Republican budget tax revenues remained behind the plan in 2025

KAZAKHSTAN - In Brief 13 Jan 2026 by Evgeny Gavrilenkov

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The Ministry of Finance has started releasing financial statistics for 2025, reporting that the republican budget execution was generally in line with the initial plan. Revenue and expenditure targets remained largely unchanged, and the budget deficit came in slightly below the KZT 4.1 trln target. The government financed 99.1% of planned expenditures, leaving around KZT 0.25 trln unallocated. Total revenues, which included tax revenues, transfers from the National Fund, and various non-tax incomes, reached KZT 21.1 trln, or 98.6% of the plan—fairly close to expectations. However, tax revenue collection lagged behind the target, with KZT 14.7 trln collected against a goal of KZT 15.2 trln. Transfers were on target at about KZT 5.8 trln. A closer look at various tax revenues shows that corporate profit tax collection fell short, with the government gathering only KZT4.5 trln out of the KZT5.1 trln target (89.1% of the plan). This is a bit surprising given the economy reportedly grew over 6% last year and inflation was in double digits. VAT collection wasn’t much better, reaching just 93.1% of the target (KZT5.1 trln out of the planned KZT6.5 trln). On the other hand, two smaller but important taxes — the mineral resource tax and taxes related to foreign trade — exceeded expectations, helped by the tenge averaging about 11% weaker last year compared to 2024. Non-tax revenues in 2025 beat the plan by 89.1%, reaching KZT825 bln. It wasn’t unusual for this figure to jump at year’s end, as it had long been one of the key ways to balance the budget. In past years, these high non-tax revenues mostly came from inflated dividends paid by state-owned companies, but in 2025 a sign...