Business Owners Warned for Citing VAT as Reason for Price Increases

Prices have started to climb after the government announced plans to raise the VAT rate. In response, Minister of Trade and Integration Arman Shakkaliyev issued a warning to business owners, Orda.kz reports.

Shakkaliyev emphasized that using tax reform as a justification for price hikes is illegal and could lead to sanctions.

Provide us with specific cases. If you see someone publicly claiming that prices are rising due to the upcoming tax changes, that is grounds for investigation by both our Ministry and the antimonopoly authority. There are sanctions for such public statements. So, if you have concrete examples of what has become more expensive and where, we will address them accordingly, the Minister stated.

Shakkaliev reiterated that linking price increases to tax reforms violates antimonopoly laws.

Original Author: Zhadra Zhulmukhametova