Uzbekistan Introduces Annual “Best Mahalla Taxpayer” Award

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — Starting from 1 January 2026, Uzbekistan will implement a new system to reward mahallas that demonstrate high levels of tax discipline, active engagement in entrepreneurship, and contributions to strengthening local budgets.

To encourage proactive communities, an annual nomination, “Best Mahalla Taxpayer,” will be established, becoming an important tool to enhance tax culture and support territorial development.

Transparent Selection Criteria

Winners will be determined based on a comprehensive set of indicators calculated per 1,000 residents. Specifically, evaluations will consider:

The number of small business entities;

The amount of taxes paid by small businesses;

The number of individual income tax payers;

The number of self-employed residents and the taxes they have paid;

The level of property and land tax payments by mahalla residents.

This system will allow for an objective assessment of each mahalla’s economic activity and responsibility.

Incentives for Winners

For mahallas recognized as top taxpayers, several stimulating measures are planned:

Lifting restrictions on the initiative budget.
Mahallas that win the award for two consecutive years will retain the right to submit projects to the initiative budget without the standard two-season pause. This will allow them to continue actively participating in development programs.

Support for partnership projects.

For projects implemented on a co-financing basis, a new procedure applies:

If residents finance at least 25% of the project cost,

The remaining 75% will be allocated from the state budget.

This mechanism strengthens community self-organization and encourages collective implementation of initiatives.

Funding for socio-economic development.
Each mahalla in the top 100 taxpayers will receive an annual allocation of 2 billion soums from the state budget to the Mahalla Socio-Economic Development Fund.

These funds may be used exclusively for infrastructure development, including:

Repair of internal roads;

Improvement of drinking water systems;

Modernization of electricity supply;

Installation of street lighting;

Implementation of other infrastructure projects.

Expected Outcomes

The introduction of this award and associated mechanisms aims to:

Stimulate small business development and self-employment;

Strengthen tax discipline;

Expand citizen participation in the development of their communities;

Improve the quality of local infrastructure;

Enhance the role of mahallas as key units in socio-economic transformation.

The new incentive system is expected to become an additional driver of sustainable development and transparency at the level of local communities.