Kazakhstan: Business Environment

Accounting Rules

Tax Year

The financial year starts from 1st January and ends on 31st December of the same year.

Accounting Standards

According to the new Law, large business entities and organizations of public interests must prepare financial reports in accordance with IFRS. Other legal entities and individual entrepreneurs, at their discretion, may prepare financial reports in accordance with either IFRS or the National Accounting Standards, which generally refer to IFRS.

Accounting Regulation Bodies

Ministry of Finance

Accounting Reports

The accounting balance sheet is presented with shareholder capital and debts as liability, the latter will be broken down into long term and short term debts.
The income statement gives the priority to the referential of total production and classification of expenses per function.
(Russian model).

Publication Requirements

The law pertaining to companies in the Republic of Kazakhstan encourages companies to post up the operational accounts. The accounts should be established in national currency according to the new Russian accounting plan introduced in January 1992. Accounting should be held as per the standards in force but the companies do not have any obligations for the annual reports, except for financial reports.

Professional Accountancy Bodies

Chamber of Auditors of the Republic of Kazakhstan
Ministry of Finance gives a list of audit bodies

Certification and Auditing

There is no formal obligation for the audit, except for registration of daily activity. However, the rights, obligations and qualifications of auditors tend to be more and more specific and subjected to laws and regulations.  Certain companies must undergo an annual statutory audit (banks, insurance companies, pension funds, and other financial institutions, joint stock companies, and companies operating under an investment contract concluded with the State). An audit company of their choice can perform this audit. Sometimes, however, it may be required that a statutory audit is performed by a Big 4 audit firm.
You can contact an external auditor: Deloitte, Ernst & Young, PricewaterhouseCoopers, KPMG.

Accounting News

IAS Plus
Website of the Ministry of Finance
Information portal on accounting sector

Tax Rates

Intellectual Property

National Organizations

In the area of intellectual property, Kazakhstan adheres to the following international agreements: the Convention instituting World Intellectual Property Organisation, the Paris Convention for protection of industrial property, the Madrid Agreement concerning the international registration of trademarks, the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) and the Eurasian Convention on patents. The last three agreements enable to obtain the protection for trademarks or patents in Kazakhstan by registration of requests in Paris or in Geneva.

Kazakhstan has a National Institute of Intellectual Property and a Committee on Intellectual Property Rights which can be consulted in English.

Regional Organizations

Kazakhstan is member of Euroasian Patent Organisation.

Legal Framework

Independence of Justice

The Constitution of Kazakhstan restricts the independent power of the judiciary significantly, which is subordinate to the executive.

Equal Treatment of Nationals and Foreigners

Foreign nationals are not guaranteed the benefit of an impartial process regarding legal issues.

The Language of Justice

Two legal languages are used in the country: Kazakh and Russian.

Recourse to an Interpreter

Sources of the Law and Legal Similarities

The main source of the law is the new Constitution, adopted during the national referendum held in August 1995. The judicial system of the country is based on a system of civil law. The Constitution is available on-line on the Parliament website .

Checking National Laws Online

Website of the Parliament

Standards

National Standards Organizations

Kazakh Institute of Standardisation and Certification, (part of Committee for Technical Regulation and Metrology).
KAZMEMST, Comittee for Technical Regulation and Metrology.
Kazakh Institute of Metrology, (part of Committee for Technical Regulation and Metrology).
NCA, National Centre of Accreditation

Integration in the International Standards Network

KAZMEMST is a committee member of the International Organisation of Standardisation (ISO), a member of the Euro-Asian Council for Standardization, Metrology and Certification (EASC), and the National Centre of Accreditation is associated with the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC).

Classification of Standards

The standards of Kazakhstan are the ST RK.

Online Consultation of Standards

See the website of Kazmemst.

Certification Organizations

Kazakhstan Institute for Standardization and Certification

Business Practices

General Information

Bisnis, The Business Information Services for Newly Independent States
Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Astana city
Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Kazakhstan

Opening Hours and Days

The public agencies and most of the companies and banks are open from 0900 hrs or 1000 hrs to 1700 hrs or 1800 hrs with one hour lunch break between 1200 hrs and 1500 hrs for banks and between 1200 hrs and 1400 hrs for administrations. Some offices are open only in the morning.

Food stores and bakeries are open everyday (including Sundays) from 0900 to 2000h with a break at noon. Supermarkets are open 24 /24 hrs and 7/7 days.

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