Self-employed taxi drivers in Uzbekistan surpass half a million amidst surge in self-employment

As of July 1, there were more than 3.5 million self-employed citizens in Uzbekistan, according to the Tax Committee.

Over the past year, their number increased by 1.9 million or 115.6%. Since the last figure was published in March, about 900,000 people have registered as self-employed.

The largest share of self-employed is in the personal services sector, with 1.46 million individuals, an increase of 2.8 times from the previous year. The second-largest sector is agriculture, with 917,600 individuals (+56%).

The greatest growth—almost threefold—was observed in the production of consumer goods and provision of services, reaching 331,000 individuals. The number of self-employed in the IT sector grew 2.5 times (up to 92,300), and in the social services sector, it grew 2.1 times (up to 409,800).

By region, the highest number of self-employed resides in Samarkand—about 430,000 individuals. Following are Kashkadarya with 362,500, Andijan with 327,700, and Tashkent with 320,000 individuals holding this status.

By the end of the first half of the year, the number of self-employed taxi drivers reached 530,000. Of these, 45% or 238,600, legalized their status since the beginning of this year.

In July 2022, Shavkat Mirziyoyev signed a decree allowing self-employed individuals to transport passengers. To do this, they need to register as self-employed (if not already done), apply for a taxi service permit at the Public Services Center or E-PIGU, and pay a fee.

Self-employed taxi drivers are not required to pay taxes. However, if they wish, they can pay a social tax of 1 BCA (330,000 UZS) annually to count their work towards their service record and qualify for pension benefits.

A significant expansion of the list of activities for self-employment occurred in November 2023. It included sewing clothes, producing atlas and adras fabrics, bead weaving, making children's toys, and several other activities.