The same person can deliver your order as a self-employed contractor, as a registered sole proprietor, or as a private individual under a civil-law services contract. For the contractor the difference is small. For the company it means different documents, different taxes and a different amount of work for accounting. And since 8 June 2026, a different level of risk as well.
Below is a comparison across the parameters that actually drive the decision.
1. The three formats in brief
| Self-employed | Sole proprietor | Individual under a services contract | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who this is | An individual applying the single payment | A registered entrepreneur | An individual with no special status |
| Registration | Through a mobile app, no office visits | Registration plus choice of tax regime | Not required |
| Who calculates the tax | Withheld at the moment of payment | The contractor, personally | The company |
| Closing document | Contract, act and e-Salyq receipt | Contract, act, invoice from the proprietor | Contract and act |
| When it fits | Many one-off contractors, modest amounts | Large recurring amounts, an actual business | A one-off service when there is no status |
2. Documents
The document set is how a company substantiates the expense. Without it the expense will not be deductible for corporate income tax, no matter that the money genuinely left the account.
| Self-employed | Sole proprietor | Individual under a services contract | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What is collected | Contract, act, e-Salyq receipt | Contract, act, invoice | Contract, act |
| Who issues it | Generated automatically with the payout | Issued by the proprietor | Prepared by the company |
| How it is signed | Online, digital signature via eGov Mobile | As agreed: digital signature or paper | Usually paper or an e-document system |
| What tends to go wrong | The contractor does not sign in time | The proprietor is slow with closing documents | The act is signed but the tax is miscalculated |
The e-Salyq receipt is not a formality. It is what proves the contractor ran the income through a tax regime rather than simply receiving money on a card. More in the e-Salyq receipt as a closing document.
3. Taxes and payments
| Self-employed | Sole proprietor, simplified regime | Individual under a services contract | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rate | A 4% single payment on income | 4% on income; the local authority may set the rate anywhere between 2% and 6% | Individual income tax plus mandatory contributions on the fee |
| Who remits it | Withheld and remitted at payout | The proprietor | The company, as tax agent |
| Contractor’s reporting | No separate return for the single payment | Form 910.00 twice a year | None — it all sits with the company |
| Load on accounting | Minimal | Verify status and obtain documents | Calculations and reporting for each person |
The real difference is not the rate but who does the work. For a self-employed contractor the tax is withheld at the moment of payment and the company calculates nothing. Under a services contract with an ordinary individual the company becomes the tax agent: it computes the withholdings, remits them and reports on every person.
4. Payouts
| Self-employed | Sole proprietor | Individual under a services contract | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Where the money goes | To the contractor’s card | To the proprietor’s business account | To the individual’s card or account |
| Frequency | Daily if you like, as work is completed | Usually against an invoice and contract | Usually on a set payment date |
| Hundreds of payouts at once | As a register, in one operation | Separate transfers against invoices | A payroll sheet with withholdings |
| What you need from the contractor | IIN, phone number and a card | Account details and proprietor documents | IIN, bank details, data for withholdings |
With a handful of contractors the difference is barely noticeable. With hundreds it becomes the difference between one operation and a hundred manual steps every month.
5. Manual work
The most underrated parameter. Consider what happens in a company with a hundred contractors a month.
| What has to be done | Self-employed, via a platform | Sole proprietor | Individual under a services contract |
|---|---|---|---|
| Verify contractor status | Automatically, on every line | Manually, against registries | Nothing to verify |
| Prepare a contract | Generated and signed online | A separate contract with each one | A separate contract with each one |
| Collect acts | Generated with every payout | Chase the proprietor | Prepare and sign them yourself |
| Calculate the tax | Withheld automatically | Not required | For every contractor |
| Make the payouts | As a register | One transfer at a time | A payroll sheet with withholdings |
| File reports | Not required for the single payment | Not required | Reporting on each person |
6. Limits
The self-employed regime has an income ceiling. It applies within 300 MCI per month and 3,600 MCI per year. In 2026 one MCI is 4,325 ₸, which works out at roughly 1,297,500 ₸ a month and 15,570,000 ₸ a year. What to do as the ceiling approaches is covered in the self-employed income limit.
Not every activity qualifies. The activities eligible for the regime are listed in Government Decree No. 994. You can check a specific service in the activity reference.
Sole proprietors have their own ceiling. The special tax regime based on a simplified declaration is designed for income up to 600,000 MCI per year. But that status means registration, a business account and semi-annual reporting, which is heavy for one-off contractors.
Services contracts gained a direct restriction on 8 June 2026. Article 26 of the Labour Code was supplemented with clause 1-1: a civil-law contract may not be concluded with an individual if it contains even one characteristic of an employment contract from Article 27. More in the ban on services contracts from 8 June 2026.
7. Risks
| Risk | Where it arises | What reduces it |
|---|---|---|
| Reclassification as employment | Any format, if the person effectively works as an employee | A contract for a result, with no schedule or subordination |
| Expense denied as a deduction | An incomplete set of closing documents | Contract, act and receipt for every payout |
| Exceeding the ceiling | A self-employed contractor with large volumes | Tracking how close they are to the limit |
| Activity outside the list | The service is not covered by Decree No. 994 | Checking the activity before work begins |
| Errors in withholdings | Services contracts with individuals, calculated by hand | A format where the tax is withheld automatically |
On reclassification the relationship is treated as employment by operation of law; no separate court ruling is needed. Administrative liability and back assessments for the whole period may follow.
8. When AKJET is not the answer
An honest list of situations the platform will not solve. If your case is on it, better to know now than three months in.
- The person is effectively an employee. Fixed hours, a workplace, internal rules and a permanent function. That calls for an employment contract, and no engagement format works around it.
- The activity is outside the list. If the service is not covered by Decree No. 994, the self-employed regime does not apply to it.
- The contractor’s income exceeds the ceiling. With regular amounts above the limit, registering as a sole proprietor makes more sense, and you will be working under a different contract.
- The counterparty is a company or an existing sole proprietor. That is an ordinary business-to-business relationship; a platform for self-employed contractors adds nothing.
- A licence or permit is required. Self-employed status does not replace permits where the law requires them.
- The contractor has no IIN. Without it there is no way to confirm status, sign documents or make a payout.
In every other case — many contractors, modest amounts, one-off or project work, and an accounting team that needs a predictable set of documents — the self-employed format usually turns out to be the simplest for both sides.
Not sure which format fits your case? Answer three questions, or forward this comparison to your accountant.
Check your scenario Send to your accountantPrepared on the basis of the Tax Code of Kazakhstan (Law No. 214-VIII of 18 July 2025, in force from 1 January 2026), the Labour Code of Kazakhstan, Government Decree No. 994 of 21 November 2025 and other acts in force. Current as of August 2026. This is not legal or tax advice — check egov.kz, the State Revenue Committee and primary sources before acting.