Registration of Foreigners in Uzbekistan 2026: Deadlines, E-mehmon and Employer Fines

A foreigner in Uzbekistan must register at the place of stay no later than three working days from the day of entry, unless an international treaty or legislation sets a different period. This is required by Article 7 of Law ZRU-1074, in force since 12 October 2025 in place of the “temporary propiska” (temporary residence registration). For breaching the rules of stay, a foreigner faces a fine of 5, 15 or 25 base calculation values (BRV), that is UZS 2.2 to 11 million at a BRV of UZS 440,000 as of October 2026 (Art. 225 of the Code of Administrative Liability), and failure to pay the fine leads to expulsion with a one-year entry ban. For breaching the procedure for hosting foreigners, Part 4 of the same article provides for a fine of 25 BRV (UZS 11 million) on an official of the host organization.

A company with foreign staff faces three risk areas: the registration of every employee, a valid confirmation of the right to engage in labor activity, and notices to the Ministry of Employment and Poverty Reduction within one week.

Key points

• 3 working days from entry. This is what the law gives a foreigner who lives permanently abroad; a residence permit holder who moves gets 10 working days.
• No longer than the visa. Visa-exempt CIS citizens are registered for no more than 6 months.
• Two channels. A hotel and a clinic register their guest themselves through E-mehmon. For a flat, the law names the migration division of the internal affairs bodies, while the Regulation adopted by Cabinet of Ministers Resolution (CMR) No. 593 also allows E-mehmon for stays of up to 30 days.
• Housing norm. At least 16 sq. m of total floor area per person, otherwise registration may be refused.
• Everyone involved is fined. The foreigner pays 5, 15 or 25 BRV, an official 25 BRV, and a person who allowed residence without registration 5 BRV.
• No registration, no work permit application. The employer may not file documents for the confirmation if the foreigner has been unregistered for more than 3 days (para. 9(d) of Annex 20 to CMR No. 86).

What changed since 12 October 2025

ZRU-1074 replaced the “propiska” with registration at the place of residence and at the place of stay, and restated Article 223 and the sanctions in Parts 2–5 of Article 225 of the Code of Administrative Liability.

• 05.05.2026, CMR No. 224. The Regulation on the registration of citizens of Uzbekistan was approved, and Annex 2 to CMR No. 408, the former Rules of Stay for Foreigners, was repealed. The new Rules, which under the law are to be approved by the President, have not been published on lex.uz as of 12 October 2026.
• 21.05.2026, CMR No. 270. The latest amendment to the Regulation on the procedure for registering foreigners at the place of temporary stay (Annex 1 to CMR No. 593 of 28.09.2020, hereinafter the Regulation). It operates alongside the law and in places diverges from it.
• 09.06.2026, Presidential Decree PD-109. The “propiska” was replaced with registration in 157 provisions of Presidential acts.
• 01.09.2026, PD-115. The BRV became UZS 440,000, and fines and state fees in soums rose.

Part 4 of Article 225 punishes a breach of the hosting procedure “provided for by the rules of stay”. Until the new Rules are published, its content is open to dispute: this may be an argument on appeal, although the outcome depends on the circumstances of the case.

Registration deadlines: who, when and for how long

The deadlines come from ZRU-1074, as of October 2026.

The period runs from 00:01 on the day after the day of entry (para. 10 of the Regulation). Exempt from registration are, among others, children under 16; foreigners who arrived for no more than 3 working days and left within those days; tourists who stayed no more than 3 days in each locality (with supporting documents); and persons accredited with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (para. 11). Check the list on the date of entry. The law counts working days, while Annex 20 to CMR No. 86 says simply “3 days”, so it is safer to go by calendar days.

How much registration costs: the state fee

The rates come from the annex to Law ZRU-600 “On State Duty”; the sums are at a BRV of UZS 440,000 as of October 2026. For foreigners on an entry visa (item 19(v)):

For CIS citizens (item 19(g)) the law sets three tiers:

Under Article 19 of ZRU-1074, visa-exempt CIS citizens are registered for no more than 6 months, so check on the filing date whether a longer registration at the rate of 40% of BRV is possible, as well as the rate for visa-exempt foreigners who are not from the CIS. For a period of up to 1 month no state fee is charged, but when a foreigner is registered for up to 30 days through E-mehmon, the host pays a tourist (hotel) levy (paras 16–17 of the Regulation); check its amount on the date of registration.

How to register a foreigner

Article 19 of the law names two methods: a personal visit to the migration division of the internal affairs bodies, or registration by a hotel or clinic through E-mehmon (Art. 6). The Regulation adds an online channel for private housing that the law does not contain: the law takes priority, but the Regulation is formally in force, so check the channel on the filing date.

A flat, an acquaintance’s home or a dormitory

Under para. 12(b) of the Regulation, the foreigner is registered by the person who invited the foreigner and provides the housing: for stays of up to 30 days, through E-mehmon at the moment of check-in or at the migration and citizenship processing division within 3 working days; for stays of over 30 days, only at the division within 3 working days. After registering through E-mehmon, check with the internal affairs body that the record has been accepted. The following are submitted to the division (Art. 19 of the law, para. 17 of the Regulation):

• a notarized application (consent) of the owner, if the owner cannot come in person;
• the owner’s passport or ID card and the originals of the cadastral documents for the housing;
• the foreigner’s travel document and the document of a child under 16, if the child is named in the application;
• for an employee, a request in the prescribed form from the host legal entity.

An employee in employer-provided housing or a dormitory is registered with the written permission of the head of the enterprise, on a personal visit. The foreigner must live at the registered address, carry the travel document (passport) and report its loss immediately to the internal affairs body and the host. The person who provides the housing is also obliged to register the foreigner (Art. 6), so it is worth stipulating the owner’s attendance at the internal affairs body in the lease agreement.

Visa extension, relocation, business trips

• Visa extension. Apply to extend the registration within 3 working days after the visa is extended (para. 31 of the Regulation).
• Moving to another region. Registration at the new address is due no later than 3 working days after departure (para. 49).
• Business trip. If an employee lives at another address for more than 3 days, for example in a flat near the site, the employee is registered there as well (para. 50).
• Investors. Foreign investors, the foreign specialists they hire and their families are registered for the term of the visa, and such a registration allows them to live in other regions without a separate one (para. 22).
• Residence permit. The holder is registered for up to a year, including, without the owner’s consent, on the basis of a lease agreement recorded with the tax authority, through the Unified Portal of Interactive Public Services or “E-xabar berish”; in a hotel or an inpatient facility, registration goes through E-mehmon (Art. 16). The law gives 10 working days and the Regulation 3 (para. 38); the law applies, but it is safer to complete it within 3.

Grounds for refusal

Refusal is possible only on the closed list in Article 22, including where documents are missing, the information is unreliable, the state fee has not been paid, the housing is under seizure or a prohibition, or the social floor-area norm has been breached. The norm is set by the hokimiyats (local administrations), but under Article 20 of the law it may not be lower than 16 sq. m of total floor area per person (as of October 2026), including for registration at the place of stay; the exceptions in Article 21 concern relatives only. Any other refusal is appealed in court.

Fines: who pays and how much

The sanctions follow the current version of the Code of Administrative Liability; the sums are at a BRV of UZS 440,000.

The former Rules of Stay were repealed on 05.05.2026 and the new ones have not been published, so the applicability of Part 4 of Art. 225 depends on the hosting rules in force on the date of the violation. A legal entity is not named as a subject of liability in Articles 49⁴ and 225: the fine falls on an official, such as the head, the HR officer or a designated responsible person. Under Article 223, among others, persons under 18 and over 60 are not held liable.

What the foreigner personally faces

If a fine under Parts 1–3 of Article 225 is not paid, the foreigner is expelled with a one-year entry ban (Part 7): the ban follows non-payment, not the violation itself. A repeat offence within a year after the penalty means expulsion with a three-year ban (Part 8). Cases under Parts 1–3 are heard within one day (Art. 305), and expulsion is decided by the court for criminal cases (Art. 245). For the company, this means a new hiring cycle.

Draft law: fines for foreigners working without a confirmation

In July 2026 the Legislative Chamber considered amendments to the Code of Administrative Liability on fines for the foreigners themselves for working without a confirmation or outside the profession stated in it, with expulsion for a repeat offence or non-payment. On 28 July the bill was adopted and sent to the Senate; according to Spot, in the second and third readings. As of 12 October 2026 the Code on lex.uz contains no such provision, and the size of the fine will become clear once the law is published. According to the Tax Committee as of 1 May 2026 (as cited by Spot), more than 36,000 foreigners paid tax on employment income, while only 9,514 held a confirmation; a cross-check of these databases should also be expected during inspections. A separate bill tightens liability of hotels and clinics for failing to register foreigners in E-mehmon.

Employer obligations under Annex 20

Annex 20 to CMR No. 86, as amended by CMR No. 176 (in force since 1 July 2026), links registration directly to permission to work. The employer must:

• not file documents for a foreigner whose visa has expired or who has been unregistered for more than 3 days (para. 9(d));
• notify the Ministry within one week of changes in the submitted details, the dismissal of the foreigner or the liquidation of the organization (para. 9(g) and (yo));
• terminate the employment contract when the term of the confirmation expires (para. 9(e)).

No confirmation is needed for residence permit holders, specialists of IT Park residents, founders of foreign and joint enterprises for the first 3 months, or holders of the Vatandosh card; an investor of 8,500 BRV or more, counted at the BRV on the date of the investment (at the current UZS 440,000, that is UZS 3.74 billion), works in their own enterprise without permit procedures (see foreign investment in Uzbekistan). But each of them must still register. We covered the confirmation and fees in the article on work permits for foreign employees in 2026.

Common employer mistakes

• Moving out of a hotel. The employee moved into a flat and nobody arranged registration at the new address.
• Visa extended, registration not. The three working days allowed for extending the registration were missed.
• Six people in a two-room flat. The floor area per person is below the norm, registration is refused, and the clock keeps running.
• A business trip to a site. An engineer lives for a week in a flat in another region without being registered there.
• The owner “cannot come”. Without the owner’s application or notarized consent, the registration will not be processed.
• No one is designated as responsible. Who is liable is decided only during the inspection.

Example: how two unregistered engineers create a UZS 26.4 million risk

The example is hypothetical; the sums are at a BRV of UZS 440,000. A company in the Tashkent region hosts six foreign engineers, with entry on Monday, 7 September 2026; they are not allowed to work until the confirmation is issued. Four are registered in a dormitory within two days. Two are housed in an acquaintance’s flat: the owner has left without giving consent, and the HR officer decides to “do it later”. The period runs from 8 September, so the three working days are 8, 9 and 10 September. An inspection arrives on 30 September: the violation has lasted 20 days (11 to 30 September), which falls under Part 2 of Art. 225.

• Two engineers: 15 BRV each, UZS 13,200,000.
• The company’s official: 25 BRV, UZS 11,000,000, if the actions are qualified under Part 4 of Art. 225 and it applies without the new Rules.
• The owner: up to 5 BRV, UZS 2,200,000, if the offence in Part 7 of Art. 223 applies to an owner who does not occupy the housing.

The total is up to UZS 26,400,000. Had the engineers started work before the confirmation, Article 49⁴ would have been added: 10–25 BRV on the official. And while the two remain unregistered, documents for their confirmation cannot be filed. Fixing the problem in the first week would have taken one day.

Employer self-audit in one day

Compile a register of all foreigners, including founder-directors and family members, check each one against the table, fix anything overdue at once, and enter the deadlines in a calendar with a reminder 30 days ahead.

If an inspection arrives or a fine is issued

• Who hears the case. Cases under Parts 1–5 of Article 225 are heard by the internal affairs bodies (Art. 248 of the Code), cases under Article 49⁴ and on expulsion by the court for criminal cases (Art. 245).
• Appeal period. A ruling issued by the body is appealed within 10 days of receiving a copy; a period missed for a valid reason may be restored (Art. 316), and no state fee is payable for the appeal (Art. 315).
• Arguments. You can argue that the period was counted without regard to non-working days or, for Part 4 of Art. 225, that no Rules of Stay are in force. The outcome depends on the circumstances of the case, and a fine under Parts 1–3 that you do not contest should be paid on time.

The step-by-step procedure is in the article how to appeal a fine.

How Pactum helps

• We carry out a migration audit: visas, registrations, confirmations, contracts and notices for each foreigner.
• We check housing for staff and prepare the package for the migration division.
• We write an HR procedure and keep a calendar of visa, registration and confirmation deadlines.
• We support inspections and prepare appeals against fines.

You can start with a lawyer consultation: 60 minutes, UZS 300,000, credited toward the cost of the service; we name the price of the audit and support after reviewing the task. More details are on the pages HR audit and corporate services.

FAQ

Does a foreigner who lives in a hotel need to register?

No, the hotel registers the guest itself through E-mehmon (Arts. 6 and 19 of ZRU-1074). When the foreigner moves from a hotel into a flat, registration at the new address is required: a foreigner must live at the registered address.

What happens if registration is late?

A fine under Article 225 of the Code of Administrative Liability: up to 10 days, 5 BRV (UZS 2.2 million); over 10 and up to 30 days, 15 BRV (UZS 6.6 million); over 30 days, 25 BRV (UZS 11 million) as of October 2026. Failure to pay the fine leads to expulsion with a one-year entry ban.

Who is responsible for registration: the flat owner or the foreigner?

Both. The foreigner is liable under Article 225 of the Code of Administrative Liability; a person who allowed residence without registration in their own housing, under Part 7 of Article 223 (5 BRV); and a person who invited the foreigner on private business, under Part 5 of Article 225 (15 BRV). For an employee, an official of the host organization is also liable.

How much does it cost to register a foreigner in 2026?

For up to 1 month no state fee is charged, but when registering for up to 30 days through E-mehmon, a tourist (hotel) levy is paid. On a visa, the fee is 2 to 12 BRV (UZS 880,000 to 5,280,000) depending on the period; a CIS citizen usually pays 20% of BRV (UZS 88,000) for 1–6 months. A rate of 40% of BRV (UZS 176,000) applies to a period of over 6 months, but visa-exempt CIS citizens are registered for no more than half a year.

Is the company itself fined?

Articles 225 and 49⁴ of the Code do not name a legal entity as a subject of liability: the fine falls on an official, up to 25 BRV, and under Article 49⁴, up to 50 BRV (UZS 22 million) for a repeat offence. But the company loses the employee on expulsion and cannot file documents for the confirmation while the employee is unregistered. Designate a responsible person by order; otherwise the inspector will decide who it is.

Does an employee need to be registered again on a business trip to another region?

Yes, if the employee lives at a different address for more than 3 days (para. 50 of the Regulation, CMR No. 593); in a hotel, the hotel does it. The exception is foreign investors and the foreign specialists they hire: their registration allows them to live in other regions without a separate one (para. 22).

How do I register the family of a foreign specialist?

Children under 16 are not registered separately (para. 11 of the Regulation): their document is attached to the application if the child is named in it (Art. 19 of ZRU-1074). A spouse and adult children are registered as independent foreigners within the same 3 working days and for no longer than the term of their visa.

Sources

• Law ZRU-1074 on registration at the place of residence and the place of stay (Russian)
• Regulation on the registration of foreigners, Annex 1 to CMR No. 593 (in Uzbek) and the resolution in Russian
• Code of Administrative Liability in Russian and in Uzbek
• Law ZRU-600 “On State Duty” (Russian)
• Annex 20 to CMR No. 86 (Russian)
• Decree PD-109 (Russian) and Decree PD-115 on the BRV (Russian)
• CMR No. 408 (Russian) and CMR No. 224 (in Uzbek)
• UzA on the bill (Russian) and Spot on the Tax Committee data (Russian)
• Migration Agency on the bill (Russian)
• E-mehmon system