July 1, 2025

A moratorium has been introduced on the adoption of regulatory legal acts that impose new obligations on small and medium-sized business entities

The President of the Republic of Uzbekistan signed Decree No. UP-50 dated March 19, 2025, titled “On Measures to Enhance the Role of Small and Medium-Sized Businesses in the Economy”.

1) In accordance with this decree, a moratorium has been introduced on the adoption of regulatory legal acts that impose new obligations on SMEs. This moratorium will be in effect from July 1, 2025, to January 1, 2028.

FYI: a moratorium (from the latin moratorius — delaying, deferring) refers to a temporary ban or suspension of the effect of a law, obligation, or activity.

However, the moratorium does not apply to regulatory legal acts aimed at:

  • Eliminating emergency situations,
  • Preventing harm to the life and health of citizens, or
  • Aligning legislation with the requirements of the World Trade Organization (WTO).

Earlier a similar moratorium was enacted on new construction projects in Tashkent until the approval of the city’s main architectural plan. Under that moratorium, the construction of new buildings in the city was suspended from February 2023 to December 2024.

2) In addition, the adoption of regulatory legal acts that introduce new obligations or strengthen existing regulations for other types of businesses is now governed by the “new rules from a single date” principle. According to this principle, all such regulatory acts must come into force on either January 1 or July 1.

3) Furthermore, until January 1, 2028, small business entities that commit an administrative offense in the field of trade and entrepreneurship for the first time during their first year of operation are exempt from administrative liability.

4) Starting from September 1, 2025, when small and medium-sized businesses undergo voluntary liquidation, no tax audit shall be conducted if they simultaneously meet the following criteria:

  • their total income from the sale of goods (services) over the last 3 years did not exceed 10 billion UzSoums;
  • they have no outstanding debts to the budget or creditors and regularly submit tax reports;
  • their risk of violations, as assessed by the electronic “Risk Analysis” system, is classified as “low.”