ASTANA – Foreign digital companies have paid Kazakhstan 178.8 billion tenge ($390.2 million) in value-added tax since 2022, with annual collections rising more than fivefold over three years under the country’s so-called Google tax.
Photo credit: AI-generated image/ The Astana Times
The figures show the growing fiscal contribution of international platforms serving consumers in Kazakhstan. They do not, however, directly measure the country’s total digital consumption or cross-border e-commerce, because the mechanism covers both digital services and goods sold through online platforms.
Kazakhstan introduced VAT rules for foreign internet companies, commonly known as the Google tax, in 2022. The mechanism requires international companies providing digital services or selling goods online directly to consumers in Kazakhstan to register and pay VAT.
Taxpayers include companies providing software, entertainment, gaming, education and other digital services, alongside businesses selling goods through online platforms.
How much did companies pay
As of Aug. 1, 133 foreign companies were registered as taxpayers, according to the State Revenue Committee of the Ministry of Finance, as reported by Kazinform.
Annual collections increased substantially through 2025. Foreign companies paid 10.4 billion tenge (US$22.7 million) in VAT in 2022, the first year of the mechanism. Payments increased to 24.3 billion tenge (US$53 million) in 2023 and 35 billion tenge (US$76.4 million) in 2024.
In 2025, the figure reached 57.6 billion tenge (US$125.7 million), more than five times the amount collected in 2022. Foreign companies paid 51.5 billion tenge ($112.4 million) during the first seven months of 2026, nearly 90% of the full-year amount collected in 2025.
Who are the largest taxpayers
The largest taxpayers illustrate the range of activities covered by the mechanism. The list spans physical goods, gaming, entertainment, software, communications and online education, underscoring that the mechanism extends well beyond online shopping.
In 2025, Singapore-registered Elementary Innovation Pte. Ltd., associated with the Temu marketplace, paid 13.3 billion tenge (US$29 million) in VAT. Apple paid 11.2 billion tenge (US$24.4 million), while Valve Corporation, the company behind the Steam gaming platform, paid 10.3 billion tenge (US$22.5 million).
Google contributed 7.3 billion tenge (US$15.9 million) and iHerb paid 4.9 billion tenge (US$10.7 million).
Netflix paid 353.9 million tenge (US$772,333), Spotify paid 293.1 million tenge (US$639,646), Zoom paid 183.2 million tenge (US$399,806) and Coursera paid 33.2 million tenge (US$72,454).
Expanding e-commerce market
The trend comes as Kazakhstan’s e-commerce sector continues to expand. Retail e-commerce reached nearly 3.8 trillion tenge (US$8 billion) in 2025, with marketplaces accounting for 86% of online retail sales, according to the Bureau of National Statistics. Together, these developments point to a broader shift in how Kazakh citizens purchase goods and access services, with both domestic and international digital platforms playing an increasingly important role.
The expansion of e-commerce has coincided with the widespread adoption of digital payments. Cashless payments account for 98% of transactions by number and 87% by value.
The tax receipts do not represent the total value of Kazakhstan’s digital consumption or measure cross-border e-commerce alone. Taken together with rising online retail sales, however, they indicate the growing presence of foreign platforms in the country’s consumer economy.
