Реферат: A Country Report and Profile - Republic of Uzbekistan

A CountryReport and Profile

PresentedBy: 

AlfiyaG. Mirzagalamova amirz@indiana.edu

Jason C. Holman jholman@indinanaedu

DmitriMaslitchenko dmitri@mailroom.com<span Times New Roman",«serif»;mso-fareast-font-family:«Times New Roman»;mso-ansi-language: EN-US;mso-fareast-language:RU;mso-bidi-language:AR-SA">

The concept of transition of the Republic ofUzbekistan to the market economy consists of five principles formulated by itsPresident Islam Karimov:

1. Economy should have priority overpolitics. Economic reforms should not follow the lead of political processes.

2. The State is the main reformer. Therepresentatives of legally elected authorities have to determine priorities andpursue balanced policy of  no socialshocks.

3. Along with economic reforms it isnecessary to create a system of social protection of the Republic population especially of most vulnerablegroups.

4. Superiority of Law and Constitution.

5. Stage by stage movement to the marketeconomy. The transition to next stage only after the current stage targets havebeen met..

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I.  Politicaland Economic Background

Politics

To understand the politics of Uzbekistan it isimportant to delve into it<span WP TypographicSymbols"">=smost recent history.  The leader from1959-1983 was Sharaf Rashidov,who ruled in a quasi-feudal fashion, much like the newly elected leader.  Rashidov kept theUSSR content through a combination of patronage, corruption, and repressivebehavior.  Once Mikhail Gorbachev was elected, Rashidovwas the prime target for his drive to eliminate corruption.  Although there was an upsurge of nationalidentity among the Uzbeks and a feeling ofvictimization by the thousands of corrupt officials who where soon imprisoned,incredibly through more repression the elections for new leaders would gounopposed.      The Republic of Uzbekistan declared its independence from theformer Soviet Union on August 31, 1991. Although it was not recognized by the United States until December 25,1992.  Uzbekistan is a member of theUnited Nations and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).  Although Glasnost led to many open media discussionsof the environment and ethnic issues, the elections held in 1990 wereone-sided.  The main opposition party wasnot allowed to stand, therefore leaving many communist candidates to beelected.   Islam Karimov  was first elected President in 1990 by theSupreme Soviet and later was reelected by a popular vote in  1991. 

In 1995 Karimov held anational referendum which would extend his term into the year 2000.  He had 99% of the electorate<span WP TypographicSymbols"">=s support.  Karimov proclaimshe is a supporter of

<span WP TypographicSymbols"">AEastern Democracy.<span WP TypographicSymbols"">@  He stresses the importance of stability ofeastern democracy over it<span WP TypographicSymbols"">=swestern counterpart.  The  stability that Karimovsuggests many believe is just a ploy for Karimov touse his dictatorship power to cling to the old world status.  Karimov is one ofthe strongest supporters of continued cooperation among the SovietRepublics.  Karimovsupported the new Union Treaty in spring of 1991 and did not oppose the August1991 coup in Moscow.   Once the coupcollapsed Uzbekistan declared independence. Karimov proclaims Uzbekistan is a multipartysystem, yet the Erk (Freedom) Democratic Party, the Birlik (Unity) People<span WP TypographicSymbols"">=s Movement (BPM) andthe Islamic rebirth Party (IRP) have been banned. 

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Policy makersstill remain suspicious of unregulated market mechanisms, although Karimov  officiallycommits to a market-oriented reform. Prices were slowly liberalized and the new trade policies are lessharmful toward exports.  The importtariffs proposed in 1993 are preferential toward CIS communities and extra lowtariffs toward Central Asian countries.  It is going to be very difficult for him to explain why many of theneighboring Central Asian countries are becoming richer through liberalizationand privatization while Uzbekistan continues to stay stable, but poorer thenthe other nations.  Karimovstresses stability as a reason why Uzbekistan has not seen the high inflation ratescharacteristic to other CIS communities in transition.

2Karimov giveslittle mention to human rights.  Hebelieves that economic stability is necessary for socio-politicalstability.  In his new book, Along theRoad of Deepening Economic Reform, Karimov states, <span WP TypographicSymbols"">A

preparation,discussion and adoption of fundamental laws regulating and providing guaranteesof human rights and freedoms, rights and freedoms of public organizations andfreedom of conscience and religion have been something principally new inpractical law making in this country.<span WP TypographicSymbols"">@ He also briefly mentions the women<span WP TypographicSymbols"">=s rights andacknowledges their special role as <span WP TypographicSymbols"">Awomen-mothers<span WP TypographicSymbols"">@and presses for better child care provisions.       

Economy

3At independence,the economy was dominated by cotton production. Uzbekistan hoped to benefit from this by selling the cotton on theinternational market, but the early 1990s were a time of depressed prices onworld cotton markets.  This created adispute with Russia, which responded by seeking to purchase cotton on the worldmarket. Uzbekistan lost a considerable amount of revenue due to this conflictwith Russia.  Eventually the twocountries reached an agreement to barter Uzbek cottonfor Russian petroleum products. 

Other important agricultural products include grain,fruit, vegetables and natural silk from cocoons.  The main problem of Uzbekistan is that aboutthree-fifths of the country is desert or semi-arid desert: almost allcultivated land must be irrigated.  Thishas resulted in the gradual drying up of the AralSea.  By the 90's the available watersupply had been exhausted to the point that there was no possibility ofincreasing the amount of land used for agricultural purposes.  Grain production only covers a quarter of Uzbekistan<span WP TypographicSymbols"">=stotal consumption.  Therefore Uzbekistanrelies heavily on imports from countries such as the United States to supporttheir supply of grain.  Uzbekistancomplains that the USSR destroyed it<span WP TypographicSymbols"">=s

grain-growing capacity in order tocreate the cotton monoculture.  This has remained a very difficult obstaclefor Uzbekistan and grain continues to be a major import. 

4Uzbekistan<span WP TypographicSymbols"">=

s other primaryproduct exports include gas and minerals. Uzbekistan has few energy sources besides gas and untapped hydropower.  Although a major oil field wasrecently discovered in the Fergana Valley in1992.  Uzbekistan is the largest importerof oil by all the CARs.  The most accessible mineral export is gold,of which Uzbekistan was the USSR<span WP TypographicSymbols"">=s second-largest producer.  Joint ventures are bringing foreigntechnology to exploit Uzbekistan gold mines. Other mineral deposits include silver, lead, copper, zinc, andtungsten.  Uzbekistan<span WP TypographicSymbols"">=s minerals have alow ore content, which suggests that it would not be as valuable on the worldmarket.

5After World WarII, Soviet resources were concentrated on rebuilding industrial enterprises inEuropean areas.  With less investment thegrowth rate of Uzbekistans industry declined. Therewas a long trend of falling industrial growth rates.  Manufacturing industry in Uzbekistan wasoriginally developed in close relation to its primary product base which ofcourse was cotton and fruits and vegetables. Machinery for the cotton sector was a major output and food processingindustries were also important.  Theseare the only two substantial forms of manufacturing in Uzbekistan.  This is somewhat disturbing considering thelarge amounts of resources that are available. 

6The generalproblem was of lack technical ability and low standards of quality.  The main approach to correct this problem wasto encourage joint ventures.  Many jointventure agreements were signed in 1992 and 1993, but there was little actualforeign investment.  There was also aproblem with Uzbekistan<span WP TypographicSymbols"">=scommunication capabilities.  In 1993 ajoint venture was formed with the Turkish company, Teletas, toinstall seventy thousand lines.

Uzbekistan also would like to become the hub ofCentral Asia.  When the Aeroflot fleetwas shared out after the dismemberment of the USSR, Uzbekistan utilized itsshare of the planes productively to earn vast amounts of hard currency.  It created an international network in thespring of 1993 with the goal of making Tashkent a hub for budget and travelbetween Europe and Asia.  Flights wouldbe established to Karachi, Delhi, Kuala, Lumpur, Bangkok, Beijing, Frankfort,and London.  Israel provided trainingassistance to Uzbekistan Airways, and the airline raised its credibility bypurchasing several Airbuses.

Economic reform in Uzbekistan has been veryslow.  Until 1994 Mr. Karimovopposed reform.  Since then he has had tostart some reforms to obtain IMF backing for his stabilization program and toget World Bank financing.  Uzbekistan hasbeen officially committed to economic reform since independence.  The government has favored gradual change,and the pace has become increasingly slower as the years have went on.  Labor market and enterprise reform have beenlimited, and indeed the ultimate reason behind Uzbekistansslow price liberalization has been to maintain the value of real wages andsubsidies.  The government has promisedto keep wage and benefit increases ahead of future price rises. 

7Privatization inUzbekistan has progressed extremely slow. Karimov dominates economic policy; he hasissued a raft of decrees that are on occasion contradictory, but aim toconvince the multilateral institutions that reform is taking place. The firstform of privatization took place in 1994. The process lacked transparency, was corrupt and resulted in Mr Karimov<span WP TypographicSymbols"">=sallies owning the viable firms.  Otherobstacles are that land liberalization ahead of establishing a guaranteed watersupply would be meaningless for the irrigation-based agricultural sector.  In industry, not only has privatization ofstate enterprises been slow but there was also very little privatizationcreated from many small-scale entrepreneurs. 

8II.  Budgetaryand Monetary Conditions

Uzbekistan<span WP TypographicSymbols"">=s

statistics arenotoriously inaccurate and in small quantities. The government views economic data as a state secret, and circulation ofthe more informative data is restricted. All figures from Uzbekistan must be treated with a degree of caution asthe government is trying show that the country is handling the post Sovietgovernment better then its neighbors. The country is attempting to switch from the old communist nationalaccounting method using National material product (NMP), which excludes mostservices and depreciation, to the standard System of National Accounts (SNA).

What is clear is that Uzbekistan<span WP TypographicSymbols"">=s economy has beenin decline since the collapse of the Soviet Union.  After a 3.7 % fall in 1991 National materialproduct declined by 14.4% in 1992.  GDPin those two years has dropped by 0.5% and 11.1%.  In 1993 the fall in GDP was 2.4 % accordingto IMF estimates, with national material product down by 3.5% mainly due tocontinued government subsidies.  The IMPinitially estimated that, due to tighter policies, GDP contracted by 10.1% in1994.  However, the Uzbekauthorities claim that despite a severe credit crunch and a confiscatorychange of currency, GDP shrank by only 2.6%, the figure that the IMF nowaccepts. 

9Net Material Product

1989                1990                1991                1992                1993

<img src="/cache/referats/5888/image001.gif" v:shapes="_x0000_s1026">

Total(Rb m)

Atcurrent prices         21,58823,40249,636386,071           3,686,800

RealChange ( %)        3.1                   11.3                 -3.7                  -14.4                -3.5

 

<img src="/cache/referats/5888/image001.gif" v:shapes="_x0000_s1027">Per Head (Rb)

Atcurrent prices         1,091               1,157               2,407               18,287170,622

Realchange (%)          0.8                   8.9                   -5.5                  -16.4                -5.7

                       

<img src="/cache/referats/5888/image001.gif" v:shapes="_x0000_s1028">*Derived from theWorld Bank mid-year population estimates.

Budget Deficit

Uzbekistan<span WP TypographicSymbols"">=s

governmentbudget has suffered from large deficits since the collapse of the SovietUnion.  The IMF has put the 1993 fiscaldeficit at 12% of GDP, while the governments figure released through the WorldBank was 2.5%.  The main reason for thedeficits is lost revenue subsidies from the Soviet Union.  Uzbekistan had one of the largest subsidyshare of revenue compared to many of the other (CIS) countries.  During the 1980s the proportion of revenueactually increased form 20.8% in 1987 to 43.2% in 1990.  Soviet grants which has once accounted for 7%of GDP in 1987 rose to 19.5% of GDP by 1991.   

10III.  Expenditure Policies and Assignments

Although Uzbekistan is now engaged in the necessaryfiscal and revenue-raising reforms demanded by multilateral institutions, verylittle revenue is received from taxes.  Corruption, weak institutions, economic recession and poor taxcompliance have hindered revenue collection severely.  The government claims that actual revenue toGDP has risen in recent years from 26.4% to 41%in 1993.  Given continued state control of the economy,tax compliance among state enterprises would tend to be greater than incountries with a growing private sector, although figures may be overstated.  On the expenditure side, increased outlays ondefense and security, welfare payments, and subsidies to industry have been the most important developmentssince 1991.  Increased expenditure wasfinanced through huge expansion of domestic credit, montisedby courtesy of the Russian Central Bank until 1993 when this tactical trend waseliminated once it was found to be unsustainable.  The government then went to the IMF.  The figures on the preceding page show thisinformation

11State Budget(Rbbn)

1988    1989    1990    1991    1992    1993

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Revenue                                                         9.7       11.8     15.1     30.2     139.8   1,814.5

ofwhich:

TurnoverTax                                                   3.3       3.8       4.0       6.1       3.3       n/a

VAT                                                                0.0       0.0       0.0       0.0       38.4     477.1

Excises                                                            0.0       0.0       0.0       0.0       9.5       44.9

Companyincome Tax                                     1.7       1.3       1.5       3.8       23.9     382.9

PersonalIncome tax                                        1.1       1.5       1.3       1.8       11.4     145.3

Grantsfrom Union Budget                             2.3       3.6       6.4       11.4     0.0       0.0

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Expenditure                                                   10.1     11.0     14.9    32.4     193.9   1,923.4

ofwhich:

Economy                                                         4.6       5.0       8.1       5.9       20.9     392.7

Defenseand Public Order                              n/a       n/a       n/a       0.2       11.7     n/a

Socialand Cultural                                         5.2       5.5       6.2       9.2       70.8     n/a

<img src="/cache/referats/5888/image001.gif" v:shapes="_x0000_s1031">

Balance                                                           -0.4      -0.8      -0.2      -2.4      -54.1    -108.9

% ofGDP                                                       -1.4      -1.0      -1.2      -3.6      -12.1    -2.5

<img src="/cache/referats/5888/image001.gif" v:shapes="_x0000_s1032">

* 1993 data are from the World Bank. They excludenon-budgetary accounts.

Sources:IMF, Economic Review: Uzbekistan; World Bank, Statistical Handbook: States ofthe Former USSR, 1994

IV. TaxStructure and Administration12

Corporate Taxation

Profit Tax

Uzbekentities ‑ taxed on their profits from all sources worldwide.

ForeignEntities ‑ taxed on profits from the entrepreneurial activities of theirestablishments in Uzbekistan.

Foreignentities receiving income from Uzbek sources otherthan through Permanent Establishments are subject to withholding tax on thegross amounts of the income without reduction for any expenses.

Thegeneral profit tax rate is 37%. This rate is reduced to 25% for entities withforeign investment of 30% or greater.

A taxreturn and activity report should be filed with the tax authorities by February15. An audit opinion or an agreement for audit services should  also be submitted by the appropriatedeadline.

Social charges

Employersmust make social insurance and employment fund contributions, as well ascontributions to a trade union if applicable. The total amount payable, whichis deductible for profits tax purposes, is 38% to 40% of each employee's gross salary, made up as follows:

Fund                                        Rate

Socialinsurance                      36%

employment                            2%

Tradeunion (if applicable)      2%

Individual Taxation

Aresident is defined as an individual who is physically present in Uzbekistanfor 183 days or more in a calendar year. Residents are taxed on their worldwideincome, while non‑residents are taxed only on their Uzbeksources income.

Taxableincome for 1995 and 1996 is taxed at the following rates:

Taxableincome (less annual non‑taxable minimum)

Up to2 annual minimum wage                       15%

2 to5 annual minimum wage                          25%

5 to10 annual minimum wage                        35%

Over10 times annual minimum wage40%

Social security contributions

1%  of the gross salary  to the Social Insurance Fund.

Deductions and Exemptions

Allincome  is taxable in Uzbekistan unlessit is specifically exempt. The list of specifically exempt income includesalimony, gift, severance and pension income.

Capital gains

Capitalgains in the disposal of shares are exempt for taxation. Capital losses are notdeductible.

Other taxes and fees

Value Added Tax  («VAT»)

VATwas introduced in Uzbekistan on February 15, 1991. The current rate is 17%.

VATis levied on turnover from the supply of all goods and services (includingbarter transactions), unless they are specifically exempt. Imports are exempt.Though, VAT is levied on the Uzbek seller's markup ofimported goods. Exported goods and services are specifically exempt from VAT.Exported goods are defined as having cleared customs. Exported services aredefined as being supplied to a «foreign person». For thedetermination of whether services are exported, neither the place of providingthe services not the place  where thebenefits are used are considered, only that the purchaser is a foreign person(entity). It could be argued  that Uzbek VAT legislation allows representative offices offoreign legal entities (which are non‑resident), paying for services inforeign currency through authorized Uzbek banks toalso be classified as «foreign person».

EffectiveJanuary 1 1996, the exemption on exported goods and services is onlyapplicable  if the importing country doesnot impose VAT on exports to Uzbekistan. This restriction is especiallyimportant with respect to some members of the CIS as VAT is charged on exportsto member states.

TheVAT legislation of Uzbekistan allows a credit for VAT incurred, when such goodsor services are «charged to the cost of production».

Excise taxes

Excisetaxes are payable by domestic producers and importers of excised goods. Thelist of excised goods is determined by the Cabinet of Ministers and includestobacco, jewelry, gasoline, liquor and other goods. Exported goods are exempt.Tax rate vary from 5% to 75%. The amount of excise tax is determined by thetaxpayer, based on the volume of goods sold and established tax rates on suchgoods.

Property tax

The2% rate tax is based on the historical cost of fixed assets used in production.Legislation specifically includes buildings, machinery, equipment and vehicles.Accumulated depreciation  does not reducethe taxable base.  The following assetsare specifically excluded from he taxable base for property tax purposes: 

‑housing, social and cultural facilities;

‑environmental protection assets;

‑agricultural equipment;

‑transportation networks (including roads and pipeline);

‑communication and power transmission lines (including

‑maintenance structures);

‑communication satellites; and

‑automobiles.

Profittax is deductible for profits tax purposes.

Subsurface use tax

Taxeson the mining, and oil and gas industries. Subsurface uses tax is deductiblefor profits tax purposes.

Land tax

A feeon land owners is imposed at a fixed rate per hectare.

Vehicle fees

Aminimal fee on motor vehicle owners is imposed at a fixed rate per horsepower.Individuals must also pay this fee, though only at half the corporate rate.Only vehicles registered for road use are subject to this tax (e.g. not thoseused for production which would be subject to property tax).

Inaddition there is a fee on the purchase of vehicles, defined as a percentage ofthe purchase price of the vehicle excluding VAT or duties, 5% for cars and 10%for trucks, buses, trailers and semi‑trailers.

Road use tax

Allentities are subject to road use tax which is applied to gross sales, excludingVAT and excises. For transportation companies a rate of 2% and for all othercompanies a rate of 1% applies. The tax is deductible for profits tax purposes.

Water use fee

Thereis a nominal charge for the use of water resources at a fixed rate per cubicmeter of water consumed. For most companies, the rate is 0.09 soum per cubic meter. The fee is deductible for profits taxpurposes within statutory water use limits.

Local taxes

Thereare numerous different taxes, though most are insignificant except for the administrativeburden. Example of more significant local taxes include:

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Tax on advertising costs. In Tashkent the rate is 5%of total expense.

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Fee for cleaning the local territory, payable byentities and individuals conducting entrepreneurial activities. In Tashkent therate is 0.5% of gross receipts.

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Fee for the right to trade, payable by entities andindividuals conducting retail trade. In Tashkent the rate is two minimummonthly wages per month.

Revenue collection problems13

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High tax rates on modest tax bases reduced not onlyby economic contraction but also  byvarious exemptions.

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Weak tax administration compounded by corruption.

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The effective tax burden on those who comply withthe tax code is increased since large numbers of taxpayers successfully evadetaxes ‑ equity and efficiency problems.

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Corruption and abuse of authority by poorly paid taxadministrators are serious problems.

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Another major cause of poor tax revenues is dollarization  andthe continued use of barter, payment in kind.

The Investment Policy of Uzbekistan

 Priority areas14

 1. Gold‑mining and non‑ferrous(Uzbekistan ranks 4th in the world in terms of gold reserves).

2.Power engineering.

3.Processing of cotton (40% of the gross agricultural production is cotton,however only 10% of produced raw cotton is processes in Uzbekistan, the rest isexported as raw material. The existing textile industry is obsolete).

4.Processing of vegetables and fruits (The production makes up 60% of the totalfruit and vegetables production of the former USSR; agricultural infrastructuredevelopment needed ‑ processing, transportation, storage facilities,packing).

5.Transport and communication.

6.Tourism (4000 architectural monuments, many of them are under the protection ofUNESCO;. world famous cities Samarkand, Bukhara, Khiva; tourisminfrastructure is a potential area of investment).

7.Financial and monetary. Create a network of banks and insurance institution.

8.Environmental Protection (degradation of the ecosystem of the Aral Sea, irrational use of water resources).

Guarantees and privileges granted to foreigninvestors15 

1. Ifsubsequent legislation of the republic of Uzbekistan impairs investmentconditions, then the legislation which was valid at the time of making theinvestment shall apply for a period of time not exceeding 10 years.

2. Companies<span WP TypographicSymbols"">=profit tax shall be reduced by:

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20%, for an export share of 5-10% of the totalproduction;

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30%, for an export share of 10-20% of the totalproduction;

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40%, for an export share of 20 to 30% of the totalproduction;

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50%, for an export share of 30% or above of thetotal production.

Thepurpose here is encourage export oriented manufactures and producers. «Thegreat success stories of economic development in the last decade have been thenewly industrialized countries of East Asia, especially the so-called „FourTigers“ (South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore) and, increasingly,Thailand and China. In these countries, rapid growth of manufactured exportshas produced dramatic increase in income. NICs haveundertaken a host of interventionist measures to create incentives forexport-oriented manufacturing firms, often in particular targeted industries atparticular stage of development.»16

Theheritage of the old socialist system — exports of primary commodities and rawmaterials (cotton and cotton products in case of Uzbekistan)- has to begradually replaced by exports of manufactured goods. «It makes adifference not only because of the recurring problem of gluts resulting infalling process in commodity markets but also because of the greater potentialfor raising technological capabilities».17

3.Receipts in hard currency earned by a company due to increase in exportproduction (product, jobs, services) shall be exempt from profit tax.

4. A25% profit tax shall apply to the profits of Joint Ventures with a foreigncapital of above 30%.

5.Joint Ventures with a foreign capital investing into projects in priorityindustries included in the Investment Program of Uzbekistan shall be exemptform taxation for the first five years of operations.

6.Joint Ventures which specialize in agricultural products and the processingthereof (except for wines and strong alcoholic beverages), consumer products,and construction materials, medical equipment, machines and equipment foragriculture, light and food industries, recycling of waste materials are exemptfrom taxation for two years from the date of registration.

7.The profit tax base is decrease by 30% of the expenses for environmentalprotection.

8.Dividend on governmental bonds are exempt from taxation;

9.Joint Ventures in which the foreign investor<span WP TypographicSymbols"">=s share accounts fora least 50% shall be exempt of  profittax provided that whole tax amount is re-invested into the development andexpansion of production of consumer goods.

10.Exporting companies are exempt of VAT for materials resources used in theproduction of exported goods (jobs, services)

11.Beginning July 1994 through December 31, 1997 all commercial banks includingthose with foreign capital, as well as the branches and subsidiaries of foreignbanks operating in Uzbekistan are exempt from profits, property, land andvehicle taxes.

 V. Intergovernmental Financial Relationship

TheStatute of the Republic of Uzbekistan «About Taxes on Enterprises andEntities»  establishes revenuesources of the State budget of the Republic of Uzbekistan, State budget of  the Republic of Karakalpakstan18 and local budgets for thefollowing expenditures:

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Social Security Payments;

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Businesses regulation;

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International payments;

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Stabilization of the foreign currency circulation;

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Stimulation of extraction of mineral resources; and

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Environmental protection.

Uzbekistanhas a unified statewide tax policy for all layers of government. Localgovernments are entitled to levy taxes within the format of the state wide taxpolicy.

Taxrevenue is transferred to the budget of Uzbekistan, budgets of the Republicof  Karakalpakstan,regions, Tashkent city (the capital) and local budgets according to the normsestablished annually during the process of budget approval for the respectivefiscal year.

 Local governments impose local taxes in theirjurisdictions in full accordance with the Uzbek lawsand based on the general tax policy of Uzbekistan.

Theauthorities levying  a specific type oftax establish:

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the taxpayer;

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the tax base;

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the tax rate;

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the procedure of calculation and payment;

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exemptions and privileges;

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life time of the tax.

IV.Social Insurance

Inmost transition countries proposals to reform social security have included theestablishment of minimum  retirementbenefits, compulsory employment‑related benefits, unification oftreatment across occupations, increases in the retirement age, and steps toreduce access to benefits by younger working pensioners. It is important thatpension and social security reforms help to insure adequate levels ofprotection without overburdening contributors to the system. This will requirebetter collection of private sector contributions and improved  targeting of benefits, including tying futureeligibility of pension benefits to past contributions.

As apart of the transformation process, most transition countries have introducedunemployment insurance  schemes. InUzbekistan unemployment benefits were roughly 80 percent of the average wage in1993, although the generosity of the scheme was matched by onerousadministrative procedures, which ensured that few individuals qualified.19

Uzbekistan:

A CountryReport and Profile

PresentedBy: 

AlfiyaG. Mirzagalamova amirz@indiana.edu

Jason C. Holman jholman@indinanaedu

DmitriMaslitchenko dmitri@mailroom.com


<span Times New Roman";mso-ansi-language: EN-US;mso-fareast-language:RU;mso-bidi-language:AR-SA">[1]

Pomfret, Richard.  The Economies of Central Asia.  Copyright 1995 by Princeton University Press.

<span Times New Roman";mso-ansi-language: EN-US;mso-fareast-language:RU;mso-bidi-language:AR-SA">[2]

Uzbekistan:  Masterof its Destiny.  BISNIS — Uzbekistanreport. 10 August 1995.

3The Economist IntelligenceUnit. Country Profile.  1995-1996

4Pomfret, Richard.  TheEconomies of Central Asia.  Copyright1995 by Princton UniverstiyPress.

5The Economist IntelligenceUnit.  Country Profile.  1995-1996.

6The Economist IntelligenceUnit.  Country Profile.  1995-1996.

7The Economist IntelligenceUnit.  Country Profile.  1995-1996.

8The Economist IntelligenceUnit. Country Profile. 1995-1996.

9The Economist IntelligenceUnit. Country Profile. 1995-1996.

10The Economist IntelligenceUnit. Country Profile. 1995-1996.

11The Economist IntelligenceUnit.  Country Profile.  1995-1996.

12«A Tax Guide to Europe.Uzbekistan», Arthur Andersen, April 1996

13IMF, World EconomicOutlook, May 1996

14The Investment Guide forForeign Companies, National Bank for Foreign Economic       Activity of the Republic of Uzbekistan

15Guarantees and Privilegesgranted to Foreign Investors by the Legislature of the Republic of Uzbekistan,Appendix to Presidential Decree as of May 31,1996

16Stephen C.Smith,«Industrial Policy and Exports Success: Third World Development Strategiesreconsidered»

17Stephen C.Smith,«Industrial Policy and Exports Success: Third World Development StrategiesRECONSIDERED».

18An autonomous republicwithin the Republic of Uzbekistan

19IMF, «World EconomicOutlook», May 1996, p.77

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