Bureau of National Statistics
of the Agency for Strategic Planning and Reforms of the Republic of Kazakhstan
    Key indicators
    552 182
    As of July 1, 2026, the number of registered legal entities amounted to 552182 units, including 443970 operating legal entities.
    1 656 984
    The number of registered subjects of individual entrepreneurship amounted to 1656984, including 1592839 operating entities.
    2 139 450
    The number of registered small and medium-sized businesses amounted to 2139450 units, including 1974899 operating ones.
    Registered and operating entities by dimension and activity
    as of July 1, 2026
    By dimension Legal entities Subjects of individual entrepreneurship1) Branches and subsidiaries of foreign legal entities Subjects of small and medium business1)
    registered operating registered operating registered operating registered operating
    Total 552 182 443 970 1 656 984 1 592 839 28 570 21 687 2 139 450 1 974 899
    Small 542 779 434 673 - - 27 436 20 561 2 136 417 1 971 926
    Medium 6 870 6 788 - - 645 641 3 033 2 973
    Large 2 533 2 509 - - 489 485 - -

    * The decrease in the indicator due to the transition of subjects of individual entrepreneurship to a special tax regime for the self-employed, introduced under the new Tax Code from January 1, 2026 (Article 718 of the Tax Code).

    Dynamics of subjects

    Annually, there is an increase in the number of registered legal entities by an average of 4,1%, so over the past ten years (2016-2025) their number has increased from 383850 to 549669 (by 165819 units or 43,2%). At the same time, it should be noted that the main growth occurs due to small legal entities, their number is steadily increasing every year by an average of 4,1%. Unlike small ones, the dynamics of medium and large legal entities is not stable. Over the past decade, against the background of the annual growth in the number of medium and large legal entities, in 2017, 2019, 2020 and 2023 their number was not significant, but decreased (by 1,4%, 3,1%, 0,7% and 0,8%, respectively).

    Dynamics of subjects
    By dimension 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
    Total 383 850 412 677 433 774 446 687 461 983 481 732 507 238 526 290 536 241 549 669
    Small 374 912 403 862 424 796 437 988 453 343 472 777 497 995 517 123 526 826 540 095
    Medium 6 502 6 432 6 490 6 297 6 235 6 494 6 685 6 689 6 919 6 978
    Large 2 436 2 383 2 488 2 402 2 405 2 461 2 558 2 478 2 496 2 596
    Registered and operating legal entities

    In June, compared to May 2026, there is a slight increase in the number of registered legal entities (by 0,4%), compared to the corresponding period of the previous year, their number increased by 1,2%. At the same time, there is an increase in the number of operating legal entities - by 0,4%, compared to the corresponding period of the previous year, their number increased by 4,3%. Since the beginning of the year, by type of economic activity, the largest number of registered legal entities remains in the industry «Wholesale and retail trade; car and motorcycle repair», the share of which as of July 1, 2026. amounted to 26,3%. On the second place – «Construction» (13,5%), on the third – «Provision of other types of services» (10%). Together, the share of these three types of activities is 49,8% of all registered legal entities.

    As of July 1, 2026, the largest number of registered legal entities is in the cities of Almaty (164377 or 29,8%), Astana (104464 or 18,9%), and Shymkent (29410 or 5,3%). The smallest number of registered legal entities falls on the regions of Ulytau (2900 or 0,5%), Abay (8622 or 1,6%) and Zhetisu (8623 or 1,6%).

    Registered legal entities by type of activity and activity
    as of July 1, 2026
    By type of activity Total Of them
    operating including in the process of liquidation
    newly registered active temporarily suspended activities
    Total 552 182 443 970 56 799 194 521 192 650 3 630
    Agriculture, forestry and fisheries 21 357 19 367 2 180 5 238 11 949 94
    Mining and Quarrying 6 599 5 809 1 054 1 239 3 516 41
    Manufacturing industry 28 715 23 670 1 942 10 648 11 080 212
    Supply of electricity, gas, steam, hot water and air conditioning 1 903 1 650 142 554 954 14
    Water supply; sanitation, waste collection, treatment and disposal, pollution elimination activities 2 771 2 283 155 939 1 189 33
    Construction 74 620 58 896 7 407 16 709 34 780 940
    Wholesale and retail trade; car and motorcycle repair 145 378 106 632 16 085 44 508 46 039 1 220
    Transport and warehousing 23 213 18 790 1 836 8 254 8 700 175
    Providing of accommodation and food services 11 548 9 192 1 534 3 872 3 786 29
    Information and communication 20 242 16 579 2 687 7 462 6 430 47
    Financial and insurance activities 8 294 6 321 1 414 2 238 2 669 107
    Real estate transactions 27 571 23 937 2 317 13 812 7 808 108
    Professional, scientific and technical activities 36 291 29 574 3 139 14 031 12 404 157
    Administrative and support services activities 26 074 21 495 1 921 11 029 8 545 115
    Public administration and defense; compulsory social security 9 730 9 533 195 9 007 331 24
    Education 31 936 29 543 1 564 21 690 6 289 117
    Healthcare and social services 12 960 11 786 1 134 7 449 3 203 29
    Arts, entertainment and recreation 8 022 6 633 823 3 017 2 793 27
    Provision of other types of services 54 957 42 280 9 270 12 825 20 185 141
    Activities of extraterritorial organizations and bodies 1 - - - - -
    Registered legal entities by size and form of ownership
    as of July 1, 2026
    By dimension Total Including by forms and types of ownership
    state private total of them foreign
    with the participation of the state (without foreign participation) joint ventures (with foreign participation)
    Total 552 182 25 907 461 691 531 11 081 64 584
    Small 542 779 20 888 457 781 468 10 786 64 110
    Medium 6 870 3 777 2 803 29 170 290
    Large 2 533 1 242 1 107 34 125 184
    Registered and operating subjects of individual entrepreneurship (IE and JV)

    In June, compared to May 2026, there is a slight decrease in the number of registered individual entrepreneurs (by 0,2%), compared to the corresponding period of the previous year, their number decrease by 10,5%. At the same time, there is an decrease in the number of operating subjects of individual entrepreneurship - by 0,2%, compared to the corresponding period of the previous year, their number decreased by 9,5%. Since the beginning of the year, by type of economic activity, the largest number of registered individual entrepreneurs remains in the industry «Wholesale and retail trade; car and motorcycle repair», the share of which as of July 1, 2026 was 38,8%. In second place is «Agriculture, forestry and fisheries» (14,8%), in third place is «Provision of other types of services» (14,2%). Together, the share of these three types of activities is 67,7% of all registered subjects of individual entrepreneurship.

    Registered and operating subjects of individual entrepreneurship by type of activity
    as of July 1, 2026
    By type of activity Total Including those operating:
    registered operating in the form of personal business in the form of a joint venture
    registered operating registered operating
    Total 1 656 984 1 592 839 1 584 739 1 521 385 72 245 71 454
    Agriculture, forestry and fisheries 244 631 237 079 172 489 165 706 72 142 71 373
    Mining and Quarrying 680 593 680 593 - -
    Manufacturing industry 81 135 77 637 81 118 77 621 17 16
    Supply of electricity, gas, steam, hot water and air conditioning 513 477 513 477 - -
    Water supply; sanitation, waste collection, treatment and disposal, pollution elimination activities 2 280 2 210 2 279 2 209 1 1
    Construction 66 462 63 748 66 460 63 747 2 1
    Wholesale and retail trade; car and motorcycle repair 642 085 616 158 642 062 616 141 23 17
    Transport and warehousing 93 715 90 520 93 708 90 514 7 6
    Providing of accommodation and food services 49 915 48 047 49 911 48 043 4 4
    Information and communication 21 413 20 681 21 413 20 681 - -
    Financial and insurance activities 607 561 607 561 - -
    Real estate transactions 82 711 80 306 82 690 80 291 21 15
    Professional, scientific and technical activities 33 014 31 858 33 014 31 858 - -
    Administrative and support services activities 44 887 43 369 44 874 43 356 13 13
    Public administration and defense; compulsory social security 97 96 97 96 - -
    Education 30 599 29 547 30 598 29 547 1 -
    Healthcare and social services 9 511 9 157 9 511 9 157 - -
    Arts, entertainment and recreation 17 359 16 716 17 357 16 714 2 2
    Provision of other types of services 235 322 224 032 235 310 224 026 12 6
    Activities of households employing domestic workers; activities of households producing goods and services for their own consumption 48 47 48 47 - -

    * The decrease in the indicator due to the transition of subjects of individual entrepreneurship to a special tax regime for the self-employed, introduced under the new Tax Code from January 1, 2026 (Article 718 of the Tax Code).

    Registered and operating branches and branches of foreign legal entities

    As of July 1, 2026, the number of registered branches and subsidiaries of foreign legal entities amounted to 28570 units, including 21687 active ones. The largest number of registered branches and affiliates of foreign legal entities is in the cities of Almaty (3730 or 13,1%) and Astana (3328 or 11,6%), and in the Turkistan region (1825 or 6,4%). By types of economic activity, the largest number of registered branches and subsidiaries of foreign legal entities belong to the sectors «Provision of other types of services» (11975 or 41,9%), «Wholesale and retail trade; car and motorcycle repair» (3546 or 12,4%) and «Professional, scientific and technical activities» (2075 or 7,3%).

    Registered and operating branches by size and form of ownership
    as of July 1, 2026
    By dimension Total Including by forms and types of ownership
    state private total of them foreign
    with the participation of the state (without foreign participation) joint ventures (with foreign participation)
    Total 24 799 2 601 21 087 104 572 1 111
    Small 23 702 2 257 20 381 80 541 1 064
    Medium 624 166 426 14 18 32
    Large 473 178 280 10 13 15
    Registered branches of foreign legal entities by size and activity
    as of July 1, 2026
    By dimension Total Of them
    operating including in the process of liquidation
    newly registered active temporarily suspended activities
    Total 3 771 2 139 385 838 916 65
    Small 3 734 2 102 384 805 913 65
    Medium 21 21 1 19 1 -
    Large 16 16 - 14 2 -
    Registered and operating legal entities, branches and subsidiaries of foreign legal entities with foreign and joint ownership

    As of July 1, 2026, the number of registered legal entities, branches and subsidiaries of foreign legal entities with a foreign form of ownership increased by 12,7% compared to the corresponding date of the previous year. The number of registered legal entities and branches with joint ownership decreased by 1%.

    In terms of types of economic activity, the largest share of registered legal entities, branches and subsidiaries of foreign legal entities with foreign and joint ownership falls on the sectors «Wholesale and retail trade; car and motorcycle repair» – 35%, «Provision of other types of services» – 15,6%, «Construction» – 10,6%.

    Registered and operating legal entities, branches and subsidiaries of foreign legal entities with foreign and joint ownership by country
    as of July 1, 2026
    Be country Legal entities, branches and subsidiaries of foreign legal entities
    with foreign ownership with joint ownership
    registered operating registered operating
    Kazakhstan 69 466 52 693 11 653 8 909
    Russia 22 628 17 049 4 732 3 711
    Uzbekistan 12 065 9 943 613 467
    China 9 694 7 971 1 279 1 056
    Türkiye 4 929 3 237 711 468
    Kyrgyzstan 3 024 2 222 385 294
    Azerbaijan 1 638 1 236 211 152
    Ukraine 1 262 917 352 276
    Germany 949 742 463 360
    Belarus 921 726 178 143
    Republic of Korea 867 554 155 98

    ** Top 10 countries by the largest number of registered legal entities, branches and branches of foreign legal entities.

    Registered and operating small and medium-sized businesses

    As of July 1, 2026, the number of operating SMEs decreased by 7,1% compared to the corresponding date of the previous year. In the total number of operating SMEs, the share of individual entrepreneurs was 68,6%, legal entities of small business – 19,2%, peasant or farm enterprises – 12,1%, legal entities of medium business – 0,2%.

    In terms of types of economic activity, the largest share of registered small and medium-sized businesses falls on the sectors «Wholesale and retail trade; car and motorcycle repair» – 36,6%, «Agriculture, forestry and fisheries» – 12,8%, «Provision of other types of services» – 12,6%.

    Registered and operating small and medium-sized businesses
    as of July 1, 2026
    By region Registered Operating
    Republic of Kazakhstan 2 139 450 1 974 899
    Abay 52 886 49 870
    Akmola 60 924 57 688
    Aktobe 83 101 77 655
    Almaty 149 522 134 458
    Atyrau 61 279 57 317
    Batys Kazakhstan 57 321 53 682
    Zhambyl 106 839 100 640
    Zhetysu 61 125 58 568
    Karagandy 102 831 94 501
    Kostanay 62 878 59 376
    Kyzylorda 61 760 59 511
    Mangystau 74 406 70 857
    Pavlodar 58 728 53 983
    Soltustik Kazakhstan 35 852 32 793
    Turkistan 202 245 199 417
    Ulytau 17 165 16 306
    Shygys Kazakhstan 62 122 57 017
    Astana city 273 977 245 940
    Almaty city 414 064 362 345
    Shymkent city 140 425 132 975

    * The decrease in the indicator due to the transition of subjects of individual entrepreneurship to a special tax regime for the self-employed, introduced under the new Tax Code from January 1, 2026 (Article 718 of the Tax Code).

    Glossary

    Individual entrepreneurship - an independent, initiative activity of citizens of the Republic of Kazakhstan, kandas, aimed at obtaining net income, based on the property of individuals themselves and carried out on behalf of individuals, at their risk and under their property responsibility. Individual entrepreneurship is carried out in the form of personal or joint entrepreneurship.

    Personal entrepreneurship - carried out by one individual independently on the basis of property belonging to him by the right of ownership, as well as by virtue of another right that allows the use and (or) disposal of property.

    Joint entrepreneurship - carried out by a group of individuals (individual entrepreneurs) on the basis of property belonging to them on the basis of common ownership, as well as by virtue of another right that allows joint use and (or) disposal of property.

    Categories of business entities - depending on the average annual number of employees and average annual income, business entities are classified into the following categories: "subjects of small" business, including micro-entrepreneurship entities; subjects of medium business; subjects of large business. For the purposes of state statistics, only the criterion of the average annual number of employees is used.

    Principal type of activity - a type of activity, the added value of which exceeds the added value of any other type of activity carried out by an economic entity;

    Secondary type of activity - a type of activity, in addition to the main one, which is carried out with the aim of producing products (goods and services) for third parties.

    Methodological explanations

    All presented indicators are based on the Statistical Business Register, which contains information on legal entities, branches and subsidiaries of foreign legal entities, as well as individual entrepreneurs that have been registered or re-registered with the registration authorities.

    The proposed tables show the number of registered and operating legal entities, branches and subsidiaries of foreign legal entities, individual entrepreneurs, as well as small and medium-sized businesses by size, by form of ownership, by region and type of activity.

    The types of activities are presented in accordance with the current General Classifier of Types of Economic Activities (GCTEA). Entities carrying out several types of activities are accounted for by the main type that provides the greatest increase in value added.

    Operating entities in the Statistical Business Register include:

    • entities currently engaged in economic activity, ie. active;
    • newly registered and not yet engaged in economic activity;
    • entities that temporarily suspended their activities.

    In accordance with the "Classifier of the dimension of legal entities, branches and representative offices, as well as individual entrepreneurship entities by the number of employees", 3 classes of entities are provided for in dimension, depending on the average annual number of employees:

    • small (up to 100 people);
    • medium (from 101 to 250 people);
    • large (over 250 people).

    Legal entities with branches are taken into account taking into account the headcount of all its branches.


    Release responsible:
    Department of Statistical Registers and Classifications
    Department Director:
    E. Bekberdiev
    Теl. +7 7172 74-90-58
    Executor:
    D. Toleugali
    Теl. +7 7172 74-97-95
    E-mail: d.toleugali@aspire.gov.kz
    Address:
    010000, Astana
    Mangilik el avenue, 8
    House of Ministries, entrance 4