The Tax Committee of Uzbekistan conducted inspections at 78 trading facilities in Tashkent over two months as part of measures to reduce the shadow economy. According to the committee's press service, during the raids, 2,068 citizens who previously worked in markets and shopping complexes without employment contracts were officially registered.

Additionally, 578 entrepreneurs, who had operated without the necessary documents, legalized their activities and transitioned to the category of official business. 978 sellers signed lease agreements with the administrations of trading facilities. Tax authorities assisted 534 entrepreneurs in installing terminals for cashless payments and helped set up online cash registers in 558 other cases.

Data from the committee indicates that the volume of official trade revenues in the capital's markets increased 1.7 times in February compared to the same period in 2025. For instance, at the "Malika" shopping complex alone, approximately 5,000 receipts totaling 7.3 billion Uzbek soums were issued in just the last three days. Compared to the same period last year, the number of receipts tripled, and the payment volume increased sixfold.

At the end of January, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, in a video conference meeting, described the work of tax authorities in combating the shadow economy as "absolutely unsatisfactory." He claimed that some officials, instead of increasing budget revenues, provided "patronage" to so-called "entrepreneurs." The head of state also specifically pointed out shortcomings in the work of the Shaykhantakhur district tax inspection, which allegedly failed to establish payment discipline at the "Chorsu" market and the "Malika" shopping complex.

Source: kun.uz