In 2026, the specific amount of per diem allowances and their tax limit cannot be determined under Articles 317, 833, 837 and 838 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan: these provisions regulate other matters and do not establish rules for the taxation of business trip payments. Article 317 concerns certain deductions available to subsoil users, Article 833 concerns the consideration of applications and claims for a refund of excess VAT submitted before 1 January 2026, while Articles 837 and 838 concern the preservation of the terms of previously concluded investment contracts and agreements (Articles 317, 833, 837, 838 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan). Therefore, these articles cannot be used to specify the amount of per diem allowances, the number of MCIs or the tax-exempt amount.
What changed in 2026 and why it matters to an accountant
From 1 January 2026, when dealing with transitional transactions, it is important to distinguish between the rules of the new Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the special transitional provisions. For example, applications and claims for a refund of excess VAT submitted before 1 January 2026 are considered in accordance with the procedure and within the time limits stipulated by the Tax Code dated 25 December 2017 (Article 833 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan). However, this transitional provision applies specifically to the refund of excess VAT and does not determine the procedure for calculating per diem allowances.
The provisions on preserving the terms of investment projects also cannot be used as a basis for calculating business trip payments. For an investment priority project, the terms stipulated by the contract remain in effect until the contract expires, while agreements on investment obligations concluded before 1 January 2026 retain the guarantee of stability of tax legislation (Article 837 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan). A similar preservation of taxation terms and guarantee of stability is provided for investment agreements concluded before 1 January 2026 (Article 838 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan).
What should be done at the beginning of the year or before the first business trip in 2026:
- check which specific provision of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan is referenced by the business travel policy and whether that provision applies to business trip payments;
- do not use articles concerning subsoil use, refunds of excess VAT and investment agreements as the basis for determining the tax limit for per diem allowances;
- compare the per diem allowance accrual settings in the accounting software with the rules established in the organisation’s internal documents;
- separately check the wording of documents for trips within Kazakhstan and abroad.
Who is entitled to per diem allowances
The question of paying per diem allowances arises when arranging an employee’s trip to perform an official assignment away from their permanent place of work. To perform the calculation, the accountant needs documents that establish the basis, destination and duration of the trip. The documentation and calculation procedure should be consistently established in the employer’s internal document.
The following should be considered separately:
- trips within Kazakhstan and abroad — they must be separated in documents and accounting settings;
- one-day trips — the compensation procedure for such trips must correspond to the nature of the trip and the employer’s internal documents;
- persons who are not in an employment relationship, including contractors under civil law contracts: the basis and terms for reimbursing their expenses should be determined by the relevant contract;
- employees involved in investment and subsoil use projects — the status of the project or employer does not in itself mean that Articles 317, 837 or 838 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan apply to per diem allowances.
How to calculate and account for per diem allowances
The accountant’s procedure should be structured so that each element of the calculation is supported by documents and relates to a specific trip.
- Basis. Prepare an administrative document assigning the employee to the trip. Specify the employee, destination, duration and official purpose in the document.
- Payment amount. Determine the amount in accordance with the employer’s internal document. Do not substitute the amount established by the company with an assumed tax limit: these are different elements of the calculation.
- Trip period. Establish the departure and return dates based on the completed documents. The duration of the trip is used to calculate the total amount.
- Calculation. Multiply the daily amount established by the internal document by the number of days taken into account. If the internal document provides for different amounts depending on the territory or other conditions, apply the relevant rule to each period.
- Supporting expenses. Separate per diem allowances, travel, accommodation and other reimbursable expenses. For each category, use the set of documents required by the employer’s business travel procedure.
- Tax accounting. Do not use Articles 317, 833, 837 or 838 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan to determine the taxable and tax-exempt portions. They do not specify the per diem allowance limit or describe the taxation procedure for these payments.
Calculation logic: the per diem allowance established by the internal document is multiplied by the number of days of the trip taken into account. The tax treatment of the calculated amount should be determined only under the provision of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan that directly regulates the relevant type of business trip compensation. Articles 317, 833, 837 and 838 cited above contain no such rule.
Common mistakes
- Reference to an article governing a different subject. An article number is included in an internal document without comparing it with the article’s content. For example, Article 317 regulates a subsoil user’s expenses for training Kazakhstani personnel and developing the social infrastructure of regions, rather than per diem allowances (Article 317 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan).
- Incorrect application of a transitional provision. The rule in Article 833 applies to tax applications and claims for a refund of excess VAT submitted before 1 January 2026 and does not establish a transitional procedure for per diem allowances (Article 833 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan).
- Confusing investment guarantees with business trip payments. Articles 837 and 838 preserve certain terms of previously concluded contracts and agreements but do not specify a per diem allowance amount or a tax limit for such allowances (Articles 837, 838 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan).
- Inconsistency between documents. The payment amount differs between the order, the business travel policy and the calculation, or is applied to a different number of days.
- Combining types of expenses. Per diem allowances are combined with travel or accommodation expenses, making it impossible to consistently verify the calculation of each payment.
- Automatic application of previous settings. The accounting software calculates the amount using previously configured parameters without comparing them with the internal documents in effect in 2026.
What to do right now
- Check all references to the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan in the business travel policy and compare the number of each article with its content.
- Stop using Article 317 as a basis for business trip payments: it regulates special expenses of a subsoil user (Article 317 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan).
- Do not extend the transitional rule on refunds of excess VAT to the calculation of per diem allowances (Article 833 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan).
- Do not apply the provisions on preserving the terms of investment contracts and agreements as a general tax limit for business trips (Articles 837, 838 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan).
- Reconcile the payment amount, the list of days taken into account and the documentation procedure in the business travel policy, orders and accounting software.
- Separate per diem allowances, travel, accommodation and other reimbursable expenses in analytical accounting.
Frequently asked questions
Does Article 317 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan establish the amount of per diem allowances? — No. It regulates the deduction of a subsoil user’s expenses for training Kazakhstani personnel and developing the social infrastructure of regions. It cannot be used to determine the amount or tax limit of per diem allowances (Article 317 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan).
Can Article 833 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan be applied to business trip payments accrued before 2026? — Article 833 establishes a transitional procedure only for tax applications and claims for a refund of excess VAT submitted before 1 January 2026. It contains no rules on per diem allowances (Article 833 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan).
Do Articles 837 and 838 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan determine the tax-exempt limit for per diem allowances? — No. These articles concern the preservation of the terms of investment contracts, agreements on investment obligations and investment agreements concluded before 1 January 2026 (Articles 837, 838 of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan).
How should an accountant calculate the amount of per diem allowances? — The daily payment amount established by the employer’s internal document should be multiplied by the number of days of the trip taken into account. The basis, destination, purpose and duration of the trip must be documented.
How can the tax limit for per diem allowances be determined in 2026? — This requires a provision of the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan that directly regulates business trip compensation. Articles 317, 833, 837 and 838 specify neither the number of MCIs for such a limit nor the procedure for calculating the taxable portion of the payment.
Can the previous reference to the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan be retained in the internal policy? — The reference must correspond to the content of the current article. If the cited provision regulates another matter, using it creates an incorrect basis for the calculation and tax treatment of the payment.