Hiring an employee in Uzbekistan

An employee is hired under a written employment contract and a hiring order. The employer registers a paper contract in the Unified National Labor System (ENST) within five working days. Before signing, the candidate must be informed of the working conditions; once the hiring is complete, the employee must receive a copy of the contract.

In brief:

• As a rule, a person may work from age 16 (Article 118 of the Labor Code); exceptions apply to students and certain creative workers.
• Before the contract is signed, the employer discloses the content of the work, working conditions and applicable internal policies.
• The contract is made on paper or electronically in at least two copies.
• A paper contract is registered in ENST within five working days; registration itself is free.
• Before starting work, the employee should have a signed copy of the contract stating the agreed job function, pay and start date.

Updated: 04 September 2026

How to complete the hiring process

The Labor Code divides hiring into three stages (Article 122): informing the candidate, agreeing and signing the contract, and then issuing the order and entering the data in the employment record book and ENST. In practice, an employer should follow this sequence:

If an authorized person allows the employee to work before formalization, the employment contract is treated as concluded from the first day of work. The employer must formalize the relationship (Article 128) with a contract and an order within three days. Actual admission does not replace the documents or shift the obligation to the employee.

Who may be hired

Employers may be organizations and individuals (Article 19): legal entities regardless of ownership, their separate subdivisions, individual entrepreneurs, citizens employing domestic workers, and individuals carrying on registered or licensed activities in cases provided by law.

The general minimum age is 16. The exceptions form a complete list:

• a student aged 15 or older may perform light work outside study hours if it does not harm health or moral development and does not interfere with education; written consent of one parent or substitute is required;
• a person under 15 may take part in creating or performing works in entertainment organizations, television, radio and other media, or work as an athlete; both parents' consent and authorization from the guardianship authority are required, and a parent signs the contract for the child;
• a foreign citizen who enters the country temporarily and has no residence permit is hired under the special rules described below.

A person under 18 may not be employed in harmful, dangerous or underground work, or work capable of harming life, health, safety or moral development. Handling loads above the limits (Article 412) is also prohibited.

Reduced working time, daily shift limits and extended annual leave for minors are outside this section. They are explained in the article on working time, which should be checked before setting a young employee's schedule and shift length.

What documents are required for hiring

The candidate presents five groups of documents (Article 124), although some are required only in the relevant circumstances:

1. a passport, replacement identity document or ID card; a person under 16 presents a birth certificate or ID card;
2. a paper employment record book or an extract from the electronic record certified by the most recent employer; a first-time employee does not present one, while a person taking secondary employment submits a certificate from the principal workplace;
3. a military ID or registration certificate for a person liable for military service or a conscript;
4. a diploma, credential, certificate or other document if the work is restricted to persons with special education or training;
5. the personal identification number of an individual (PINFL).

Government bodies and organizations obtain identity-document and employment-record data themselves through information systems. The employer opens an employment record book for a first-time employee who works more than five days and arranges registration in the funded pension system. Other documents may be requested only when another law expressly permits it.

Who needs a medical examination

A pre-employment examination is not required for every candidate. The employer arranges it for the listed categories (Article 360):

• persons under 18;
• persons who have reached the generally established retirement age;
• persons with disabilities;
• persons working in unfavorable conditions, at night or with traffic movement;
• food-industry, trade and other workers who directly serve the public;
• teachers and other employees of educational organizations who directly teach or raise children.

The employee does not pay for a mandatory examination. The employer bears all related costs (Article 292), and the employee keeps the position and average pay during the examination. A person who has not completed a required examination or avoids medical recommendations may not be admitted to work.

A minor is examined before hiring and then annually until age 18. These examinations are also paid by the employer (Article 414).

What the employment contract must contain

The employment contract provides for personal performance of a job function in the employer's interests and under its management and control in return for wages. The employer provides the agreed work, pays on time and ensures the prescribed working conditions (Article 103).

The contract includes the mandatory terms (Article 104):

• the employer and the locality where the work is performed;
• the occupation, specialty, qualification, position or specific type of work;
• the start date;
• salary or tariff rate, supplements, allowances and incentive payments;
• the term and legal basis for a fixed-term contract;
• working-time and rest arrangements if different from the general rules;
• protections and compensation for work in conditions differing from normal conditions, with a description of those conditions;
• mobile, traveling, on-the-road or other nature of work, when applicable;
• other terms expressly required by legislation.

The parties may additionally agree on probation, combining duties, confidentiality of protected information, a work-back period after employer-paid training, additional insurance and social or welfare terms. These provisions may not worsen the employee's position. If a mandatory term is omitted, the contract remains valid and the parties sign a written addendum.

Terms that worsen the employee's position, allow discrimination or forced labor, require unlawful conduct, or threaten rights, life, health, honor or reputation are invalid. The invalidity of one term does not cancel the contract (Article 105) as a whole.

The contract must be in writing—on paper or electronically—in at least two copies (Article 106) of equal legal force. One is given to the employee, who separately confirms receipt on the employer's copy. An electronic contract is executed in ENST.

The contract also states its date, place and number, identity-document details, address, contacts, PINFL and funded pension account number of the employee, as well as the Code-required details of the employer and signatory. A party must notify the other in writing of changed details within three working days (Article 107).

When a fixed-term contract is allowed

The default is an indefinite contract. A fixed-term contract may be made for no more than three years (Article 110); if no term is stated, the contract is considered indefinite.

There must be a lawful reason for the fixed term. Without one, the contract becomes indefinite, and the employer must prove the justification. When extended, the aggregate term generally may not exceed five years (Article 111), unless the law provides an exception.

A fixed-term contract must be used in the following cases (Article 112):

• during the absence of an employee whose position is retained;
• for temporary work lasting up to two months;
• for seasonal work;
• for work outside the employer's ordinary activity and for a clearly temporary, up-to-one-year expansion of production or workload;
• in an organization established for a predetermined period;
• for a specific time-limited task whose completion cannot be tied to a date;
• for work connected with workplace learning, paid practice or an internship;
• for temporary and paid public works on referral from a labor authority;
• for alternative service;
• with foreign citizens and stateless persons who temporarily enter the country for work;
• in other cases expressly provided by the Code or another law.

By agreement, a fixed term is also permitted for specific categories (Article 113): employees of microfirms and individual entrepreneurs, domestic workers, employees moving to specified areas, participants in urgent work, listed creative workers and athletes, managers, deputies, chief accountants and heads of subdivisions, full-time students and secondary employees.

The term is stated as a number of days, months or years, an end date, or a defined event (Article 114), such as the return of the absent principal employee.

How to set a probationary period

Probation applies only if it is expressly written into the contract. Without that clause, the employee is hired without probation. It tests suitability for the work and also allows the employee to decide whether the job is appropriate. The law provides a complete list of exclusions (Article 129):

• a pregnant woman, a woman with a child under three, and a father or guardian raising such a child alone;
• a person from a socially vulnerable category referred to a reserved workplace;
• a state-grant university graduate taking a referred job in the acquired specialty within three months after graduation;
• a first-time graduate independently taking work in the acquired specialty within one year after completing an educational organization;
• an employee whose contract is for up to six months;
• a person under 18;
• an employee whom the law requires the employer to rehire;
• an apprentice trained by that employer under a training agreement;
• other persons exempted by a collective agreement, collective contract or internal policy.

The ordinary maximum is three months (Article 130). For the head of an organization, deputies, chief accountant and head of a separate subdivision, it may be up to six months (Article 486). Illness and other periods of actual absence are excluded, while a temporary employee cannot be put on probation (Article 496).

Labor legislation applies in full during probation, and the period counts toward total service and service for annual leave. Probation is therefore paid on the terms agreed in the contract and is not work without statutory protections. This follows from the same legal regime (Article 131).

Before probation ends, either party may terminate the contract by giving the other at least three days' written notice. The employer must state the reasons for an unsatisfactory result. If probation has expired, or fewer than three days remain and the notice period is not shortened by agreement, the contract continues and may later be terminated only on general grounds. The law requires three days' written notice (Article 132).

When an employer may not refuse to hire

There are five main unlawful refusals (Article 119): discrimination; refusal of an invited candidate; refusal of a person whom the employer is legally required to hire; refusal because of pregnancy or children; and refusal because of the candidate's or a relative's conviction, including an expunged conviction, except where law expressly provides otherwise. On request, the employer must provide a signed written explanation within three days. Failure to respond does not prevent a challenge.

If the employer sent a written or electronic invitation, refusal is prohibited during the period stated in it. If no period is stated, this protection applies for one month (Article 101) after the invitation is sent.

Refusal because of pregnancy or children is separately prohibited. At the request of a pregnant woman or person with children, a written explanation must likewise be provided within three days (Article 392). A knowingly unlawful refusal to hire a pregnant woman or a person caring for a child may result in a fine of up to 11.000.000 UZS (Article 148 of the Criminal Code), disqualification for up to three years or corrective labor for up to three years.

The candidate may ask a court to order employment, award material damages and compensate moral harm. The employer must prove the lawfulness of the refusal (Article 120).

Minors are entitled to reserved workplaces (Article 411) on labor-authority referrals. More generally, organizations with an average headcount above 20 reserve, under a district or city Kengash decision, up to seven percent of jobs (Article 39 of the Employment Law), including at least three percent for persons with disabilities. The organization determines the number by 1 September and reports it to the local labor authority by 15 September.

Example. With an average headcount of 100, a Kengash decision may require up to seven reserved jobs, at least three of them for persons with disabilities. The specific obligation comes from the decision issued for the organization, not from applying the percentage without such a decision.

Failure to comply with the decision or unjustified refusal of a referred candidate exposes the responsible official to a fine of 4.400.000–8.800.000 UZS (Article 50 of the Administrative Liability Code), rising to 8.800.000–13.200.000 UZS for a repeat violation within one year.

How to register the contract in ENST

The conclusion and termination of a contract, as well as amendments and addenda, must be registered in ENST. This employer obligation is stated in the Labor Code (Article 109).

Before registration, the employer creates a workplace in the organization's structure. For a paper contract, the employer enters the employee's PINFL and identity-document details, contract number and date, start and end dates, workplace, probation, employment type, schedule, leave and pay. Registration is completed with a digital signature; unconfirmed data are treated as unregistered.

The electronic employment record book is created automatically (Article 125) when the contract, amendments or termination are registered. Employers and employees use ENST free of charge; there is no charge when the employer enters the data itself.

An employer may voluntarily order a commercial data-entry service from the ENST directorate. The fee per employee is 8.800 UZS, the service takes three working days, and the request should be made within two working days after the contract is concluded, amended or terminated.

Example. For ten employees, the optional service costs 8.800 × 10 = 88.000 UZS. This pays for help entering the data, not for mandatory registration: the employer may register the information itself for free.

How to hire special categories of workers

The general process changes for certain employers and workers:

A foreign citizen permanently residing under a residence permit is subject to the general labor rules (Article 521). A foreign citizen who temporarily enters for work and has no residence permit may become an employee from age 18 (Article 522).

Before signing, such a temporarily entered foreign citizen generally needs a confirmation of the right to work (Article 523), unless an exemption applies. Where confirmation is required, the contract term may not exceed its validity (Article 524).

This section only explains how foreign status affects conclusion of an employment contract. Exempt categories, the application, processing periods and fees are covered in the article on the work confirmation. Check it before signing with a temporarily entered foreign specialist.

Risks of actual admission and civil-law contracts

The title of an agreement does not determine the legal nature of the relationship. If an individual personally performs a job function under the employer's management and control, a court may reclassify a civil-law contract (Article 33) as employment. The employment contract is then treated as concluded on the civil-law agreement date, and employment relations begin when the individual actually starts the work.

A labor-law violation exposes the responsible official to a fine of between 2.200.000 and 4.400.000 UZS (Article 49 of the Administrative Liability Code), increasing to 4.400.000–6.600.000 UZS for a repeat violation within one year and 4.400.000–8.800.000 UZS for a violation concerning a minor. Concealing the number of employees separately carries a fine of 4.400.000 UZS (Article 175-5), increasing to 8.800.000 UZS for a repeat violation within one year.

Example. The lower limit of the general fine for an official is one BRV multiplied by five: 440.000 × 5 = 2.200.000 UZS. The competent authority sets the amount within the statutory range based on the circumstances.

What changed in 2025–2026

• Cabinet Resolution No. 763 of 3 December 2025, effective 4 December 2025, introduced optional commercial ENST services. The employer pays from its own funds, while self-service access remains free.
• Presidential Decree No. 126 of 4 August 2025 provides that, from 1 January 2026, violations recorded through ENST may be considered without the employer present and electronic administrative decisions may be issued.
• Law No. ZRU-1109 of 30 December 2025 assigned the setting of minimum reserved workplaces to district and city Kengashes of people's deputies. Local labor authorities communicate the decision to the organization no later than 15 November.

What the employer should check before the employee starts

The hiring process is complete when:

1. the candidate has been told about the work and working conditions and has reviewed the applicable internal policies;
2. only the legally required documents have been collected;
3. any mandatory medical examination and safety induction have been completed before admission;
4. the parties have agreed the job function, pay, start date, schedule and all other mandatory terms;
5. the fixed-term reason and probation are written into the contract when applicable;
6. both parties have signed the paper or electronic contract and the employee has received a copy;
7. the order matches the contract and will be presented to the employee for signature within three days;
8. the paper contract has been entered in ENST within five working days and confirmed with a digital signature;
9. the responsible person has arranged the employment record book and pension registration when required.

After hiring, the employee may request in writing copies of orders, an extract from the employment record book and other work-related documents. The employer provides them free within three days (Article 117).

Frequently asked questions

Can a hiring order be issued before the employment contract?

A concluded employment contract is the basis for the order, so the parties first agree the terms and sign the contract. The order must match the contract. It is presented to the employee for signature within three days after work actually begins. A draft may be prepared in advance, but using an order to complete hiring without a concluded contract does not follow the statutory sequence.

Can an employee start without a signed contract?

Actual admission by an authorized person, or with that person's knowledge, creates employment relations from the first day of work. It does not release the employer from formalization: the contract and order must be completed within three days. If an unauthorized employee admitted the person and the employer does not recognize the relationship, the organization must still pay for the work actually performed at the rate applicable to work of similar complexity.

What documents may an employer not request?

An employer may not demand documents that are not required by the Labor Code or another law. The general set comprises an identity document, employment-history information, a military document for a person liable for service or a conscript, an education document for restricted work, and PINFL. Certificates about family status, relatives or other additional documents are allowed only where there is an express legal basis.

Is the probationary period paid?

Yes. Labor legislation fully applies during probation, and the period counts toward employment service and annual-leave service. Pay is made under the signed contract. Uncontracted or unpaid “trial work” is not a separate lawful form of work. The probation clause must be included before work starts and cannot be added after hiring.

How long does the employer have to register the contract in ENST?

A paper employment contract is registered in ENST within five working days after conclusion. The employer enters the data after creating the workplace and confirms them with a digital signature. Unconfirmed data are treated as unregistered. An electronic contract is concluded in the system itself, and the electronic employment record book is created automatically from the registered data.