In Kazakhstan, certain types
of economic offenses have been
decriminalized
of economic offenses have been
decriminalized
Septber 2024
On 5 July 2024, the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan signed Law No 113-VIII On Amendments and Additions to Certain
Legislative Acts of the Republic of Kazakhstan on Decriminalizing
Certain Types of Economic Offenses and Improving the Legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan on Combating the Legalization
(Laundering) of Criminally Obtained Proceeds and Financing of
Terrorism.
The Law came into force on 3 September 2024.
The Law, among other things, provides a range of measures aimed at preventing the unjust prosecution of entrepreneurs and ensuring the protection of the interests of citizens and businesses.
The Law introduces the following changes to the regulatory legal acts of the RK:
• Article 219 has been removed, i.e., criminal liability for illegally obtaining a loan or misuse of a budgetary loan has been abolished.
• Article 241 has been removed, i.e., criminal liability for violation of the legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan on accounting and financial reporting has been abolished.
The aforementioned articles have been transferred to the Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan On Administrative Offenses No. 235-V of the RK dated 5 July 2014.
2. The following articles of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan have been partially decriminalized:
The threshold for damage that triggers criminal liability has been increased:
•Article 234 - Economic smuggling – for economic smuggling (Article 234) from 10 to 20 thousand monthly calculation indices ("MCI") (from 36,920,000 tenge to 73,840,000 tenge).
Furthermore, it should be highlighted that the illegal transportation of goods or other items across the State border of the Republic of Kazakhstan, for which a prohibition or restriction on cross-border movement has been imposed, will now be considered equivalent to economic smuggling.
•Article 236 - Regarding the evasion of customs duties, customs fees, taxes, special, anti-dumping, and compensatory duties from 5 to 10 thousand MCI (from 18,460,000 tenge to 36,920,000 tenge)
3. A number of exceptions are provided for the registration of cases in the field of
tax crimes within the framework of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan:
• Without an act or conclusion indicating signs of a criminal offense;
• When appealing acts in a higher authority or in court;
• When fully voluntarily settling the accrued amounts of taxes (except in cases where the accruals were made for transactions without actual performance of work, provision of services, shipment of goods, or failure to submit a declaration).
4. Amendments have been made to the Law on Combating the Legalization
(Laundering) of Proceeds
• The main goal of the Law on Combating the Legalization (Laundering) of Proceeds has been established, which consists in protecting the rights and interests of citizens, society, and the state through combating the legalization of proceeds and financing of terrorism.
• The main objectives of the Law on Combating the Legalization (Laundering) of Proceeds have been defined to combat the laundering of criminal proceeds and the financing of terrorism, by creating an effective system that meets international standards.
• The Law on Combating the Legalization (Laundering) of Proceeds is based on the principles of equality before the law and court, justice, and the protection of the financial system of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
- The following articles of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan have
• Article 219 has been removed, i.e., criminal liability for illegally obtaining a loan or misuse of a budgetary loan has been abolished.
• Article 241 has been removed, i.e., criminal liability for violation of the legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan on accounting and financial reporting has been abolished.
The aforementioned articles have been transferred to the Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan On Administrative Offenses No. 235-V of the RK dated 5 July 2014.
2. The following articles of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan have been partially decriminalized:
The threshold for damage that triggers criminal liability has been increased:
•Article 234 - Economic smuggling – for economic smuggling (Article 234) from 10 to 20 thousand monthly calculation indices ("MCI") (from 36,920,000 tenge to 73,840,000 tenge).
Furthermore, it should be highlighted that the illegal transportation of goods or other items across the State border of the Republic of Kazakhstan, for which a prohibition or restriction on cross-border movement has been imposed, will now be considered equivalent to economic smuggling.
•Article 236 - Regarding the evasion of customs duties, customs fees, taxes, special, anti-dumping, and compensatory duties from 5 to 10 thousand MCI (from 18,460,000 tenge to 36,920,000 tenge)
3. A number of exceptions are provided for the registration of cases in the field of
tax crimes within the framework of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan:
• Without an act or conclusion indicating signs of a criminal offense;
• When appealing acts in a higher authority or in court;
• When fully voluntarily settling the accrued amounts of taxes (except in cases where the accruals were made for transactions without actual performance of work, provision of services, shipment of goods, or failure to submit a declaration).
4. Amendments have been made to the Law on Combating the Legalization
(Laundering) of Proceeds
• The main goal of the Law on Combating the Legalization (Laundering) of Proceeds has been established, which consists in protecting the rights and interests of citizens, society, and the state through combating the legalization of proceeds and financing of terrorism.
• The main objectives of the Law on Combating the Legalization (Laundering) of Proceeds have been defined to combat the laundering of criminal proceeds and the financing of terrorism, by creating an effective system that meets international standards.
• The Law on Combating the Legalization (Laundering) of Proceeds is based on the principles of equality before the law and court, justice, and the protection of the financial system of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
Contacts
- Dinara TanashevaPartner, Head of Tax & Law Practice in
Kazakhstan and Central AsiaTel.: +7 (727) 258 5960
Dinara.S.Tanasheva@kz.ey.com - Dilfariz SharipovSenior Associate, Tax & Law ServicesDilfariz.Sharipov@kz.ey.com