Establishing in Kenya is rarely one decision. It is a sequence of them, and each step depends on the one before it: the entity has to exist before it can hold a tax registration, the tax registration is needed before a bank account, the bank account before capital can be demonstrated, and the demonstrated capital before a work permit for the person who is meant to be running the operation.
Getting that order wrong is the most common and most expensive mistake we see. A team arrives on visitor passes expecting to convert them, a lease is signed for premises that cannot be licensed for the intended use, or a group treats a Kenyan branch and a Kenyan subsidiary as interchangeable when they differ in liability, tax treatment and what the parent has to disclose publicly.
We run market entry as a single mapped programme rather than a series of unconnected filings: choosing the vehicle, incorporating it, obtaining the sector approvals the business actually needs, securing permits for the people who will run it, and putting in place the commercial contracts and employment documents required to trade. Where an investment certificate from KenInvest is worth obtaining, we will say so — and where it is not, we will say that too.
Areas of work
What entering the Kenyan market involves
Choosing the right vehicle
Subsidiary, branch of a foreign company, or representative office. They differ in liability exposure, tax treatment, filing obligations and what the parent must place on the public record. The choice is difficult to reverse cheaply.
Company incorporation in Kenya
Incorporation at the Business Registration Service through eCitizen: name reservation, memorandum and articles, directors and shareholders, registered office, and the beneficial ownership register that must be lodged from the outset.
ExploreForeign-owned companies and subsidiaries
Full foreign ownership is permitted in most sectors. The practical questions are local directorship, the resident officer requirements, capital structure and which sectors impose local shareholding conditions.
Foreign branch registration
Registering an overseas company to carry on business in Kenya, including the constitutional documents, local representative and ongoing filing obligations that follow. A branch is not a separate legal person, so parent liability is direct.
Investment certificates and KenInvest
Application to the Kenya Investment Authority under the Investment Promotion Act, 2004. Worth pursuing where the investment meets the threshold and the entitlement to work permits materially helps — not worth the process where it does not.
Business licensing and sector approvals
Identifying every permit the business actually needs — county single business permit, sector regulator authorisations, health, fire and environmental approvals — and sequencing them against the premises and launch date.
Explore 07Work permits and employee mobility
Class D employment permits and Class G investor permits, special passes, and dependant passes. Class D requires evidence that no qualified Kenyan is available and normally a named Kenyan understudy.
ExploreSpecial Economic Zones and EPZs
Establishing in a Special Economic Zone or Export Processing Zone where the business qualifies, and an honest assessment of whether the incentives justify the operating constraints that come with them.
Premises, leases and property
Commercial leases and property acquisition for the Kenyan operation, including title verification and lease terms that align with the licensing the intended use requires.
Explore 10Employment setup
Contracts compliant with the Employment Act, 2007, HR policies, statutory payroll registrations, and a clear position on engaging contractors rather than employees.
Explore 11Tax and banking coordination
KRA PIN registration, VAT and PAYE obligations, and coordination with banks on account opening — where source-of-funds and beneficial ownership documentation is now the usual cause of delay.
ExploreOngoing Kenyan legal support
Acting as local counsel after launch: annual returns, beneficial ownership updates, regulatory filings, commercial contracts and the day-to-day questions a group without a Kenyan legal team needs answered.
The law that applies
The framework for establishing in Kenya
Market entry touches company law, investment promotion, immigration and sector regulation at the same time. These are the instruments that most often determine the route and the timetable.
Companies Act, No. 17 of 2015
Governs incorporation of Kenyan companies and registration of foreign companies carrying on business here. It sets out directors, share capital, registered office and the ongoing filing obligations, including the beneficial ownership register that applies from incorporation rather than from first trading.
Investment Promotion Act, 2004 (Cap 485B)
Establishes the Kenya Investment Authority and the investment certificate. A foreign investor needs a minimum investment of USD 100,000 to qualify, and the application is assessed on benefit to Kenya — employment, skills upgrading, technology transfer, foreign exchange generation and tax revenue.
A certificate holder becomes eligible for three Class D permits for management or technical staff and three Class C, F or G permits for owners, shareholders or partners, for a maximum of two years.
Kenya Citizenship and Immigration Act, 2011
Governs work permits and passes. A Class D employment permit requires a specific offer from a specific employer, skills not available locally, evidence that the role was advertised in Kenya, and normally a named Kenyan understudy so the skills transfer.
Class D: KES 500,000 per year issuance plus KES 20,000 processing. Class G (investor): KES 250,000 per year plus KES 20,000 processing, with documentary proof of USD 100,000 capital.
Special Economic Zones Act, 2015
Provides for licensed developers, operators and enterprises within designated zones, with fiscal and operational incentives attached. Eligibility depends on the activity and on meeting the zone's conditions, so the benefit needs testing against the actual business model.
County Governments Act and county business permits
Trading requires a single business permit from the county in which the business operates, alongside any national sector licence. Requirements and fees vary by county and by activity, and are tied to the premises — which is why the lease and the licence need to be considered together.
Employment Act, 2007
Applies to Kenyan employees from the first day of engagement, including written particulars of employment, statutory leave and termination procedure. A foreign group cannot rely on its home-country employment documents; contracts must be adapted to Kenyan law.
Who we act for
Who we help enter the Kenyan market
Foreign companies establishing in Kenya
Setting up a first African operation and needing the entity, licences, premises and people sequenced into one workable timetable.
Multinational groups adding a Kenyan entity
Extending an existing group structure and needing the subsidiary-versus-branch decision made on liability, tax and disclosure grounds.
Regional headquarters
Basing an East African hub in Nairobi and needing to know what can be run from Kenya and what requires local authorisation elsewhere.
Foreign investors
Investing into a Kenyan business or asset and needing diligence, structure and any regulatory clearance the investment triggers.
Diaspora founders
Establishing or formalising a Kenyan business from abroad, often with family or partners already operating informally on the ground.
Development and impact investors
Deploying capital into Kenyan enterprises and needing structures that satisfy both the investment mandate and Kenyan law.
Get the entry sequence right the first time
Tell us what the business will do in Kenya and who needs to be here to run it. We will come back with the vehicle, the approvals it triggers and a timetable you can plan against.
How we work
How a market entry programme runs
- 01
Entry mapping
We establish what the business will actually do in Kenya, then work back to the vehicle, the licences it triggers, and the people who need to be here to run it.
- 02
Entity and registrations
Incorporation or branch registration, beneficial ownership filing, KRA PIN and the statutory registrations, sequenced so nothing waits on a step that has not happened.
- 03
Licences and permits
Sector approvals, county permits and work permit applications, with realistic timelines given at the outset rather than optimistic ones.
- 04
Operational readiness
Lease, employment contracts, commercial agreements and the compliance calendar, so the entity can trade rather than merely exist.
Common questions
Questions we are asked most
Can a foreigner own 100% of a Kenyan company?
In most sectors, yes. Kenya permits full foreign ownership of a private limited company as a general position, and there is no across-the-board local shareholding requirement. Specific sectors do impose restrictions or licensing conditions, so the answer depends on the intended activity. Related questions worth settling at the same time are who will act as a local director, how the company will satisfy bank account requirements, and whether the people running the business will need work permits.
Should we set up a subsidiary or register a branch in Kenya?
A subsidiary is a separate Kenyan company: liability is contained within it, and it is treated as a Kenyan taxpayer. A branch is the same legal person as the parent, so the parent is directly liable for its obligations, and registration requires the parent's own constitutional documents and accounts to be filed here. Most groups choose a subsidiary for the liability separation and the cleaner local profile. A branch can suit a short, defined project where establishing a separate company is disproportionate.
How long does it take to set up a company in Kenya?
Incorporation itself is comparatively quick through the eCitizen platform once the name is reserved and the documents are in order. The realistic timetable is set by everything that follows: KRA registration, bank account opening — usually the slowest step, driven by source-of-funds and beneficial ownership checks — sector licences where they apply, and work permits, which run on their own timeline. Planning around the entity alone consistently underestimates the schedule.
Do we need an investment certificate from KenInvest?
It is not mandatory for most businesses. It requires a minimum foreign investment of USD 100,000 and an assessment of the benefit to Kenya. Its main practical value is the entitlement it carries to a set number of work permits, which is genuinely useful if you are bringing in several people. If your investment is below the threshold, or you need only one or two permits, applying separately for those is usually the faster route.
What does a work permit cost in Kenya and how long does it take?
A Class D employment permit carries an issuance fee of KES 500,000 per year plus a KES 20,000 processing fee; a Class G investor permit is KES 250,000 per year plus the same processing fee. Class D also requires evidence that the role was advertised locally and that no qualified Kenyan was available, and normally a named Kenyan understudy. Processing times vary and the application is discretionary, so it is not something to leave until the person has already relocated.
Can we hire staff in Kenya before the entity is registered?
Not properly. Employing in Kenya requires an entity that can be the employer, register for PAYE and make statutory deductions. Engaging people as contractors in the interim is common but carries real risk: if the working relationship has the characteristics of employment, it can be treated as employment regardless of what the contract says, with back-dated statutory liabilities attaching. Where speed matters, an employer-of-record arrangement is a cleaner bridge than mislabelling employees.