of their income derived from the sale of goods, works, or services.  

• From 1 July 2025, all operators of e-commerce platforms, order aggregators, and digital broadcasting services are required to establish a legal entity in the Republic of Uzbekistan in order to continue providing services within the territory of the country.

• From 1 January 2026, a simplified reporting regime is introduced, with the following updates: (i) tax authorities will prepare reports (property, land, income, social tax, turnover, value-added tax [VAT]); (ii) one penalty for missing multiple reports within a period; (iii) penalties payable in six equal instalments; (iv) no repeated desk audits for the same case during an ongoing check; (v) expanded VAT refunds on exports (including sales via local/foreign marketplaces); and (vi) tax debt collection from taxpayer’s debtors. A special procedure also applies to amended PIT and social tax returns. Where an amended return reduces the previously assessed tax amount following the application of tax incentives, it is accepted after verification by the tax authorities.

• From 1 June 2026, catering businesses are entitled to a refund equal to 40% of the VAT paid, regardless of the volume of cashless receipts.

• From 1 January 2027, small businesses may deduct expenses on accounting and tax consulting services in double amount.

• Until 1 January 2028, small businesses may self-correct the consequences of tax violations identified by the automated tax risk assessment system. In such cases, tax audits are not conducted where the amount of tax risk does not exceed UZS 500 million, while on-site tax audits are not conducted where the amount of tax risk does not exceed UZS 100 million.  

• Starting 1 October 2025, enterprises in categories I-II of environmental impact must obtain “Green Certificates,” without which they cannot receive product compliance certificates, and those who sign an eco-certification contract before July 2026 will get it free.

• From 29 June 2026, amendments introducing Islamic banking and Islamic finance entered into force. The legislation establishes a legal framework for Islamic financial instruments, including mudaraba (profit-sharing arrangements), wakala (agency arrangements), murabaha (cost-plus financing), salam (advance payment financing), musharaka (partnership financing), and ijara (Islamic leasing). The Tax Code was amended to introduce specific tax rules for Islamic finance, including VAT exemptions for certain transactions involving Islamic securities (sukuk), trust management services provided by banks and microfinance organisations, murabaha mark-ups, and the positive difference between lease payments and the purchase price of assets under ijara arrangements. Income derived by individuals from certain Islamic financial transactions conducted through banks and microfinance organisations is exempt from personal income tax. Special corporate income tax and property tax provisions were also introduced for Islamic financial transactions.

• Effective from 1 January 2026, the Uzbek Tax Code, the amount of WHT imposed on dividends paid by an Uzbek legal entity to a non-resident legal entity may be reduced by the amount of tax previously paid on dividends received by the Uzbek distributing entity from other Uzbek legal entities, provided that all of the following conditions are met:

  • the non-resident recipient directly or indirectly holds at least 25% of the charter capital of the Uzbek legal entity paying the dividends;
  • such participation has been maintained continuously for at least 365 calendar days prior to the dividend payment date;
  • the tax previously paid on dividends received from other Uzbek legal entities has not already been taken into account in determining the WHT liability on dividends;

  • the Uzbek tax agent possesses documentary evidence confirming the payment of tax on the dividends received from other Uzbek legal entities.