In 2026, CIT is paid by legal entities, while taxable income is determined from aggregate annual income, taking into account income adjustments, deductions, deduction adjustments, reductions in taxable income, and carried-forward losses. An individual entrepreneur under the general taxation procedure calculates their own taxable income under the PIT rules, although certain elements of the calculation are determined in a manner similar to the CIT rules (Art. 393 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan). Therefore, the taxes of a legal entity and an individual entrepreneur in 2026 are distinguished according to the taxpayer's status.
CIT in Kazakhstan: Who Pays the Tax in 2026
CIT applies to the taxation of legal entities. For a non-resident, the taxation procedure depends on the type of income and the circumstances in which it is earned in Kazakhstan; therefore, a non-resident's income must be classified separately for each payment.
The application of a special tax regime or a reduction provided for by the Code does not mean that every organisation is automatically exempt from CIT. The taxpayer's status, the applicable regime, the type of activity, and the nature of the specific income are relevant to the calculation. These conditions cannot be replaced by a general conclusion that the organisation operates “without CIT”.
A different procedure applies to an individual entrepreneur. The taxable income of an entrepreneur under the general taxation procedure consists of income for the tax period, taking into account income adjustments, deductions, and deduction adjustments. The prescribed reduction and carried-forward losses are then taken into account when determining assessable income. These elements are calculated in a manner similar to the corresponding CIT rules (Art. 393 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan).
Thus, an entrepreneur's application of rules similar to the CIT rules does not make the individual entrepreneur a corporate income tax payer. The entrepreneur remains an individual and determines the taxable amount of the individual entrepreneur's income as part of the PIT calculation (Art. 411 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan).
CIT in 2026: Rate and Tax Base
When calculating CIT, the tax base for the specific taxpayer is determined first, and only then is the applicable rate applied. A rate cannot be selected separately from the organisation's status, type of activity, and the nature of the income. The calculation also distinguishes between the organisation's own tax liability and the tax that it is required to withhold when paying income to another person.
The general sequence for determining income includes the following stages:
- Aggregate annual income. The organisation collects income attributable to the relevant tax period and classifies it in accordance with tax accounting rules.
- Income adjustments. After determining the income, the adjustments provided for by the Code are recorded. An adjustment must have a specific basis and relate to the period for which the tax is calculated.
- Deductions. Expenses are deducted in accordance with the procedure established for the relevant type of cost. The substance of the transaction, its connection with the activity, and the documents on the basis of which the expense is recorded are important for the calculation.
- Deduction adjustments. If an adjustment is prescribed for a recognised expense, it is recorded separately without replacing the expense's original classification.
- Taxable and assessable income. After taxable income has been calculated, the prescribed reduction and carried-forward losses are taken into account. This sequence is also expressly used when calculating the income of an individual entrepreneur under the general taxation procedure by analogy with the CIT rules (Art. 393 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan).
- Tax payable. The tax amount is determined after the tax base has been established and the rules applicable specifically to the taxpayer and type of income in question have been applied.
This sequence is established separately for an individual entrepreneur. First, the entrepreneur's taxable income is calculated: income for the period, plus or minus the income adjustment, minus deductions, and plus or minus deduction adjustments. The prescribed reduction and carried-forward losses are then deducted from taxable income (Art. 393 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan). After that, when determining the taxable amount of the individual entrepreneur's income, the income reductions and tax deductions prescribed for an individual are additionally taken into account (Art. 411 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan).
Standardised Expenses and CIT Accounting in 1C
Errors in CIT calculations are often caused by an accountant treating expenses with different recognition conditions in the same way. Before closing the period, expenses must be allocated by type, reconciled with supporting documents, and amounts for which the deduction procedure provides for limitations or adjustments must be checked separately.
In the accounting system, expense analytics must make it possible to separate the accounting amount of an expense from the amount accepted for tax accounting purposes. The names of directories, fields, and reports depend on the configuration used and its release. For “Accounting for Kazakhstan”, the 3.0.74.x release series is current in 2026. After an update, it is necessary to verify that the tax accounting settings have been retained and that the registers for the current period have been completed.
What the accountant should do:
- separate expenses according to the tax procedure for their recognition, without combining costs subject to different deduction conditions in the same analytics;
- check the documents on the basis of which income, deductions, and their adjustments were recorded;
- reconcile accounting turnover with tax registers and provide a breakdown of each discrepancy;
- separately monitor the reduction in taxable income and carried-forward losses so that they are not mixed with current deductions;
- after updating the software, regenerate the tax registers and compare the result with the calculation made before the update.
If an expense is partially accepted for tax calculation purposes, the register must show the original amount, the accepted portion, and the difference. This approach makes it possible to verify the calculation sequence and avoid including in deductions an amount for which there is no basis.
Individual Entrepreneurs and CIT: What Taxes an Entrepreneur Pays
The search query “individual entrepreneur CIT” usually concerns whether an entrepreneur must calculate corporate income tax. An individual entrepreneur calculates PIT, not CIT. Under the general taxation procedure, certain elements of their income are determined using rules similar to the CIT rules: rules concerning income, adjustments, deductions, reductions in taxable income, and the carry-forward of losses (Art. 393 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan).
The taxable amount of an individual entrepreneur's income under the general taxation procedure is determined from the entrepreneur's assessable income, less the prescribed income reductions and tax deductions (Art. 411 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan). This is a separate calculation for an individual and therefore cannot be mechanically replaced with the declaration and calculation of a legal entity.
If an individual receives income from sources other than entrepreneurial activity, such income must be separated according to the applicable taxation procedure. For income on which an individual calculates tax independently, Article 411 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan provides a separate formula. The income of an individual entrepreneur, dividends, and the income of a resident labour immigrant are excluded from the general formula in paragraph 1 of this article and are calculated under the rules intended for them (Art. 411 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan).
Income taxed at the source of payment also cannot automatically be included in the calculation of entrepreneurial income. For example, an employee's taxable income is determined as the employee's accrued income less the prescribed reductions and tax deductions. A separate sequence of deductions is provided for an individual's income from the sale of goods, work, or services to a tax agent (Art. 439 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan).
When transitioning from an individual entrepreneur to a legal entity, the new entity's tax records are maintained taking into account its registration date and the transactions it has carried out. The individual entrepreneur's income and expenses should not be automatically transferred to the legal entity's CIT calculation: for each transaction, the party to the contract, the date, and the tax period must first be determined.
CIT 2025 and CIT 2026: What to Check During the Transition
The calculation for 2025 is prepared under the rules for the relevant tax period, while 2026 transactions are recorded under the provisions applicable to 2026. When transitioning between periods, the accountant must avoid mixing income, expenses, adjustments, and losses from different years.
The accountant should:
- check the taxpayer's status and the applicable taxation procedure at the beginning of 2026;
- separate income and expenses for 2025 and 2026 according to the dates and grounds for their recognition;
- check the classification of deductions and deduction adjustments in the tax registers;
- separately reconcile the reduction in taxable income and carried-forward losses;
- update the 1C configuration to the series current for 2026 and check the tax accounting settings;
- reconcile the final tax base with the breakdowns of income, deductions, and adjustments.
Particular attention should be paid to transactions that are recorded in accounting in one year but relate to another period for tax calculation purposes. Such amounts should be shown separately in the working registers, specifying the document, recognition date, and reason for the discrepancy.
For an individual entrepreneur under the general taxation procedure, control over amounts carried between periods follows the sequence set out in Article 393 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan: income, income adjustments, deductions, deduction adjustments, reduction in taxable income, and losses. When determining the final taxable amount, the rules of Article 411 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan are additionally applied.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is CIT in the Republic of Kazakhstan? — It is corporate income tax for legal entities. The calculation sequentially determines income, adjustments, deductions, taxable income, and assessable income.
What is the CIT in 2026? — The CIT amount depends on the tax base and the rate prescribed for the relevant taxpayer and type of income. Before applying the rate, it is necessary to determine the organisation's status, the nature of the income, and the adjustments relevant to the calculation.
Does an individual entrepreneur pay CIT? — No. An individual entrepreneur calculates PIT. Under the general taxation procedure, certain elements of their income are determined in a manner similar to the CIT rules, but the calculation itself remains a calculation of an individual's income (Art. 393, 411 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan).
Is it possible to operate without CIT? — The tax liability is determined according to the organisation's status, the applicable regime, and the specific income. The mere absence of tax payable for a period does not mean that the organisation is exempt from its tax accounting and reporting obligations.
How should expenses subject to CIT limitations be accounted for? — They must be separately identified in tax analytics, the basis and documents must be checked, and the accounting amount must then be reconciled with the amount accepted in the tax calculation. A breakdown of the resulting difference should be retained in the register.
How does the calculation for an individual entrepreneur differ from that for a legal entity? — An individual entrepreneur under the general taxation procedure determines entrepreneurial income under Article 393 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the taxable amount taking into account Article 411 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan. An individual's income taxed at the source of payment is calculated separately under Article 439 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
Sources
- Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Article 393 — procedure for determining the taxable and assessable income of an individual entrepreneur under the general taxation procedure.
- Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Article 411 — determination of the taxable income of an individual who calculates tax independently.
- Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Article 439 — determination of an individual's income taxable at the source of payment.