Appeal against inspections

It is almost impossible to completely avoid business verification. But excessive attention from the supervisory authorities should alert. It is important to remember that any verification cannot take place “from scratch”. And its result can be appealed. According to the letter of the law, each inspection must be carried out “in order to prevent and (or) eliminate an immediate threat to human life and health, the environment, the legitimate interests of individuals and legal entities.” Only the frequency of different types of checks has its own:

• Inspections carried out according to a special procedure are included in the special schedule of the Prosecutor General’s Office. It is formed twice a year and it clearly defines the interval of inspections for a particular company: once every six months, annually, once every three years or 5 years;
• An unscheduled review may be conducted based on the specific circumstances and facts that led to the violation.

It is also important to note that the scope of the audit may differ depending on its focus: comprehensive audits take longer than thematic ones.

Where does the verification begin and what stages does it have?

Any audit begins with the delivery to the owner of the business of an act on the appointment of an audit. It is important to check all their documents before allowing inspectors to enter the facility and providing them with the necessary information. The inspector is required to present not only an official ID, but also an Act on the appointment of an inspection (necessarily with a stamp on registration with the Office of the Committee on Legal Statistics and Special Accounts of your locality) and a checklist, which describes in detail the points of the requirements to be verified. You should pay special attention to the act on the appointment of an inspection, since you have the right to allow only those who are indicated in the document and assigned to conduct an inspection to your facility. Unauthorized persons are not allowed to carry out the check. In addition, the legality of the inspection appointment can be found on the website of the Committee on Legal Statistics and Special Accounts of the General Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic of Kazakhstan or in the Qamqor mobile application.

The standard verification period is no more than 30 working days. Exceptions are tax audits. Their duration is directly regulated by the Tax Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan. If a situation arises when it is necessary to increase the period of the inspection (the appointment of additional studies, examinations, etc., or the volume of the audited is too large and there is no way to complete the inspection on time), then the control and supervision body can once extend the period of the inspection for a period of not more than 30 days (an exception, again, is tax audits, they have their own terms and conditions).

The results of the completion of the check are recorded in acts, in two copies. Based on the copy you have in your hands, you can draw up a complaint and submit it to the appropriate authorities.

How to appeal the review?

You can file a complaint about any inspection carried out. Whether this complaint will be accepted for consideration is another matter. To get the desired result, it is necessary to draw up the document correctly. For these purposes, it would be better to seek help from a law firm: only specialists can assess the feasibility of filing a complaint and suggest the procedure for filing it. Most often, legal assistance is required when filing a taxpayer complaint based on the results of a tax audit. Some applicants immediately decide to sell the application to the court. However, you can go the other way. Namely, to start an appeal against the audit by filing an application with a higher tax authority. So, it will not be necessary to pay the state duty, and the results of the check will be suspended for the duration of the proceedings. Competent lawyers will help you during this time to understand the claims of the tax authority and the position it takes on your issue. Having received a decision (cancel the results of the check or leave them unchanged), you can move on. It is necessary to once again discuss in detail with the lawyers the prospect: is there a basis for further appealing the results of the audit this time already in court, or is it worth abandoning this and fulfilling all the prescribed obligations.