Finance Ministry finalizes monitoring criteria for mobile transfers: key requirements outlined
Breaking News: Enhanced Monitoring of Mobile Transfers and Financial Activities in Kazakhstan
Strict measures are on the way for mobile transfer monitoring, as revealed by Deputy Finance Minister Erjan Birkhanov in discussions about Kazakhstan's new Tax Code at the Mazhilis.
Birkhanov stated, "The approaches have already been determined. They were clear earlier: three months in a row from different 100 individuals receiving transfers, plus the transfer amount should exceed 12 times the MZP. This is more than 1 million tenge today." He added that, even if the new Tax Code is implemented in May or June, data for the current year will be collected in 2026.
As of 2024, Kazakhstan has already started checking mobile transfers with indications of illegal entrepreneurial activity. In 2025, this scrutiny will extend to the activities of individual entrepreneurs, heads of legal entities, and their spouses.
Notably, state bodies will examine "suspicious" mobile transfers that display signs of unlawful entrepreneurial activity. These measures are part of a broader push to combat illicit financial transactions, with the implementation of automated systems to detect suspicious transactions in real-time.
Since 2024, banks have been keeping an eye on transfers linked to illegal activities, such as the illegal drug trade, prohibited digital asset exchanges, and gambling platforms. These transactions will be flagged and reported to financial monitoring authorities.
As we move towards 2025, expect increased oversight of rapid, high-volume transfers, particularly via mobile wallets. There's a strong possibility that international standards for crypto transactions may influence future transaction limits in Kazakhstan.
In addition, Kazakhstan's transfer pricing rules, implemented in March 2025, require stricter reporting for multinational enterprises, reflecting broader efforts to combat illicit cross-border financial flows.
Stay tuned for more updates as we continue to bring you the hot topics and news shaping Kazakhstan. Don't forget to subscribe to our Telegram channel for exclusive content!
Subscribe
- Erjan Birkhanov, the Deputy Finance Minister, has stated that the approaches for enhanced mobile transfer monitoring in Kazakhstan, as part of the new Tax Code, involve scrutinizing transfers from three months in a row, made by more than 100 individuals whose combined transfers exceed 12 times the MZP, which is equivalent to more than 1 million tenge today.
- In 2025, the scrutiny of mobile transfers in Kazakhstan will extend to the activities of individual entrepreneurs, heads of legal entities, and their spouses.
- Automated systems will be implemented in Kazakhstan in 2025 to detect and investigate suspicious transactions, including mobile transfers displaying signs of unlawful entrepreneurial activity.
- Banks in Kazakhstan are currently monitoring transfers linked to illegal activities, such as the illegal drug trade, prohibited digital asset exchanges, and gambling platforms, and will continue to do so in 2025 as part of the overall push to combat illicit financial transactions.
