Business registration in Uzbekistan: process and requirements

A business in Uzbekistan can be registered online on the new.birdarcha.uz portal or at a public services center. The system registers an LLC or an individual entrepreneur in real time, in no more than 30 minutes. The state fee is 440.000 Uzbek soums, or 90% of that amount when filed online. The tax regime is chosen in the application itself, and no seal has to be made during registration.

In brief:

• Individual entrepreneurs and legal entities are registered in real time, in up to 30 minutes
• The state fee is 440.000 Uzbek soums (one BRV, the base calculation unit); filing through the Unified Portal costs 90% of that amount
• No minimum charter capital is set for an ordinary LLC; for an enterprise with foreign investment it is 400 million soums (200 million in Karakalpakstan and the Khorezm region)
• From 1 January 2026 the digital signature, bank account, licenses and online cash register are arranged together with registration (Presidential Decree UP-214 of 14.11.2025)
• Making a seal during registration is not required

Download our comprehensive guide to company registration in Uzbekistan (pdf).

Updated: 01 September 2026

Which legal form to choose

The main forms are the individual entrepreneur, the limited liability company (LLC), the family enterprise, the private enterprise and the farming enterprise. For a foreign investor the practical choice is almost always the LLC: it may engage in any activity not prohibited by law, and its participants are not liable for its debts with their own property. A new Law on Limited Liability Companies (ZRU-1137 of 21.04.2026) has been in force since 22 July 2026.

Founders may be local and foreign individuals and legal entities, between 1 and 50 in number. An LLC may not have as its sole participant another company that itself consists of a single person, except a joint-stock company with one shareholder.

If you are still choosing a legal form, the article on the limited liability company explains who may be a founder, how shares work and how profit is distributed. Before you start, check the list of activities requiring a license: a licensed activity may only begin once the license is in place.

How to register an LLC: step by step

Registration takes place online on new.birdarcha.uz or in person at a public services center, under Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 66 of 09.02.2017:

• Choose a company name and reserve it in the system
• Decide who the director will be and arrange a legal address (the cadastral number of the property is required)
• Prepare the foundation documents; foreign founders also need a PINFL and a digital signature obtained in Uzbekistan
• State the tax regime and the beneficial owner in the application
• Pay the state fee and submit the request: the system registers the company and assigns a taxpayer identification number automatically, in no more than 30 minutes
• Receive the registration certificate electronically in your personal cabinet

From 1 January 2026, under the "Start a business in 15 minutes" principle, the digital signature, bank account application, license or notification, lease agreement, VAT payer certificate and online cash register are all arranged together with registration (UP-214 of 14.11.2025). There is no separate tax or statistics registration: the system sends the details automatically.

The preparatory stage usually takes 1–3 weeks, mostly spent collecting the founders' documents; for foreign participants, obtaining a PINFL and a digital signature adds to that time.

Company name

The name is chosen in the system in Latin script and checked automatically against names already taken. It is reserved for 60 calendar days; for 440.000 soums the reservation can be extended for up to 12 months. A name may not contain the official name of the state, the name of a well-known figure without permission, misleading designations or designations similar to another party's name or trademark; the words "Uzbekistan" and "UZ" require a special permit. The full name must contain "limited liability company" and the short form the abbreviation "MChJ".

Company address

The registered address must be the actual location: an office, a coworking space or production premises, identified by its cadastral number. Since 1 March 2024 the founder's place of residence may also be used. For companies registering as VAT payers the tax authority checks the address: the premises must be non-residential, and less than 18 square meters of administrative space per legal entity makes the address nominal. Both are indicators of tax risk and may lead to a refusal of VAT registration.

Charter capital

No minimum or maximum charter capital is set for an ordinary LLC. Contributions must be paid in full within the period set by the foundation documents and in any case no later than one year from registration; otherwise the company must reduce its capital to the amount actually paid in, or liquidate. A contribution may consist of money, securities, property and property rights; non-monetary contributions worth more than 4.400.000.000 soums require a mandatory valuation.

A company with a foreign founder becomes an enterprise with foreign investment where its charter capital is at least 400 million soums, or 200 million in Karakalpakstan and the Khorezm region.

Documents, activities and refusal

The foundation documents in the state language are attached to the request: the decision to establish the company, the charter and, with two or more founders, the foundation agreement; a single-founder LLC has only the charter. Each founder confirms participation through the Unified Identification System; foreign founders must sign with their own digital signature, and a power of attorney issued abroad must be legalized or apostilled.

There is no need to list every activity in the charter: an LLC may engage in any lawful activity, including activities not stated in its documents; the application only names the main and additional activities by classifier code.

Registration is refused where the fee is unpaid or underpaid, the documents are incomplete, the name breaches the law on company names, the address is absent from the tax and cadastral databases, or the charter capital is below a minimum where one is set. You may file again once the cause is removed.

How much business registration costs

The state fee for an LLC or an individual entrepreneur is 440.000 Uzbek soums; filing online through the Unified Portal costs 90% of that amount. The rates are set by the Law On the State Fee:

For example, registering an LLC online costs 396.000 soums plus the payment system's commission of 1%. A paid fee is not refunded, but after a refusal of re-registration you may apply again within 5 working days without a new fee.

Which tax regime to choose at registration

The regime is stated in the registration application:

• Turnover tax, for companies and individual entrepreneurs with total income of up to 5.280.000.000 soums per year (12,000 BRV; the threshold applies from 1 June 2026, before which it was 1 billion soums): 4% for legal entities and 1% for individual entrepreneurs. Not available to, among others, producers of excisable goods, pharmacies and the jewelry business (Art. 461 of the Tax Code)
• The general regime, VAT and corporate income tax, mandatory once the threshold is exceeded

Businesses moving from turnover tax to the general regime for the first time from 1 January 2026 receive a one-year exemption from corporate income tax and a year free of penalties for breaching the VAT accounting rules.

This section covers only the choice of regime at registration. The article on corporate income tax and turnover tax shows who pays at which rate and which expenses may not be deducted; the article on VAT explains how to register, which turnover is exempt and how to offset or reclaim the tax.

Registering a company with a foreign founder

A foreign founder who is an individual needs a PINFL (personal identification number) and a digital signature obtained in Uzbekistan, plus a copy of their passport. A foreign organization needs an extract from the commercial register of its home country showing its authorized persons and a legalized or apostilled power of attorney for a local representative; a PINFL is obtained for the beneficial owner, the individual who is the true owner of the company's property or controls the applicant.

The director may be a citizen of Uzbekistan or a foreign national. Where the founders are foreign nationals and the charter capital is 400 million soums or more (an enterprise with foreign investment), the founders and the first director may work for up to 3 months from the date of the employment contract while the work permit confirmation is being arranged. In all other cases a foreign director must obtain the confirmation before starting work. A simplified procedure applies to highly qualified and qualified specialists.

This section covers only what a foreigner needs in order to register a company. If you plan to hire foreign employees or appoint a foreign director, read the article on the work permit for foreign specialists: which category the specialist falls into, how the confirmation is obtained and when it is not required.

Bank account, digital signature and seal

An account can be opened without visiting the bank, by accepting the bank account agreement within the registration system; banks may not require the originals of the certificate and foundation documents. Remote opening is provided for companies with resident founders and for individual entrepreneurs; a company with foreign founders opens its account at the bank in person. The digital signature is issued at registration and is needed for tax reporting and public services. Seals and stamps are not required at registration; a company may obtain one later if it wishes.

Liability for doing business without registration

Doing business without state registration carries a fine of 2.200.000 to 3.080.000 soums with confiscation of the items involved; where the unreported income is significant the fine is 3.080.000 to 4.400.000 soums, and where it is large, 4.400.000 to 22.000.000 soums (Art. 176 of the Code of Administrative Liability). The tax authority additionally collects 10% of the income from an individual doing business without registering as an individual entrepreneur, and concealing the tax base carries a fine of 20% of the amount concealed.

Where the unreported income is especially large, 220.000.000 soums or more, criminal liability applies: a fine of 132.000.000 to 264.000.000 soums or up to 5 years' imprisonment (Art. 188 of the Criminal Code). A first-time offender is released from liability if, within 30 days of discovery, they pay the taxes due, register the business and obtain the required permits.

Re-registration: which changes must be registered

Changes to registration data must be re-registered within the set deadlines:

A change of address is processed by notification where there is no tax debt above 132.000.000 soums. Ordinary changes are re-registered within 30 minutes; changes to the charter capital and share transfers take up to 16 working hours, or 2 hours under the expedited procedure. A share transfer requires each founder's consent through the Unified Identification System; since September 2025 the admission and exclusion of participants in the cases set by law is registered without a general meeting decision, and tax debt is not a ground for refusal. Licenses and permits are updated automatically and free of charge when the name, address or legal form changes. Failure to report a change of address or bank details within 10 days carries a fine for officials of 4.400.000 to 6.600.000 soums (Art. 176-2).

What changed in 2026

• From 1 January 2026 the "Start a business in 15 minutes" registration applies: the digital signature, bank account, licenses and online cash register are arranged together with registration (UP-214 of 14.11.2025)
• From 1 June 2026 the income threshold for the general tax regime was raised to 5.280.000.000 soums, and importers are no longer treated as VAT payers automatically (UP-100 of 26.05.2026)
• From 1 July 2026 a personal cabinet in the "Yagona davlat nazorati" state control system is opened automatically at registration; inspections outside that system are unlawful (UP-63 of 17.04.2026)
• From 22 July 2026 the new Law on Limited Liability Companies applies (ZRU-1137 of 21.04.2026)

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to register an LLC?

Registration itself takes no more than 30 minutes after the documents are submitted and the fee is paid. Most of the time goes on preparation: reserving the name, collecting the founders' documents and, for foreigners, obtaining a PINFL and a digital signature. In practice this takes 1–3 weeks.

Can a company be registered at a home address?

Yes. The founder's place of residence in Uzbekistan may be given as the registered address; the cadastral number of the property will be needed. For future VAT payers the address must be real and in non-residential premises: a residential or nominal address is an indicator of tax risk (Resolution No. 595).

Does an LLC need a seal?

No. Seals and stamps are not required at registration. After registration the company may obtain a seal if it wishes to.

Can a foreigner be the sole founder of an LLC?

Yes, a foreign individual may establish an LLC alone; they will need a PINFL and a digital signature obtained in Uzbekistan. A foreign company may also be the sole participant, provided it does not itself consist of a single person, except a joint-stock company with one shareholder.

Can the tax regime be changed after registration?

Yes. You may move from turnover tax to VAT and corporate income tax voluntarily from the beginning of the following month, and the move is mandatory once the income threshold is exceeded. Returning to turnover tax is possible no earlier than 12 months later (Art. 462 of the Tax Code).