ASTANA (TCA) — The Government of Kazakhstan on September 12 approved the draft of a new Tax Code, which is aimed at encouraging the growth of SMEs and strengthening the financial sector, the official website of the Prime Minister of Kazakhstan reports.
Minister of National Economy Timur Suleimenov reported that under the new Tax Code, the ideology of taxation has been changed, which will be aimed at protecting honest taxpayers, stimulating different sectors of the economy and simplifying tax administration processes.
According to the new Code all the uncertainties and inaccuracies will be interpreted in favor of taxpayers.
For the development of small and medium businesses it is envisaged to maintain the existing special tax regimes. At the same time, a new alternative mode of fixed deduction is proposed. This is beneficial for those who have high turnover but low profit. Companies will be able to deduct half of their revenue without confirmation, and if they start keeping records of expenses, they will receive bonuses (deductions) for confirmation of expenses.
Also, under the “simplified declaration” regime, the requirement on the amount of income will be the same for individuals and legal entities. In addition, the patents’ rates will be reduced from 2% to 1%.
In the sphere of subsoil use, investment in geological exploration will be stimulated. It is proposed to abolish the super-profit tax for the mining industry. It is planned to cancel the commercial discovery bonus in order to stimulate successful exploration. For marine and deep oil deposits, a simpler alternative to subsoil use tax is proposed.
In terms of the real sector of the economy, VAT benefits are offered for the automotive industry under a special investment contract (SIC). So, import of components, as well as turnover of sales of goods produced in SIC, will be exempted from VAT. Also, the transfer of property into financial leasing is exempt from VAT if the transferred property is acquired without VAT and is included in the list of goods for SIC.
Also, a number of incentives are envisaged for improving the financial sector, attracting investments and increasing benefits to participants in special economic zones.
In general, it is expected that with the adoption of tax innovations, tax disputes will decrease, the number of inspections will be reduced, and tax administration will be simplified. The tax policy will become clearer and more predictable.
