Tajikistan’s lower house (Majlisi Namoyandagon) of parliament has endorsed a draft new Tax Code.

A regular sitting of the Majlisi Namoyandagon presided over by its head, Mahmadtoir Zokirzoda, took place on November 3. Presenting the draft new Tax Code to lawmakers, Finance Minister Faiziddin Qahhorzoda noted that the new Tax Code provided for reducing the number of taxes from 10 to 7 and cutting the income tax rate from 13 percent to 12 percent.

Besides, the rate of the value-added tax (VAT), VAT, the share of which in the total volume of the tax revenues in the country’s budget is more than 40 percent, will be cut from 18 percent to 15 percent beginning on January 1, 2022.

Starting from 2023, the VAT rate will be cut to 14 percent, and beginning on January 1, 2027, the VAT rate will be cut to 13 percent. The minister further noted that the new Tax Code contains many other innovations, but not all will work after adopting the new tax legislation. New norms of the Code will be implemented in stages, Qahhorzoda noted.

Recall, developed by the working group in cooperation with international and local experts, the draft new Tax Code of Tajikistan was posted on www.itcmf.tj/kodeks on February 8, 2021, and it was available for public consultations until February 26, 2021.

President Emomali Rahmon initiated the development of the new Tax Code in late May 2019. He ordered it to take into consideration the interests of business entities and citizens of the country while developing the new Tax Code.

The Minister of Finance Faiziddin Qahhorzoda told reporters in Dushanbe in February last year that members of the working group for the development of the new tax code also included specialists of the World Bank and the working group had taken into consideration proposals of taxpayers and representatives of the private sector while developing the new Tax Code.