1. Which warehouse work is allowed
The list of activities for the self-employed was approved by Government Resolution of the Republic of Kazakhstan No. 994 of 21 November 2025. It has no separate “warehousing” code. Warehouse services fall under item 17, OKED 82990 “Other business support service activities not elsewhere classified”, and the note to it says: “exclusively for services provided via internet platforms”.
According to the directory of services for the self-employed, this code covers, in particular:
- loading and unloading of goods;
- order picking and kitting of goods;
- sorting of goods;
- stacking and placing pallets;
- packing of goods;
- applying barcodes.
You can check a specific service in the directory of self-employed services.
2. Why only via an internet platform
Since code 82990 is allowed only for services via internet platforms, a self-employed person may perform warehouse work for a company only through such a platform. If a warehouse agrees with a person directly, the special tax regime does not apply to this work.
Article 721 of the Tax Code defines an internet platform as an electronic marketplace that enables interaction between the operator, the customer and a contractor registered on the platform. The operator of an internet platform is a tax agent: it withholds and remits individual income tax and social payments for the self-employed who work through the platform.
AKJET operates as an internet platform operator. The company posts a task on the platform, a contractor registered on it accepts the task, and AKJET withholds and remits the payments and generates the closing documents.
3. What the list does not include
Some common warehouse work is not on the list or is there only with caveats. Do not assign it to the self-employed until you have confirmed the activity is allowed:
- Stocktaking, recounts and goods receiving. The directory has no separate services for these.
- Storekeeper. This is a job position, and work in a position is one of the signs of an employment contract under Article 27 of the Labour Code.
- Forklift operation. Not on the list, and it requires a permit. Do not assign it to the self-employed.
- Warehouse cleaning. Cleaning appears on the list as OKED 81211 “General cleaning of residential buildings”. A warehouse is non-residential, so this option needs to be checked separately.
4. Who can be self-employed
Under Article 718 of the Tax Code, a self-employed person is an individual who:
- is a citizen of Kazakhstan or a kandas and is not registered as an individual entrepreneur;
- works in an activity from the list;
- does not use the labour of employees;
- earns no more than 300 MCI per month (in 2026 the MCI is 4,325 ₸).
More on the conditions of the regime in the guide to self-employment.
5. How to avoid signs of employment
Since 8 June 2026, paragraph 1-1 of Article 26 of the Labour Code applies: a civil-law contract may not be concluded with an individual if it contains at least one sign of an employment contract. Such a contract is treated as an employment contract regardless of its name. More in the article “GPH ban from 8 June 2026”.
In a warehouse, signs of employment appear especially easily:
- shifts on a schedule and a timesheet;
- reporting to a shift supervisor and following internal rules;
- pay per hour or per shift instead of per result;
- a job title in the contract, such as “storekeeper” or “loader”;
- material liability as for an employee — see the separate article “Material liability of a self-employed contractor”;
- permanent work for one company only. In March 2026 the State Revenue Committee warned that if a self-employed person permanently serves one party or is permanently present there like an employee, “there will be questions”.
What keeps the relationship project-based:
- a task for a specific volume: pallets, orders, tonnes;
- payment for the result after acceptance, not for hours worked;
- the contractor decides whether to take a task;
- an act and a receipt for each completed task.
Paperwork does not change the substance: if a person in fact works permanently for one company on its schedule, an employment contract is needed.
If the warehouse is a hazardous production facility, the Rules on safety and labour protection training as amended by Order of the Minister of Labour No. 214 of 25 June 2024 require an introductory briefing for employees of contractor organisations. Otherwise, familiarise the contractor with the site safety rules and record this in the task, without the employee log.
6. Warehouse checklist
- Confirm the work is in the services directory under code 82990 and run it through an internet platform.
- Check the contractor’s status: self-employed, a citizen of Kazakhstan or a kandas, not an individual entrepreneur.
- Describe the result and volume in the task, not a job title or a shift.
- Pay for the completed volume after acceptance.
- Issue an act and a receipt for each task.
- Do not assign forklift work, stocktaking or the storekeeper role to the self-employed.
- If a person in fact works like an employee — on a schedule, under supervision, permanently — sign an employment contract.
Official sources: Government Resolution No. 994 of 21.11.2025 (adilet.zan.kz), Tax Code of Kazakhstan, Articles 718–721 (adilet.zan.kz), Labour Code of Kazakhstan, Articles 26 and 27 (adilet.zan.kz). This material is for reference and is not legal advice.