https://egov.kz/cms/sites/default/files/registrationinfo_ru_30.pdfTo establish a small business, you just need to register as an individual entrepreneur (IE). 

An IE status enables legitimately conducting the activities and making profit under the condition of scrupulous calculation and payment of taxes.     

Being an individual entrepreneur, you will have an opportunity to cooperate and establish partnerships with other companies and organizations on a legal basis. Also, potential customers tend to have more trust to businessmen registered officially.

The material contains information on IE registration terms, taxation regimes and online registration of IE.   

1. IE registration terms

An individual entrepreneurship is conducted in the form of personal or joint business.  

An individual entrepreneurship is performed by an individual based on property owned, while joint entrepreneurship is performed by a group of individual entrepreneurs based on co-ownership of property.

You should register as an individual entrepreneur, if:

• you will hire personnel on a permanent basis;
• you will have an annual income exceeding 12-fold minimum salary, i.e.12 х 42 500 = KZT 510 000 (in 2019 minimum salary: KZT 42 500).

Otherwise your activities will be deemed illegal and it entails administrative liability.

2. Taxation regimes for IE

There are several taxation regimes and registration of an individual entrepreneur is processed     only after selection of one of them. Major taxation regimes are as follows:

General taxation regime

An individual entrepreneur applying a general taxation regime should annually (till March 31^st of the following year) provide a tax declaration for individual income tax. 

A tax declaration contains a calculated income (“income” minus “expenses”) which was obtained within the report period and which is an individual income tax object at 10% rate.

Special taxation regime based on simplified declaration

The regime is applied by taxpayers complying with the following conditions: 

• Average number of employees for the period: up to 30 people;
• Income for the period: does not exceed 24 038 MCI (KZT 60 695 950 in 2019).

Tax based on simplified declaration amounts to 3% from income.

Special taxation regime based on patent

The regime based on patent is applied by individual entrepreneurs, who:

• do not hire employees;
• whose marginal annual profit does not exceed 3 528 MCI (KZT 8 908 200 in 2019).

An individual income tax for the regime based on patent is as follows: 

• 2% for trade activities (cashless trade - 1%);

          1% for non-trade activities. 

3. Registration of an individual entrepreneur

To register as IE, you should first notify a tax authority on the start of entrepreneurial activities.

A notification enables conducting business from the moment of its submission and confirms availability of registration as IE on its own accord. 

The service for notification submission is fully automated, free-of-charge and is delivered within 1 working day.

Online registration of IE

To submit a notification on the start of entrepreneurial activities, you need to register on the e-Licensing Portal (elicense.kz). To do this, get a digital signature. Familiarize with the detailed guidance here.

After being registered, click on the service called “Notification on the start of activities as an individual entrepreneur”.

Click “Order the Service Online” on the service page, afterwards you need to select a             licensor, i.e. tax authority where you are registered.  

Then, fill in an application, indicate IE name, activity type (CCЕA) and select one of the taxation regimes. Sign an application using digital signature.   

You can track a status of submitted application and get notifications in Personal Account in “My permit documents” section, “Notifications” subsection. This is how the online procedure for IE registration is performed.