Edits: updates or corrections
I moved to Tashkent for work in February 2020 without speaking any local languages or knowing anybody. Luckily, Uzbeks are quite hospitable and welcoming, which means that settling into the capital of Uzbekistan went quite smoothly.
However, even the best efforts of my colleagues and friends did not prevent some ups and downs during the moving process, mainly related to different expectations regarding access to information. So throughout this experience, I have established a list of basic knowledge that one needs when moving to Uzbekistan, and that locals might not warn you about because they will be too used to it.
- I/ Basic bureaucracy
- II/ Finding a place to live
- III/ Other basic needs
- IV/ Let’s talk about money
- V/ Getting around Tashkent
- V/ Socializing in Tashkent
I/ Basic bureaucracy
A note on passports
You are moving to Uzbekistan, which means you are now entering the world of foreigners. And as such, your one and only official identification document has now become your passport. This is the case for almost every country outside of your own, except maybe Canada, France, and Korea, which have special IDs for long-term stays.
This new life means that your passport should never leave your side, nor in the streets, nor at work, nor while you are traveling, even inside Uzbekistan. I know this might sound scary at first, but you will get used to it. And anyway, Uzbekistan is so safe, you really do not have to worry about anyone stealing your passport.
On the contrary, I have at least three expat friends who have encountered problems because they did not carry their passports with them while traveling in Uzbekistan. For example, one of them was rejected from the hotel Radisson Blu because he only had a copy of his passport. But most of these problems were related to registration, which we will cover just now.
Registration
Common to most Commonwealth of Independant States (CIS)-member countries, registration is the act of notifying the relevant public authorities of a country of your place of residence. In Uzbekistan, registration is mandatory for everyone as soon as three nights are spent outside of oneโs usual place of residence. As a result, all foreign citizens in Uzbekistan have to go through registration within three days of their arrival, weekends and holidays excepted. Please note that Saturday is a working day in Uzbekistan, as such, registration offices are open until noon that day.
Registration is done at the Office of Visas & Registration (OVIR) of oneโs neighbourhood. It should be renewed yearly and/or after each change of residence. Once you are registered, you will receive proof of the procedure in the form of a small loose paper that you can staple to your passport. Because of this, your passport should never leave your side when getting around or traveling (please don’t be like my French friend teaching in Samarkand, who regularly gets in trouble, because he does not bring his passport or registration papers anywhere…).
Similarly, if any of your friends and/or family come to visit you and stay at your place, they will have to register at this address (if they are planning to stay more than two nights here). This means that you will have to show up at the OVIR with your landlord to register your visitors. And remember that, if you apply for registration on a Saturday, the final document will only be ready the next Monday or Tuesday.
For foreign professionals sponsored by a company that operates in Uzbekistan, registration is often performed by the company itself. This means that, normally, the $200-fee that comes with this procedure is also paid by the employer. A foreign employee should only have to pay 50,000 soums ($5) for registration each year. When traveling, hotels will take care of this procedure for you, for the same fee.
However, some companies have different agreements with the government, and you might end up having to pay for this procedure yourself. so make sure to ask about the specifics of registration before moving.
Taxes
I am talking for academic visas here: professionals working in the field of higher education do not pay tax in Uzbekistan. Even though your employer still has to pay social security charges for you, it remains your employerโs responsibility. Not yours.
Of course, this information is not set in stone, and it is likely to change and evolve, but as of June 2023, you donโt have to pay taxes if you work in higher education. However, that also means that you should organise your own retirement savings.
I am not familiar with other professions, though, so try to get this information from your employer before moving here.
PINFL number
The last step to becoming a fully-functioning member of Uzbek society is to create a PINFL number. The PINFL number was created to replace the tax number and will serve as your digital identification for any interaction with public authorities.
The PINFL number is also issued by the OVIR. For higher education professionals, the International Office of your institution is responsible for helping you apply for this ID.
II/ Finding a place to live
Do it online
When looking for an apartment in Tashkent, it is better to start online. The best website to look for accommodation will probably be OLX, which is the equivalent of gumtree.com in the United Kingdom or Craigslist in the United States.
Another good website for finding apartments to rent is Uybor, which translates into โWe have a houseโ in Uzbek. Uybor is better than OLX in the sense that they show the ads on a map of Tashkent. However, prices will be a little bit more expensive than on the former website.
Most of the ads on these websites are posted by real estate agencies. In that case, this means that you will have to pay an additional fee to the agent, on top of the first rent. However fear not, just like everything else in Uzbekistan, agent fees can be negotiated. In the same way, do not forget to negotiate your rent before signing the contract!
About deposits
It is quite unusual to pay a deposit for an apartment rental in Tashkent. Moreover, the concept of deposit here is quite different than it is in France, for example, where the money is always given back, unless the state of the apartment is really awful. In Tashkent, I have heard of many scenarios where the landlord/lady found a debatable reason to keep some or the entire deposit amount at the end of the contract.
So as a general rule, try not to go for rentals with such requirements. Furthermore, always check the state of the apartment thoroughly and take pictures before giving the deposit.
Contracts
Recently, it became mandatory for rent contracts to be registered at the tax office. In order to do this, you will have to create a digital signature for yourself. This digital signature can be obtained online, on the website E-IMZO. In order to generate this signature, you will need the PINFL number mentioned earlier, a picture of yourself and your open passport held close to your face, as well as a scanned copy of your passport alone. The administrative fee for the digital signature is 18,000 soums and can be paid online.
It is highly likely that you will not succeed in generating your digital signature online, being a foreigner. In case this happens, try to show up early at your neighbourhoodโs Eddinoe Okno counter, where they will finish the process for you.
Paying rent
It is quite common to pay rent in cash in Tashkent. However, you can arrange with your landlord/lady to pay your rent via card transfer. Transfers can be done through banking applications such as the ones listed below. A fee of 1% of the total amount of the transfer is usually applied to the transaction.
Sometimes, the landlord will insist for the rent to be paid in dollars. Since it is difficult for foreigners to buy dollars in Uzbekistan, you can also pay in dollar-equivalent.
III/ Other basic needs
Water
When I was still young, naรฏve, and impressionable, I made the mistake of trusting a World Bank report that said that 90% of water in big cities in Uzbekistan was drinkable, and 85% in rural cities. And did I regret it.
So now you will know that even the government of Uzbekistan admits that only 65% of water in Tashkent is drinkable (which indicates a worse state elsewhere). So filtre it, boil it, sanitize it with a pill, do water you want, but do not drink straight from the tap.
You have been warned.
Mobile Phone Plans
When I arrived in Tashkent, my former employer took care of getting me a local chip and subscription plan for my phone. So I was stuck with a MobiUz plan for more than six months, which was quite unpleasant. They tell you that you bought a plan, but halfway through the month, you found yourself refilling this plan again for no reason! So I definitely do not recommend MobiUz as phone provider.
I have been using the Russian phone provider Beeline for one three years now and never had any problems since I switched.
In any case, if you decide to change providers at some point, you will have to change number as well, so choose wisely.
Internet plans
When moving to an Asian country, you will quickly learn that mobile networks are much more reliable than internet plans. And indeed, Tashkent has many internet providers, but the speed and quality of internet connections strongly depend on the state of living areas.
For example, I used to live in Mirabad district, downtown Tashkent, where the internet speed provided by the internet provider TPS was average, but consistent. After moving to Yakkasaroy district, I have a better internet speed via UzTelecom, but my internet access is cut at least twice a month because of construction or other matters.
To solve this problem, many people just choose to buy a bigger internet plan on their mobile phone and share it with their computers. If you still choose an internet provider, you can pay your bills via the applications mentioned below.
IV/ Let’s talk about money
Getting a “plastic cardโ
When you will start working in Uzbekistan, you will receive what is called a โplastic cardโ. It confused me at first, because whenever I asked about opening a bank account, I was always told that I should “open a plastic card”. But actually, a plastic card is just a debit card and it will be created for you by your employer. This is where they will transfer your salary, which means that you will get a card from the same bank where they keep their finances. So basically, if you work at multiple places, you are most likely going to end up with multiple plastic cards.
There is a wide choice of applications that can be downloaded in order to manage the funds going on your debit card. All financial information on your card is recorded in these apps and will also come in the form of a paid SMS service letting you know about your cardโs financial activity.
| Click Cost: 1,000 UZS/month and 1% commission upon each transfer and money withdrawal. Main features: long-term payment history, scheduled auto-payments, great cash back, etc. | My Uzcard Designed by Plumtechnologies Cost: 1,000 UZS/month and 1% commission upon each transfer and money withdrawal. Main features: secure payment, analytics for cost control, Telegram bot, etc. | PayMe Designed by Paymego Cost: 400 UZS/SMS and 1% commission upon each transfer and money withdrawal. Main features: secure payment, analytics for cost control, protection against loss or theft, etc. |
Buying US dollars & transfering money abroad
Foreigners are only allowed to change around 1,000,000 UZS ($100) per day into U.S. dollars without proof of income. However, some ATMs in Tashkent have currency exchange options, even though they will be blocked for 10 minutes after one $100-bill withdrawal:
| Ipak Yoโlli bankโs ATMs Shota Rustaveli Street | Kapital Bankโs ATM Sayilogh Street (Broadway) | NBU (has the best exchange rate) Amir Temur Avenue, 101 |
If you want to withdraw more dollars or transfer money abroad, the situation for foreigners just became more complicated. It started slowly and very surreptitiously. First, all money transfer services from Russia were blocked. Then, for a few months now, Europe and North America have started to enforce sanctions on Uzbekistan in a pathetic attempt to try and break its relationship with the regionโs hegemon, Russia. As a result, foreigners in Uzbekistan are not allowed to transfer money from Uzbekistan via the conventional means. Donโt get these sanctions wrong, though, they are completely useless since Russian citizens living in Uzbekistan can still send money to their home country. However, they do a great job at complicating the life of other foreigners in the country.
So, here is what is going to happen when you ask an Uzbekistani bank to transfer money for you abroad via a SWIFT transfer: they will ask you to fill up a form to make sure that you are not an important political figure abroad and tell you that it will be validated in one week. Then you will never hear from the bank again. It happened to me three times.
But anyway, Uzbeks being masters at avoiding unreasonable bureaucracy, they have helped me countless times in going around this Kafkaesque situation. Indeed, it turns out that in many banks in Tashkent, SWIFT transfers are still accessible to Uzbek citizens. And if not, there is still the RIA system, which is still cheaper than Western Union or MoneyGram. So, grab one of your local friends and head to the bank right now with me to find a solution to this nothing short of ridiculous situation:
| Banks | Orient Finans Bank | Ipak Yoโlli Bank | Asia Alliance Bank | Kapital Bank | |||||
| Passport | Citizens | Non-citizens | Citizens | Non-citizens | Citizens | Non-citizens | Citizens | Non-citizens | |
| SWIFT | No | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | No | ||
| SWIT Fee | UNKNOWN | 300,000 UZS | 180,000 UZS | 500,000 UZS | |||||
| RIA | Yes | No | UNKNOWN | UNKNOWN | No | ||||
| Russian money transfer services | BLOCKED (Contact, Zolotaya Corona, etc.) | ||||||||
| Other money transfer services | Western Union MoneyGram Asia Express | Western Union | Western Union Asia Express | Western Union MoneyGram Asia Express | |||||
| Comments | Most professional bank out there: I never had a problem here. Cherry on the cake, most of the time, one employee speaks English. | Good bank, I had no problems with them so far. | If you have an online bank abroad, bring its bank correspondent number, the officer did not ask me this the first time, so I had to come back and pay a second time for the transfer. | Officers in this bank do not really know what theyโre doing, so stay attentive. | |||||
By sending money through an Uzbek friend, you can either use dollars in cash, or send the money to your friendโs card. Good luck!
V/ Getting around Tashkent
Choose Yandex Maps
Yandex Maps is much more accurate than Google Maps here in Uzbekistan if you want to find your way around the city. It also informs you of bus stop locations, bus routes, and live bus location in the same application.
Taxi Services
Taxi fees vary widely depending on the taxi drivers and the city youโre in. In Tashkent, it is possible to hail a taxi on the street, however, the safest way (in terms of fee) for foreigners to ask for a taxi is through ride-share applications. Yandex Go and My Taxi are applications similar to Uber and help you find a taxi near your area. Prices are announced before the order is made and payment can be done by card, on the app, or by cash upon arrival.
Average fee per 5km was around 10,000 UZS in 2020. Of course this varies according to rush hour schedule. Furthermore, Yandex is slowly increasing its prices ร la Uber. Nonetheless, do not go paying $20 for a taxi ride from the airport to Minor like my American colleague did. This kind of fare is unheard of in Tashkent to this day.
Public transportation
The public transportation system in Tashkent might look tricky, but it is actually not that difficult to use. Furthermore, Iโm pretty sure it is much safer than travelling with taxi drivers who sometimes have dubious driving skills.
First of all, public transportation fare is the same for the metro and the bus: 1,400 UZS. You can pay cash, use an ATTO transportation card, or a local debit card equiped with a contactless payment chip.
The ATTO transportation card works for both modes of transport. It is refillable though the banking applications mentioned above. You can find this card at any metro station counter and fill it up at the counter or on payment apps.
Now, Yandex Maps allows you to track buses in real time and to check bus routes. And now, some buses are even starting to announce the next stop!
V/ Socializing in Tashkent
Social Media
In terms of communication, the application Telegram is more widely used in Uzbekistan than Whatsapp. Telegram is a cloud-based open and free mobile and desktop messaging application where you can create groups and channels, video chat, and even edit and delete your comments. This application also allows you to have access to some groups and channels for expats living in Uzbekistan.
Cherry on the cake the appโs emojis are super cute!
Useful Telegram groups and channels
| Tashkent Modern Life (t.me/tashkentmodernlife) A channel in English for all kinds of announcements, events, major news happening in Tashkent. | Legal Info (t.me/leginf) A channel in English providing information on all new legal acts and reforms in Uzbekistan. | Expats in Tashkent (t.me/tashexpat) The title says it all |
Culture & events
Nothing to do on a Saturday? If you are tired of walking aimlessly in the streets of Tashkent, try taking a look at afisha.uz. This website publishes articles and programs on things to do in Tashkent during the weekend. If you do not read Uzbek or Russian, Google Chrome or Translation will help you understand!
Telegram and Instagram are also great resources to find cultural events in Tashkent. Some dynamic cultural channels include:
- Human House: art store which often hosts events and workshops;
- Ilkhom Theatre: cultural organization which organizes exhibitions, movie nights, and concerts;
- Tashkent Events: Telegram channel publishing news in English about cultural events in Tashkent;
- Annchauz: you can also stick around my blog, where I talk about life in Tashkent, including things to do here.
As you can see from this blog post, there are two important things to know before coming to Tashkent. First of all, it is important to ask the right questions and to establish responsibilities before making the great leap. Your employer might not be used to these questions and you might feel pushy by asking over and over. However, finding out the right information before moving will save you lots of trouble upon arrival.
Secondly, even though you can survive in Tashkent by speaking only English. You will become much more independent if you start learning the local languages as soon as possible.
But whatever happens, I will keep posting my articles about life in Tashkent and how to enjoy it!
Welcome to Uzbekistan!
