The key facts

  • The law was signed on October 20; it passed three readings in the Legislative Chamber in April and was approved by the Senate in August.
  • When challenged, the tax authority must file an application with the economic court within three days, along with evidence.
  • Transactions remain suspended until the court's decision; a prompt cancellation of the suspension is provided for after a number of violations are resolved.

Law signed to reduce regulatory burden in tax disputes

President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev signed a law on October 20 reducing the regulatory burden on entrepreneurs in the sphere of tax disputes, the Ministry of Justice's legal information channel reported. The document passed all three readings in the Legislative Chamber in April and received the Senate's approval in August. It introduces amendments to the Tax Code and the Economic Procedure Code governing the suspension of business account transactions in cases of tax violations and disputes.

Judicial challenge to account suspension

According to the amendments, heads of tax authorities and their deputies may suspend transactions on a taxpayer's bank account in the absence of objections. If the taxpayer challenges the decision, the tax authority must file an application with the economic court within three days. The application must be accompanied by evidence of the legislative violation that served as the basis for the suspension, notification from the tax authorities, and the taxpayer's complaint. Transactions remain suspended until the court issues a decision; if the court refuses the suspension, it is cancelled from the day the verdict enters into legal force.

Prompt cancellation of suspension upon resolution of violations

The amendments also provide for the prompt cancellation of decisions on the suspension of transactions after the following violations are resolved: failure to submit financial or tax reports within 10 days after the established deadline; failure to provide, on time, explanations, corrections in response to a tax authority's request based on a desk audit, or other requested documents; obstructing tax authority officials' access to the territory or premises of an enterprise during an inspection; the taxpayer's absence at the declared address.

How it was before

Under the previous version of the Tax Code, heads of tax authorities and their deputies could suspend transactions on accounts for a period of up to 10 days, while a decision on suspension for more than 10 days was made by a court upon the tax authorities' petition.