Permanent Establishment of a Non-Resident in Kazakhstan 2026: When a Foreign Company Becomes a Taxpayer in Its Own Right

A permanent establishment turns a foreign company from a recipient of income taxed at source into a taxpayer in its own right in Kazakhstan: it computes its own taxable income, files its own return and pays its own corporate income tax. Under Article 226 of the new Tax Code — Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan No. 214-VIII of 18 July 2025, in force from 1 January 2026 — a permanent establishment arises in four cases: a permanent place of activity, the supply of services through hired personnel, activity through a dependent agent, and joint activity.

⚠ The defining feature of the Kazakhstan regime, which departs from the OECD model and from the UAE approach. A permanent place of activity under Article 227 creates a permanent establishment irrespective of how long the activity lasts. The Code sets no six- or twelve-month threshold for a building site, an office or a place of extraction. The single time-based exception in that article is the sale of goods at exhibitions and fairs, which creates a permanent establishment where it lasts more than ten calendar days.

The four grounds on which a permanent establishment arises

Article 226 sets a closed list of grounds. Each is developed in its own article, and they do not overlap: one match is enough to create the obligation.

•     a permanent place of activity — Article 227;

•     the supply of services or performance of work through employees or other personnel hired by the non-resident — Article 228;

•     activity through a dependent agent — Article 229;

•     joint activity carried on by the non-resident — Article 230.

A non-resident's permanent establishment is determined in accordance with the Code. Where an international treaty applies, the permanent establishment is determined in accordance with the provisions of that treaty.

That second sentence is the key to the whole subject. Kazakhstan's domestic definition is materially wider than the model one, so for a resident of a country with a double taxation treaty in force the operative threshold comes from the treaty text rather than the Code. For a resident of a country without a treaty, only the Code applies.

What does not create a permanent establishment

Article 226(2) lists four situations in which no permanent establishment arises. The list is closed and read narrowly.

Preparatory and auxiliary activity

Two activities fall into this category: the use of any place solely for storing and/or displaying goods belonging to the non-resident, without selling them; and maintaining a permanent place of activity solely for collecting, processing and/or disseminating information, for advertising, or for market research on goods, works and services.

Preparatory and auxiliary activity must be carried on for the non-resident itself and cannot form part of the non-resident's core lines of business.

⚠ The double condition defeats most attempts to shelter in the exception. A warehouse from which goods are shipped to buyers is no longer "storage and display without sale". A marketing unit that researches the market for the parent while also supporting sales fails the "solely" test. And where information gathering is the non-resident's actual business, the exception fails on the second condition.

Secondment of foreign personnel

Services consisting of providing foreign personnel to work in Kazakhstan do not create a permanent establishment where three conditions are met at the same time.

•     the personnel act in the name and in the interests of the person to whom they are provided;

•     the non-resident providing the service bears no responsibility for the results of the seconded personnel's work;

•     the non-resident's income from the service for the tax period does not exceed 10 per cent of the non-resident's total costs of providing that personnel for the period.

That income is measured as the positive difference between the value of the secondment services for the tax period and the total costs of providing the personnel for the same period.

To evidence those costs, including the personnel's own income, the non-resident must provide the recipient of the services with copies of primary documents drawn up under Kazakhstan law and/or the law of a foreign state.

Where the conditions are met, the services are treated as supplied outside Kazakhstan for corporate income tax purposes. In practice this means an outstaffing model works only at a margin of no more than 10% and with full cost transparency towards the Kazakhstan client — otherwise both a permanent establishment and a disclosure obligation arise.

Two registration situations

No permanent establishment arises from registration with the tax authorities as a taxpayer solely in order to open a bank account with a Kazakhstan bank, nor from registration solely to discharge the obligations of a tax agent acquiring property in Kazakhstan.

The first rule matters to foreign investors: obtaining a tax number for the sake of an account carries no tax consequences in itself. The banking side is covered in Opening a Bank Account in Kazakhstan for a Foreign Company.

Permanent place of activity: nine categories with no time threshold

Article 227(1) lists nine types of place, each of which counts as a non-resident's permanent place of activity.

•     any place of production, processing, assembly, packing, packaging and/or sale of goods;

•     any place of management, office, bureau, factory, branch office, workshop, mine, oil or gas well, quarry or other place of extraction of natural resources;

•     any place of geological study of the subsoil, exploration, preparatory work for exploration and extraction, extraction of minerals, and the performance of work or services in the control, monitoring and supervision of exploration and extraction;

•     any place of activity, including control or monitoring activity, connected with a pipeline;

•     any place of activity connected with the installation, commissioning and operation of gaming machines, computer networks and communication channels, amusement rides, and with transport or other infrastructure;

•     any place of construction activity and construction and installation work, and of services in the control, monitoring and supervision of that work;

•     the location of a structural subdivision of a non-resident legal entity, except a representative office carrying on preparatory and auxiliary activity;

•     the location of a person carrying on intermediary activity on behalf of a non-resident under the Law "On Insurance Activity";

•     the location of a resident that is a party to a joint activity agreement with a non-resident, where that activity is carried on in Kazakhstan.

Article 227(1) applies irrespective of how long the activity is carried on through that permanent place, with the exception of the sale of goods at exhibitions and fairs.

⚠ The building site is the clearest break with international practice. The OECD Model and most of Kazakhstan's treaties give a building site a twelve-month threshold, and treaties with some countries six or nine months. The Code gives none at all: the permanent establishment exists from day one. For a contractor from a country without a treaty this means registration and corporate income tax on a project of any length.

The sale of goods by a non-resident at exhibitions and fairs held in Kazakhstan creates a permanent establishment where the sale lasts more than ten calendar days.

The seventh item deserves note: a branch of a non-resident creates a permanent establishment automatically, while a representative office does so only if it goes beyond preparatory and auxiliary activity. This is the one place in the Code where the legal form of presence directly drives the tax status.

Services through personnel: 183 days and the connected projects rule

Article 228 introduces the Code's only time threshold for a permanent establishment — and, at the same time, the mechanism that stops that threshold being circumvented by splitting contracts.

A permanent establishment arises where the activity meets two conditions at once: it continues in Kazakhstan for more than one hundred and eighty-three calendar days within any consecutive twelve-month period, and it is carried on within one project or connected projects from the date the activity commenced.

"Within any consecutive twelve-month period" means a rolling window, not a calendar year. Splitting the work into two spells of 100 days a few months apart does not clear the threshold if both fall inside the same twelve-month window.

Three kinds of connected project

Contracts of three kinds count as connected, and the Code defines each of them at length.

Interrelated contracts are those under which the non-resident or its related party supplies identical or analogous services to the same tax agent or its related party, provided that the period between the date of completion of the services under one contract and the date of conclusion of another does not exceed twelve consecutive months.

Identical works and services are those sharing the same characteristic principal features, including those delivered using the same methods, technology and approaches by contractors of comparable qualification and business reputation. Analogous works and services are those which, without being identical, have similar characteristics and consist of similar components, allowing them to perform the same functions and to be interchangeable.

Interdependent contracts are those where a failure to perform under one contract by the non-resident or its related party affects performance under another contract.

Similar contracts are those under which the services or works have a similar nature and purpose, similar content, are carried out using the same technology, are connected with the same infrastructure, use the same resources — equipment, staff, infrastructure — or are identical or analogous.

⚠ The "same resources" test is the widest of them all. Two formally unrelated contracts with different clients, performed by the same team of engineers on the same equipment, fall within the definition of similar projects. Splitting contracts to stay under 183 days barely works under the new Code.

The dependent agent: a permanent establishment with no office and no time limit

Article 229 is the most dangerous ground for companies that believe they have no presence in Kazakhstan.

A non-resident's activity through a dependent agent creates a permanent establishment irrespective of how long that activity lasts.

A dependent agent is a person authorised, on the basis of contractual relations with the non-resident, to represent the non-resident's interests in Kazakhstan, or to act and perform on the non-resident's behalf and at its expense certain legal acts, including concluding contracts.

A dependent agent's activity is not limited to activity of a preparatory or auxiliary character — so the auxiliary carve-out gives no protection even where the agent's acts are themselves ancillary.

A person who safeguards stocks of goods in Kazakhstan and/or regularly delivers such goods in its own name or in the name of the non-resident is also treated as a dependent agent.

That second construction reaches logistics and fulfilment models: a bonded warehouse with regular delivery to end customers creates a permanent establishment of the non-resident supplier, even where the supplier has neither an office nor staff in Kazakhstan.

The rule does not extend to the activity of a customs representative, a professional participant in the securities market or other brokerage activity — with the exception of an insurance broker.

A subsidiary as a dependent agent

A separate paragraph of Article 229 governs the situation that generates the most argument when groups are structured.

A non-resident's activity through a subsidiary incorporated under Kazakhstan law creates a permanent establishment of the non-resident where the subsidiary is treated as a dependent agent.

A non-resident's participation in the capital of a resident legal entity is not a ground for treating that resident as the dependent agent of the participating non-resident.

The line is drawn cleanly: holding an interest in an LLP creates no permanent establishment by itself. But if the LLP, under a contract with the parent, concludes contracts on the parent's behalf or represents its interests before Kazakhstan clients, the parent acquires a permanent establishment — with the registration and corporate income tax obligations that follow.

For groups the practical conclusion is that the contractual base between the parent and the Kazakhstan subsidiary must read as dealings between independent parties rather than as a mandate. The corporate and contractual side is handled by UPPERSETUP legal services, and the choice of presence is covered in LLP (TOO) in Kazakhstan for Foreigners.

Joint activity as a ground in its own right

The fourth ground in Article 226 — joint activity — is developed in Article 230 and reproduced in the list of permanent places of activity.

Under Article 227(1)(9), the location of a resident that is a party to a joint activity agreement concluded with a non-resident counts as the non-resident's permanent place of activity, where that joint activity is carried on in Kazakhstan.

The construction works without any physical presence of the foreign participant: the permanent place is pinned to the Kazakhstan partner's address. A simple partnership agreement, a consortium arrangement or a production sharing agreement with a Kazakhstan participant automatically gives the non-resident a taxable nexus.

⚠ For joint projects the implication is direct: a non-resident may have no office, no staff and no agent in Kazakhstan and still form a permanent establishment simply by being party to a joint activity agreement with a resident. That sets Kazakhstan apart from most treaties, where joint activity is not a separate ground at all.

Branch, representative office and permanent establishment

The three concepts are often conflated, although the Code separates them fairly strictly.

A branch and a representative office are structural subdivisions of a legal entity in the terminology of Article 3 — a category of corporate law: they are entered on the register and are not separate legal entities.

Under Article 227(1)(7), the location of a non-resident's structural subdivision counts as a permanent place of activity — except a representative office carrying on activity of a preparatory or auxiliary character under Article 226(2)(1).

A practical hierarchy follows. A non-resident's branch always creates a permanent establishment. A representative office avoids one only where it in fact carries on solely preparatory and auxiliary activity for the non-resident itself. The moment it takes part in sales, negotiations or contract performance, the exception stops working — whatever its constitutional document says.

Under Article 231(6), where a non-resident acts through a structural subdivision that creates no permanent establishment under a treaty or under Article 226(2), the Code's provisions on permanent establishments still apply to that subdivision — with the right to apply the treaty under Articles 699 to 701.

In other words, a "safe" representative office does not fall outside the Code automatically: it stays within the permanent establishment compliance perimeter and obtains relief through the treaty application procedure.

Four typical scenarios

The verified rules are easier to apply against concrete configurations. Four scenarios recur most often among foreign companies working with Kazakhstan.

Scenario 1. A four-month installation contract

A foreign contractor installs equipment at a Kazakhstan client's site over four months. Under Article 227(1)(6) the place of construction and installation work is a permanent place of activity, and the Code sets no time threshold — a permanent establishment arises. Relief is available only through a treaty that provides a building site threshold, and only with residence duly evidenced.

Scenario 2. Three service contracts of 80 days each

A foreign engineering company performs three separate contracts for the same client, 80 days each, two months apart. On its face no contract exceeds 183 days. But under Article 228 the contracts are interrelated: the services are identical or analogous, the client is the same, and the gap between completing one and concluding the next is under twelve months. Aggregated, 240 days fall within the twelve-month window — a permanent establishment arises.

Scenario 3. A distributor with signing authority

A Kazakhstan LLP, under a contract with a foreign supplier, concludes supply contracts with end customers in the supplier's name. Under Article 229 that LLP is a dependent agent, and the supplier's permanent establishment arises irrespective of duration. Had the LLP bought the goods from the supplier and resold them in its own name, no dependent agency would arise — the difference lies entirely in whose name the contracts are concluded.

Scenario 4. Fulfilment for cross-border retail

A foreign online retailer stores goods at a Kazakhstan logistics operator's warehouse, which ships orders to customers. Under Article 229(3) a person who safeguards stocks of goods and regularly delivers them is a dependent agent. A permanent establishment arises although the retailer has neither an office nor staff in Kazakhstan. The storage exception in Article 226(2) does not apply, because the goods are being sold rather than stored and displayed.

Registration: the commencement date is the date of the contract

Article 231 contains a rule that inverts the familiar logic of "register first, obligations later".

On the formation of a permanent establishment, a non-resident carrying on activity in Kazakhstan is subject to registration with the tax authority under Article 95 of the Code — "Registration and amendment of registration details of a non-resident legal entity". Deregistration is governed by Article 96.

A note on confidence: the filing deadline and the list of supporting documents are set by Article 95, whose text we did not verify against the primary source. Those parameters should be confirmed against the current wording of Article 95 or with the state revenue authority before filing.

Activity that creates a permanent establishment is treated as the activity of a permanent establishment irrespective of registration with the tax authorities or with the registering body — from the date the activity commenced. The date of commencement is the date the contract was concluded.

⚠ The consequence usually surfaces retrospectively. Where an audit characterises activity as a permanent establishment, the tax obligations are treated as arising not from registration and not from the physical start of work, but from the date the contract was signed. The assessment covers the whole period from that date, not from the date the company itself recognised the establishment.

Article 231 adds four further registration rules:

•     where two or more permanent establishments arise that fall to be registered with the same tax authority, one permanent establishment is registered for the group as a whole;

•     where a non-resident has a registered permanent establishment and carries on analogous or identical activity at a different location, that creates a separate permanent establishment registrable at the place of activity from the date it commenced;

•     where, after a permanent establishment has been removed from the taxpayer database, the non-resident resumes activity under Article 228 or Article 227(2) within a consecutive twelve-month period, it is treated as having formed a permanent establishment from the date that activity commenced;

•     where a non-resident acts through a structural subdivision that creates no permanent establishment under a treaty or under Article 226(2), the Code's provisions on permanent establishments nonetheless apply to that subdivision, which retains the right to apply the treaty under Articles 699 to 701.

Taxing the permanent establishment: 20% plus 15%

A permanent establishment bears two taxes in sequence, and the combined burden is materially higher than the headline corporate income tax rate.

Under Article 357(2)(5), taxable income from activity not falling into a special category is subject to corporate income tax at 20 per cent.

Under Article 357(1)(4), the net income of a non-resident legal entity carrying on activity in Kazakhstan through a permanent establishment is taxed at 15 per cent.

The net income tax is Kazakhstan's equivalent of a branch profits tax: it applies to the establishment's profit after corporate income tax and economically replaces the withholding tax on dividends that a subsidiary would have paid. At the headline rate the combined effective burden on permanent establishment profit is 32% — 20% corporate income tax and 15% on what remains.

Separate rates apply to other categories: 3% for producers of agricultural and aquaculture products, 6% for agricultural cooperatives, 5% in 2026 and 10% from 2027 for organisations in the social sphere, and 25% for the banking activity of second-tier banks and for casinos, gaming machine halls, totalisators and bookmakers.

The net income tax rate can be reduced by treaty — most of Kazakhstan's treaties cap it at the dividend rate, typically 5% or 10%. Applying the reduced rate requires a certificate of residence.

What to do once a permanent establishment already exists

Discovering a permanent establishment retrospectively is a common situation, and the sequence differs from planning a structure from scratch.

First, fix the date. Under Article 231 the commencement date is the date the contract was concluded — not the date work started on site and not the date of the first payment. The period for which records must be reconstructed runs from there.

Second, define the perimeter. Where several permanent establishments arise and all fall to be registered with the same tax authority, one permanent establishment is registered for the group as a whole. Where analogous activity is carried on elsewhere, it forms a separate permanent establishment registrable at that location.

Third, build separate accounting. A permanent establishment pays corporate income tax on taxable income — profit after deductions, not gross income. That means segregating the income and expenses attributable to the Kazakhstan activity, including allocated head office costs.

Fourth, check whether tax has already been withheld at source. Where the Kazakhstan client withheld corporate income tax under Article 682 on the assumption that no permanent establishment existed, a correction is needed: income attributable to the permanent establishment is taxed under the permanent establishment rules rather than at source.

The basis for the correction follows directly from the text: the closing provision of Article 682 excludes the withholding rates from applying to a non-resident acting through a permanent establishment. Withholding at those rates on income attributable to the establishment had no basis.

⚠ A note on confidence. The rule that Article 682 does not apply to a non-resident with a permanent establishment is verified against the primary text. The procedural mechanism for crediting or refunding an amount already withheld is not: we did not check the relevant procedural articles, and the specific route should be confirmed against the current version of the Code or by a clarification from the state revenue authority, rather than by analogy with the previous Code.

Fifth, test the treaty. Even where a permanent establishment exists under the Code, a treaty may exclude it or cap the net income tax rate. Relief runs through the procedure in Articles 699 to 701 and requires a certificate of residence.

Permanent establishment versus withholding at source

The difference between the two regimes determines who computes and pays the tax, and how heavy the compliance load is.

Parameter	No permanent establishment	With a permanent establishment
Who pays	The tax agent — the Kazakhstan client	The non-resident itself
Base	Gross income with no deductions	Taxable income after deductions
Rate	The rates in Article 682	20% CIT plus 15% net income tax
Tax registration	Not required	Required under Article 95
Return	Filed by the tax agent	CIT return filed by the non-resident
Deduction of costs	Not available	Available under the general rules
When the obligation arises	On payment of the income	On the date the contract is concluded

The Code draws the line between the regimes expressly: the closing provision of Article 682 states that the article does not apply to a non-resident carrying on activity in Kazakhstan through a permanent establishment.

The regimes are therefore mutually exclusive: once a permanent establishment exists, the withholding rates do not apply to the relevant income, and the tax agent should not withhold under Article 682.

For comparing the burden it helps to see the withholding rates in Article 682(1) themselves.

Type of non-resident income	Withholding rate
Income under Article 679, other than the items below	20%
Insurance premiums under risk insurance contracts	15%
Insurance premiums under reinsurance contracts	5%
Income from international transport services	5%
Capital gains, dividends, interest and royalties	15%
Dividends to a person holding directly or indirectly at least 25% of the capital	5% up to 230,000 MCI; 15% on the excess
Interest on loans, borrowings and debt securities	10%
Winnings from gambling or betting	10%
Income of a person registered in a state with preferential taxation	20%

For the dividend rates the monthly calculation index in force on 1 January of the relevant financial year applies. A taxpayer may apply the rates set by a treaty in the manner prescribed by the Code.

The two regimes are not always economically comparable: withholding applies to gross income, while a permanent establishment is taxed on profit. On a low-margin project the establishment can be cheaper; on a high-margin one, the reverse. The withholding mechanics are covered in Kazakhstan Withholding Tax on Payments to Non-Residents. Modelling the comparative burden for a specific project is work for UPPERSETUP accounting services.

Treaty priority

Article 226(1) refers directly to the treaty when determining a permanent establishment, and that is the only effective way to soften the domestic rules.

Kazakhstan's treaties built on the OECD Model give a building site a threshold, and services a threshold of their own, usually 183 days in a twelve-month period. The treaty definition of a dependent agent is also generally narrower than the Code's: it requires the habitual conclusion of contracts and carves out the independent agent.

⚠ A treaty does not remove every difference. Even where no permanent establishment arises under the treaty, a non-resident's structural subdivision remains subject, under Article 231(6), to the Code's provisions on permanent establishments — with the right to apply the treaty under Articles 699 to 701. Relief is delivered through the treaty application procedure, not automatically.

Applying a treaty requires a certificate of residence for the counterparty. Structures linking Kazakhstan and the UAE are covered by a treaty; the adjacent topic is set out in Kazakhstan + UAE: the Dual Structure. There is no treaty between Kazakhstan and Hong Kong, so Hong Kong structures are governed by the Code alone.

Thresholds compared: Kazakhstan and the UAE

The comparison shows how much stricter the Kazakhstan regime is as a matter of domestic law.

Ground	Kazakhstan (Code 214-VIII)	UAE (Federal Decree-Law 47/2022)
Fixed place	Irrespective of duration	Irrespective of duration
Building site	Irrespective of duration	More than 6 months, aggregating related parties
Services through personnel	More than 183 days in a 12-month window	No separate ground
Dependent agent	Irrespective of duration	Irrespective of duration, with an independent agent carve-out
Exhibitions and fairs	More than 10 calendar days	No specific rule
Subsidiary	PE where treated as a dependent agent	Control alone creates no PE

The UAE rules are set out in Permanent Establishment and Nexus in the UAE. The key difference is that in the UAE the building site gets a six-month threshold in the statute itself, whereas in Kazakhstan a threshold appears only through a treaty.

A ten-step plan for a foreign company

•     Step 1. Check whether a treaty exists between Kazakhstan and your state of residence. Without one, only the Code and its wide definitions apply.

•     Step 2. Work through the four grounds in Article 226 separately — fixed place, services through personnel, dependent agent, joint activity. One match is enough.

•     Step 3. For any physical presence apply Article 227 and remember there is no time threshold. Check the warehouse, the office, the building site and the installation work.

•     Step 4. For service contracts count 183 days in a rolling twelve-month window and add together all connected projects on the three Article 228 tests.

•     Step 5. Test the agency position: who represents your interests, who concludes contracts, who stores and delivers your goods.

•     Step 6. Test the Kazakhstan subsidiary separately for dependent agent features — contractual mandates, concluding transactions in your name.

•     Step 7. Check the Article 226(2) exceptions, including the 10% test on personnel secondment.

•     Step 8. Identify the date the contract was concluded — that becomes the commencement date of the permanent establishment on any later characterisation.

•     Step 9. If a permanent establishment arises, register under Article 95 and set up separate accounting for the income and expenses attributable to it.

•     Step 10. Model the combined burden — 20% corporate income tax plus 15% net income tax — against the withholding regime.

Setting up the accounting, computing taxable income and preparing the return is handled by UPPERSETUP accounting services.

Common mistakes and what they cost

•     Assuming a building site is safe "under 12 months". The Code has no threshold at all. Twelve months is a treaty threshold, available only to a resident of a partner state with residence duly evidenced.

•     Splitting a service contract into several agreements. Article 228 aggregates connected projects on three tests, including "the same resources". Different clients and different subject matter do not prevent aggregation.

•     Believing that no office and no staff means no permanent establishment. A dependent agent creates one irrespective of duration, and holding stocks of goods with regular delivery is expressly equated to dependent agent activity.

•     Thinking that holding an interest in an LLP creates a permanent establishment. It does not: participation in capital is expressly excluded as a ground. A permanent establishment arises only where the subsidiary acts as a contractual dependent agent.

•     Counting obligations from the registration date. The commencement date of a permanent establishment is the date the contract was concluded, and any assessment covers the whole period from then.

•     Running outstaffing at a high margin. The exemption applies only where the non-resident's income does not exceed 10% of the total cost of providing the personnel, with costs evidenced by primary documents given to the client.

•     Hiding sales in a "display" warehouse. The exception applies only to storage and display without sale, and only where the activity is carried on for the non-resident itself and is not part of its core business.

•     Forgetting the net income tax. The 20% rate is only the first layer; the establishment's net income is taxed at a further 15%.

•     Continuing to withhold at source once a permanent establishment exists. The closing provision of Article 682 expressly excludes the withholding rates for a non-resident acting through a permanent establishment; continuing to withhold creates an overpayment and a correction exercise.

Who needs specialist review, and when

A one-off supply of goods with no physical presence and no agent in Kazakhstan is manageable in-house: the income is taxed at source and the obligations sit with the Kazakhstan client.

Review is warranted in six situations: any construction, installation or supervisory work, where no threshold exists; service contracts approaching 183 days, especially several agreements with one client; the presence of a representative concluding contracts or representing your interests; a warehouse or fulfilment operation in Kazakhstan; a Kazakhstan subsidiary operating under contractual mandates from the parent; and the absence of a treaty between Kazakhstan and your state of residence, where the Code applies unmitigated.

Where a structure is still being designed, the form of presence is cheaper to choose in advance: UPPERSETUP company registration services cover the corporate side, and the overall tax picture is set out in Kazakhstan's Tax System 2026.

Frequently asked questions

How long must a building site run to create a permanent establishment in Kazakhstan?

Under the Tax Code, from day one: Article 227(1) applies irrespective of the duration of the activity. A six- or twelve-month threshold may be available under a treaty between Kazakhstan and the contractor's state of residence.

How many days of services create a permanent establishment?

More than 183 calendar days within any consecutive twelve-month period, provided the activity is carried on within one project or connected projects. Connected projects are defined in Article 228 through three tests: interrelation, interdependence and similarity.

Does a subsidiary create a permanent establishment for its parent?

Only where it is treated as a dependent agent — that is, contractually authorised to represent the non-resident's interests or to conclude contracts on its behalf and at its expense. Participation in the capital of a resident is not, in itself, a ground.

What rate applies to a permanent establishment?

Twenty per cent corporate income tax on taxable income under Article 357(2)(5), plus a further fifteen per cent net income tax under Article 357(1)(4). The net income tax rate may be reduced by treaty.

From what date do the obligations of a permanent establishment arise?

From the date the activity commenced, which is the date the contract was concluded. The activity is treated as that of a permanent establishment irrespective of whether the non-resident has registered with the tax authorities.

Does a warehouse in Kazakhstan create a permanent establishment?

Using a place solely to store and display goods without selling them creates none. But a person who safeguards stocks of goods and regularly delivers them is treated as a dependent agent, and a permanent establishment then arises irrespective of duration.

Does seconding foreign personnel create a permanent establishment?

Not where three conditions are met at once: the personnel act in the name and interests of the recipient; the non-resident bears no responsibility for the results of their work; and the non-resident's income does not exceed 10 per cent of the total cost of providing the personnel for the tax period.

Is registration needed if the company has opened an account with a Kazakhstan bank?

Registration with the tax authorities solely in order to open a bank account with a Kazakhstan bank does not create a permanent establishment. The same applies to registration solely to discharge tax agent obligations on acquiring property.

Is tax withheld at source where the non-resident has a permanent establishment?

No. The closing provision of Article 682 expressly states that the article does not apply to a non-resident carrying on activity in Kazakhstan through a permanent establishment. Income attributable to the establishment is taxed under the permanent establishment rules rather than at source.

Key takeaways

•     A permanent establishment arises on the four grounds in Article 226 of Code No. 214-VIII: a permanent place of activity, services through hired personnel, a dependent agent, and joint activity.

•     A permanent place of activity under Article 227 creates a permanent establishment irrespective of duration; the exception is the sale of goods at exhibitions and fairs beyond 10 calendar days.

•     Services through personnel create a permanent establishment beyond 183 days in any consecutive twelve-month period, within one project or connected projects.

•     Connected projects are defined through interrelation, interdependence and similarity, including the test of using the same resources.

•     A dependent agent creates a permanent establishment irrespective of duration; safeguarding stocks with regular delivery is equated to dependent agent activity.

•     A subsidiary creates a permanent establishment only where it is treated as a dependent agent; participation in capital is not a ground in itself.

•     The commencement date of a permanent establishment is the date the contract was concluded, regardless of registration.

•     Rates under Article 357: 20% corporate income tax and 15% net income tax.

•     Where a treaty applies, the permanent establishment is determined by the treaty, but relief runs through the procedure in Articles 699 to 701.

•     Article 682 expressly does not apply to a non-resident acting through a permanent establishment: withholding and permanent establishment taxation are mutually exclusive.

Summary 

A non-resident's permanent establishment in Kazakhstan arises under Article 226 of Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan No. 214-VIII of 18 July 2025, in force from 1 January 2026, in four cases: a permanent place of activity, the supply of services and performance of work through personnel hired by the non-resident, activity through a dependent agent, and joint activity. Where an international treaty applies, the permanent establishment is determined by the treaty. The permanent place of activity in Article 227 covers nine categories, including places of production and sale of goods, places of management and offices, places of extraction of natural resources, places of construction activity and construction and installation work, and the location of a structural subdivision other than a representative office carrying on preparatory activity; a permanent establishment arises irrespective of duration, while the sale of goods at exhibitions and fairs creates one where it lasts more than ten calendar days. Services through personnel create a permanent establishment where the activity exceeds one hundred and eighty-three calendar days within any consecutive twelve-month period within one project or connected projects, which Article 228 defines as interrelated, interdependent and similar contracts. Activity through a dependent agent creates a permanent establishment irrespective of duration, and a person safeguarding stocks of goods and regularly delivering them is also a dependent agent. A subsidiary creates a permanent establishment for its parent only where it is treated as a dependent agent, and participation in the capital of a resident is not a ground. No permanent establishment arises from preparatory and auxiliary activity, from seconding foreign personnel where the income does not exceed 10 per cent of costs, from registration solely to open a bank account, or from registration solely to discharge tax agent obligations. Under Article 231 the activity is treated as that of a permanent establishment irrespective of registration, from the commencement date, which is the date the contract was concluded. Under Article 357 taxable income is subject to corporate income tax at 20 per cent and the establishment's net income at 15 per cent. The withholding rates in Article 682 are 20 per cent on general income, 15 per cent on capital gains, dividends, interest and royalties, 10 per cent on interest on loans and borrowings, and 5 per cent on international transport and reinsurance; the closing provision of Article 682 expressly excludes its application to a non-resident carrying on activity through a permanent establishment.

Sources

•     Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan No. 214-VIII of 18 July 2025 on Taxes and Other Obligatory Payments to the Budget (Tax Code) — official text in the Adilet system

•     Article 226 — Permanent establishment of a non-resident

•     Article 227 — Permanent establishment where there is a permanent place of activity

•     Article 228 — Permanent establishment on the supply of services and performance of work through hired personnel

•     Article 229 — Permanent establishment where activity is carried on through a dependent agent

•     Article 231 — Registration of a non-resident's permanent establishment

•     Article 357 — Corporate income tax rates

•     Article 682 — Withholding tax rates — the rates and the rule that the article does not apply to a non-resident with a permanent establishment

•     Article 679 — Income of a non-resident from sources in Kazakhstan

•     Contents of Chapter 12 of the Code — Articles 95 and 96 on the registration of a non-resident legal entity

•     Contents of the Tax Code on the Adilet portal — the structure of Divisions 4 and 5, Articles 221 to 232 and 351 to 357

Disclaimer

This material is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, tax, financial, investment or consulting advice. Before making decisions, obtain individual professional advice taking account of your specific circumstances, jurisdiction, company status and current regulatory requirements. Information is accurate as of August 2026.