Kazakhstan adopted a new Tax Code on 1 January 2026, and it moved enough of the numbers that anything citing pre-2026 figures is already out of date. This guide uses the current 2026 figures throughout: the monthly calculation index (MCI) for 2026 is ₸4,325, and it's the reference unit behind nearly every threshold in this article. If you're planning a gifting programme for a Kazakhstani team, priced in Kazakhstani tenge (₸), here's what the new Tax Code actually says.
Employee gifts: no dedicated exemption
There is no dedicated exemption for general gifts to employees under Kazakhstan's tax rules. A gift, cash or non-cash, given for a holiday, a birthday, a work anniversary, or no occasion at all, is treated as ordinary income-in-kind and runs through the full payroll tax stack: personal income tax plus the standard social payments that apply to employment income. There's no annual threshold that shields a gift from this treatment, and cash and non-cash gifts get exactly the same tax treatment, so switching from cash to merchandise doesn't change the tax outcome on its own.
It's easy to conflate this with a different, much narrower exemption elsewhere in the tax code: a 94×MCI-per-year allowance (₸406,550 in 2026) that applies to a short, specific list of benefits, medical treatment, insurance premiums, and birth or funeral assistance. That's not a general gift allowance, and it doesn't extend to holiday gifts, welcome gifts, or recognition gifts of any kind. If your gifting programme doesn't fall into one of those enumerated categories, this exemption simply doesn't apply, and treating it as a general gift allowance is one of the more common mistakes companies make with Kazakhstan's rules.
12 gift ideas
Whatever the tax mechanics, the gifts still need to actually be good. Here are 12 branded merchandise options, priced in Kazakhstani tenge (₸), with materials, branding methods, and minimum order quantities.
1. Hoodie – The Rex
A heavyweight 280 gsm organic cotton hoodie that gets worn long after any gifting occasion is forgotten, and one of the most popular items in the catalogue.
- Material: 90% organic cotton, 10% polyester.
- Branding: embroidery, print, or patches.
- Order: MOQ 100 · from ₸23,200/unit.
2. Sports Socks
A low-cost, high-smile item that works well for a whole-team gesture without much per-head budget.
- Material: 80% cotton, 17% polyamide, 3% elastane.
- Branding: knitted-in logo zones.
- Order: MOQ 100 · from ₸2,300/unit.
3. Recycled Steel Bottle
A double-walled bottle made from recycled steel: genuinely useful, and a sustainability talking point in one gift.
- Material: recycled stainless steel.
- Branding: laser engraving or print.
- Order: MOQ 50 · from ₸6,400/unit.
4. A5 Notebook
A well-made notebook still earns its place on most desks, whether for meeting notes or as a simple desk accessory.
- Material: FSC-certified paper, PU cover.
- Branding: debossed or printed logo on the cover.
- Order: MOQ 100 · from ₸2,700/unit.
5. Premium Tote Bag
A sturdy tote leaves the office with people, on the commute, at the market, giving the branding real visibility relative to its price.
- Material: 270gsm cotton.
- Branding: print or custom straps.
- Order: MOQ 100 · from ₸3,800/unit.
6. Knitted Scarf
A genuinely useful winter gift, well suited to Kazakhstan's climate, with woven branding that reads as a step above a printed logo.
- Material: 80% viscose, 20% polyester.
- Branding: woven label.
- Order: MOQ 100 · from ₸4,500/unit.
7. Baseball Cap
A reliable pick for outdoor events and company outings; an embroidered logo tends to look more premium than the price tag suggests.
- Material: 100% cotton.
- Branding: embroidery.
- Order: MOQ 100 · from ₸4,900/unit.
8. Espresso Mug
A good espresso mug earns daily use at the office coffee machine, putting a logo somewhere people see multiple times a day.
- Material: glazed ceramic, dishwasher and microwave safe.
- Branding: printed or laser-etched logo.
- Order: MOQ 108 · from ₸5,000/unit.
9. Bamboo Tea Bottle
A bamboo exterior over a durable stainless steel interior gives a warmer look than an all-metal bottle, and works well as a mid-range gift.
- Material: stainless steel, bamboo.
- Branding: laser engraving or print.
- Order: MOQ 50 · from ₸11,000/unit.
10. RollTop Backpack
A water-resistant backpack with a laptop compartment that quickly becomes someone's everyday bag: a natural pick for a bigger single gift, such as a milestone anniversary.
- Material: GRS-certified recycled PU, water-resistant.
- Branding: print or embroidery.
- Order: MOQ 25 · from ₸14,500/unit.
11. Noise-Cancelling Headphones
A genuine step up in perceived value, and one of the pricier items on this list, so it's best reserved for a milestone gift rather than a routine one, especially since its full value counts toward taxable income either way.
- Material: recycled ABS, ANC + ENC, foldable.
- Branding: digital print or doming.
- Order: MOQ 50 · from ₸14,400/unit.
View Noise-Cancelling Headphones →
12. Wireless Powerbank
A magnetic wireless powerbank in recycled ABS plastic is genuinely useful for any commute or business trip, and a practical mid-range choice.
- Material: recycled ABS plastic.
- Branding: pad print or digital print.
- Order: MOQ 50 · from ₸10,900/unit.
The 5× MCI rule for client and business-partner gifts
For client and business-partner gifts, the default answer under Kazakhstan's new Tax Code is unfavourable: gratuitous transfers, gifts given with nothing received in return, are generally not deductible for corporate income tax (CIT) purposes, and a free transfer of goods is generally treated as a deemed taxable supply for VAT purposes too, meaning the giving company can end up owing VAT on something it handed out for free.
There's one significant exception, and it's the rule worth designing a gifting programme around: genuine advertising-purpose distributions. If merchandise is distributed broadly as part of a real promotional or marketing effort, not handed to one client as a personal courtesy, and the unit cost doesn't exceed 5×MCI (≈₸21,625 in 2026), both problems disappear at once. The cost becomes deductible for CIT purposes, and the free transfer is excluded from taxable turnover for VAT purposes. Both benefits hinge on the same 5×MCI-per-unit ceiling, so it functions as one hard number to design a gift catalogue around, not two separate thresholds to track.
The distinction that actually matters is between advertising-purpose distribution and personal courtesy gifting. A batch of 200 branded bottles handed out at a trade show or industry event reads as promotional. A single premium item hand-delivered to one client's office reads as a personal gift regardless of price, and gratuitous-transfer treatment is more likely to apply even when the unit cost sits comfortably under the 5×MCI line.
VAT just went up to 16%
Kazakhstan's new 2026 Tax Code raised the standard VAT rate from 12% to 16%, a meaningful jump that affects gifting economics directly. Every purchase of branded merchandise carries this VAT, and, as covered above, a free transfer of goods to a client or business partner is itself generally a deemed taxable supply at the same 16% rate, unless it qualifies for the 5×MCI advertising-purpose exception. Budget for the new rate when planning gifting spend for 2026 onward: the underlying merchandise cost is only part of the total.
Common mistakes
- Treating the 94×MCI exemption as a general gift allowance. It's narrowly scoped to medical treatment, insurance premiums, and birth or funeral assistance, not holiday gifts, welcome gifts, or recognition gifts of any kind.
- Assuming a client gift is automatically deductible because it's modest in value. Deductibility, and the matching VAT exemption, both require the gift to pass the genuine advertising-purpose distribution test, not just clear the 5×MCI unit-cost line on price alone.
- Budgeting gifting spend at the old 12% VAT rate. The new Tax Code's 16% standard rate applies from 1 January 2026, and it changes total programme cost meaningfully once you're ordering at scale.
This article is general information, not tax or legal advice. Kazakhstan's tax code was recently and substantially overhauled effective 1 January 2026, so treat every figure here as a starting point to verify, not a final answer, and confirm the current rules with a local tax advisor before running a gifting programme.
This guide is part of our complete country-by-country series. See Employee Gift Tax Rules by Country: The Complete 2026 Guide for all countries.
Planning a gifting programme for your Kazakhstani team? Talk to Sunday about sourcing, branding, and shipping any of the items above, from a single small batch to a company-wide rollout.
