Afghanistan is a landlocked nation at the crossroads of Central and South Asia, officially known as the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. Afghanistan is bordered on the east and south by Pakistan; on the west by Iran; on the north by Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan; and on the northeast by China.
It is a mountainous country with plains in the north and southwest, covering 652,000 square kilometers. Kabul is the capital and the largest city in Afghanistan. Its population is estimated to be about 32 million people, with ethnic Pashtuns, Tajiks, Hazaras, and Uzbeks making up the majority.
At least 50,000 years ago, humans lived in what is now Afghanistan. Settled life first appeared in the area 9,000 years ago, eventually developing into the Indus, Oxus, and Helmand civilizations of the 3rd millennium BCE. Indo-Aryans migrated to Gandhara through the Bactria-Margiana area, followed by the rise of the Iron Age Yaz I culture, which has been linked to the culture depicted in the Avesta, Zoroastrianism's ancient religious texts. In the 6th century BCE, the city, then known as "Ariana," fell to the Achaemenid Persians, who invaded the areas to their east as far as the Indus River. Invading the area in the 4th century BCE, Alexander the Great married Roxana in Bactria before embarking on a campaign in the Kabul Valley, where he encountered opposition from the Aspasioi and Assakan tribes. The Greco-Bactrian Kingdom became the Hellenistic world's easternmost point. Buddhism and Hinduism flourished in the area for centuries after the Mauryan Indians conquered it. The Kushan emperor Kanishka, who ruled from his twin capitals of Kapisi and Puruapura, was instrumental in Mahayana Buddhism's expansion to China and Central Asia. The Kidarites, Hephthalites, Alkhons, Nezaks, Zunbils, and Turk Shahis are among the Buddhist dynasties that originated in this area. The Saffarid, Samanid, Ghaznavid, and Ghurid dynasties introduced Islam to Sassanian-held Herat and Zaranj in the mid-7th century, and the Saffarid, Samanid, Ghaznavid, and Ghurid dynasties achieved complete Islamization between the 9th and 12th centuries. The Khwarazmian, Khalji, Timurid, Lodi, Sur, Mughal, and Safavid empires later dominated parts of the area. The Hotak dynasty, whose founder Mirwais Hotak proclaimed southern Afghanistan independent in 1709, is responsible for the current state of Afghanistan's political history. Ahmad Shah Durrani established the Durrani Empire in 1747, with Kandahar as its capital. The Durrani capital was relocated to Kabul in 1776, while Peshawar was designated as the winter capital; the latter was captured by Sikhs in 1823. Afghanistan served as a buffer state in the "Great Game" between British India and the Russian Empire in the late 1800s.
Depending on their age, type of employment, and duration of service, employees earn between 20 and 30 days of paid yearly leave. The majority of employees are given 20 days of paid vacation each year.
There are seventeen public holidays in Afghanistan.
Employees are entitled to 20 paid sick days per year. A doctor's note or a note from a health organization may be required if an employee is unwell for more than five days in a row.
Employees who are women are entitled to 90 days of paid maternity leave. The first thirty days are taken before the birth, while the last sixty days are taken after the delivery.
There is no statutory paternity leave in Afghanistan.
Other than the mentioned terms for maternity leave, there are no other provisions in the Afghanistan law regarding parental leave.
The following are the essential circumstances for terminating a work contract: mutual agreement, retirement, death, disability, or incapacity that will make it difficult to perform the job, long cessation of work for a period of at least six months, dissolution of the organization or reduction in the number of employees, final conviction to prevent work continuation, and repeated breaches of work after being disciplined.
Employers must warn employees one month in advance of termination.
Both contracting parties can agree on a probationary period for employment. The parties may terminate the contract by notifying one another during this time period, which cannot exceed three months.
Employers are required to pay severance to employees in a variety of circumstances, with the amount determined by the employee's years of service. Severance pay should be paid to the employee's legal inheritor in the event of their death.
The standard work week in Afghanistan is 40 hours over five days.
Employees are entitled to a percentage of basic wages for overtime during the work week, weekends and holidays. Special rules apply to younger workers for work performed at night.
There is no minimum wage in Afghanistan for permanent employees in the private sector. Monthly earnings for nonpermanent private sector employees must be at least 5,500 AFN. For permanent government employees, the monthly minimum wage is 6,000 AFN. These wages are based on a 40-hour workweek.
Many workers have access to social security. These funds are often a mix of company contributions and deductions from the employees' monthly pay. Some companies opt to pay for all of their workers' social protections. These funds are critical to employees' post-retirement lives. Companies may also provide social protections to workers as a complement to their pay while they are on the job.
Special conditions may entitle an employee and their family for additional social benefits. Workers in these circumstances may get food allowances, transportation, assistance in locating housing, medical services, assistance with delivery, a pension for prolonged sickness or incapacity, and financial assistance equivalent to ten months of pay for a dead employee's funeral ceremony.
The funds for these social safeguards come from a company's budget. Pension payments are made from a special fund inside the employer's organization. Financial assistance for old-age retirement should equal 10 months of earnings plus the employee's benefits.
All companies in Afghanistan are required to pay a corporate tax of 20 percent.
Individuals in Afghanistan are subject to tax at progressive rates, calculated monthly.
Individuals with a monthly income of 0 to 5,000 afghani are subject to a 0 percent income tax rate. For individuals with a monthly income between 5001 and 12,500 afghani are subject to a 2 percent income tax rate. Individuals with a monthly income of 12,501 to 100,000 afghani are subject to a 10 percent income tax rate plus 150 afghani. Individuals with a monthly income beyond 100,001 are subject to a 20 percent income tax rate plus 8,900 afghani.
Afghanistan levies a 10% value-added tax (VAT). However, the current legislation does not cover all products and services (hotels are affected for example). The government is presently considering broadening the scope of this tax.
VAT has an impact on both local businesses and their trading partners. The domestic tax payer is required to pay VAT on taxable supplies, and the importer is required to pay VAT on taxable imports. Once adopted, VAT will replace the business receipts tax on all imports.
To enter and exit Afghanistan, US citizens must have a valid passport and an Afghan visa. Travelers who arrive without a valid visa face deportation or the confiscation of their passport, as well as heavy fines.
A valid employment contract must contain:
Proof of legitimacy,
A description of the job and any necessary skills,
The employee’s wages, rights, and privileges,
The employee’s expected working time, in accordance with the code,
The worker’s leave,
The location of the work site,
The duration of time that the contract will be valid,
Date and signatures, and
Parental signatures if the contracted party is younger than 18 years of age.
The employer must prepare three copies of the employment contract and deliver one to the worker and one to the Ministry of Labor, Social Affairs, Martyrs, and the Disabled (MoLSAMD). The third copy must be kept by the employer in their Human Resources department.
A probationary term of three months or less may be included in an employment contract.
Fixed-term contracts must be for a period of one year. Employers and workers may prolong this form of contract with mutual permission.
In a fixed-term contract, if the parties do not take action within one month of the agreement's expiration, the contract is deemed renewed on the same terms.
Part-time workers may be hired by employers in certain justifiable situations or where there is a unique necessity. Part-time contracts may be entered into in two ways under Afghan law:
A part-time contract in which the employee must work at least three hours each day but not as many as full-time employees; or
A part-time weekly contract in which the employee works for at least three days each week but no more than one week.
Part-time employees are not eligible for pensions or paid time off.
Afghan afghani (AFN)
To form a subsidiary legally, your business must:
1. Engage the services of a lawyer to register your company and complete all required paperwork.
2. Decide on the most appropriate business model for your in-country firm.
3. Register with the Central Business Registry of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoCI).
4. Obtain a tax identification number (TIN) from the Afghanistan Revenue Department or a Mustufiat office in your neighborhood.
5. Obtain the necessary permissions and licenses for your industry.
6. Publicize information about the subsidiary's operations in the Official Gazette.
A multinational firm may establish a subsidiary in the form of a sole proprietorship/branch office, a partnership, a limited liability company, or a corporation. There are few advantages to selecting a branch entity. Your parent firm and subsidiary are indistinguishable from their owner under that model. To mitigate risk, the majority of employers form a limited liability corporation.
Depending on the company model you pick, you may need to cooperate with in-country directors or shareholders. This choice will also provide you with an estimate of the time required to create your subsidiary.
