April 2026 – In a landmark legal development for Uzbekistan, the Ministry of Investments, Industry and Trade has published for consultation the draft Constitutional Law on the Tashkent International Financial Centre ("TIFC") (the "Draft Law") - the country's first attempt to establish a fully-fledged international financial centre with its own legal regime. If enacted, it would move decisively beyond Uzbekistan's traditional free economic zone model - which is principally focused on preferential customs, currency, tax and related investment conditions - by proposing a financial centre with:
- a special legal regime for finance, banking, capital markets and investment;
- a separate applicable-law hierarchy, with supplementary use of the law of England and Wales;
- English-language operation across legislation, court proceedings and written agreements;
- a specialist regulatory and judicial structure; and broad tax and customs relief through 1 January 2076, together with separate currency, visa and labour measures, and scope for holding companies, SPVs, funds, trusts, corporate services, fintech and related professional and technology services.
The TIFC is intended to attract domestic and foreign investment, develop and integrate Uzbekistan's capital markets with international markets, expand the range and depth of financial and professional services available in the country, foster innovation, contribute to broader economic growth, and position Uzbekistan as a recognised international centre for finance and dispute resolution.The Draft Law remains under consultation, and much of the operating framework is deferred to future Financial Centre Enactments - but the ambition and constitutional scale of the proposal are most likely without precedent in Uzbekistan's legislative history.
Click on the image below or use the following link to read the full overview in English.
