SUMMARY
An independent republic in East Africa within the Commonwealth. Associate Member of the European Union (EU).
Capital:
Nairobi. Port(s):
Mombasa.Population:
30,765,916.LANGUAGE(S)
English, Kiswahili, numerous indigenous languages.
WEIGHTS AND MEASURES
Metric system.
ELECTRICITY SUPPLY
Domestic: 240v 50 cycles AC; Industrial: 415v. 3 phase. 4 wire system.
CURRENCY(-IES)
1 Kenya shilling = 100 cents.
EXCHANGE RATE
110.274 Kenyan shilling (KES) = £1 sterling (fluctuating rate).
INTERNATIONAL DIRECT DIALLING CODE(S)
00 254.
TIME
3 hours ahead of GMT (2 hours ahead of BST).
PUBLIC HOLIDAYS
1 Jan; 1 May; 1 Jun; 10, 20 Oct; 12, 25, 26 Dec; in addition, the following which have variable dates: Eid Al Fitr; Good Friday; Easter Monday.
ENQUIRIES
Kenya High Commission: 45 Portland Place, London W1N 4AS. Tel: 020 7636 2371/5, fax: 020 7323 6717. Office hours: Mon-Fri 9–1, 2–5.
Commercial office: 25 Brooks Mews, London W1Y 1LG. Tel: 020 7355 3145/6, fax: 020 7355 3144.
BRITISH HIGH COMMISSION
Upper Hill Road, PO Box 30465, Nairobi. Tel: 00 254 2 714699, fax: 00 254 2 719082/9486, e-mail: bhcinfo@iconnect.co.ke — website: www.britain.or.ke (Link to an external site - Disclaimer 
)
)Commercial Department: PO Box 30133, Nairobi.
CHAMBER(S) OF COMMERCE
Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry, PO Box 47024, Nairobi. Tel: 00 254 2 334413, fax: 00 254 2 340664.
IMPORT RESTRICTIONS
Imports are subject to Import Declaration Forms. Additionally many goods are subject to pre-shipment inspection (see Special Certificates below).
EXCHANGE CONTROL
Imports subject to Import Declaration Forms (IDFs) issued by Kenya Revenue Authority.
BILL(S) OF LADING
No special regulations. May be made out “to order”.
CONSULAR INVOICE(S)
None.
CERTIFICATES OF ORIGIN
None.
COMMERCIAL INVOICES
No special form. Show full description of goods with value, gross and net weights and country of origin. Facsimile signatures are accepted by Customs. Customs require two copies.
SPECIAL CERTIFICATE(S)
Pre-shipment Inspection is required from Cotecna International Ltd, 3rd Floor, Holdsworth House, 65–73 Staines Road, Hounslow, Middlesex TW3 3HW, tel: 020 8277 7700, fax: 020 8277 7801, for all goods where the fob value is US$5,000 or over. Importers are required to present information for the Import Declaration Form (IDF) to Cotecna S.A. in Nairobi, where it will be checked and a serial number will be allocated. This serial number will consist of 10 characters — a letter “C” to denote Cotecna as the inspection company, followed by two digits for the year, two digits for the month and five digits in a sequential order.
Once the serial number has been issued, the IDF will be returned to the importer, even when the inspection is not required by reason of the FOB value being below US$5000. An IDF is required for all imports and will have to be presented by the importer at the time of clearing the imports.
To assist with reconciliation activity by the authorities, exporters and importers should, where possible, have one IDF and corresponding CRF per shipment.
Imports Exempt from Pre-Shipment Inspection
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1.
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Import shipments will total fob value equal to or below US$5000, except for:
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2.
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Goods which are duty free in the First Schedule of the Customs and Excise Act, except if excluded elsewhere in this schedule or included in Schedules Two, Three and Four
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3.
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Goods destined to approved Duty Free Stores
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4.
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Goods destined to approved EPZ enterprises
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5.
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Goods destined to approved MUB enterprises
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6.
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Unset precious stones and precious metals in bullion form
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7.
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Accompanied or unaccompanied personal baggage arriving by air
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8.
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Objects of art
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9.
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Explosives and pyrotechnic products
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10.
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Ammunition, weapons, implements of war imported by the Government of Kenya
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11.
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Live animals
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12.
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Seeds for sowing and live plants
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13.
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Vegetable plaiting material and other vegetable products in Chapter 14
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14.
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Current newspapers and periodicals (daily, weekly, monthly)
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15.
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Household personal effects including motor vehicles, provided motor vehicle qualifies for exempt entry under settler’s effects of returning resident entitlement
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16.
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Gifts by foreign governments or international organisations to recognised foundations, charities and humanitarian organisations
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17.
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Imports subject to full duty remission as aid-funded goods imported by the Government or an agent authorised by the Government
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18.
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Commercial samples with no commercial value
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19.
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Crude or refined petroleum or products
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20.
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Electric current
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21.
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Personal gifts sent by foreign residents to their relatives in Kenya for their personal use excluding motor vehicles
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22.
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Gifts and supplies to diplomatic and consular missions and to United Nations organisations, imported for their own needs
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23.
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Parcel post, not for trade purposes
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24.
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Urgent small shipments with FOB Value not exceeding US$ 10,000 imported through a licensed courier company
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25.
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Currency notes, coins, traveller’s cheques and bullion
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26.
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Aircraft catering stores for use in an airline owned or operated by a designed airline
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27.
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Equipment and parts for the rehabilitation of electric generation equipment exempted from duty under item 39 of part A of the Third Schedule of the Customs and Excise Act, or for emergency power generation for the supply of electricity to the national grid approved by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Energy.
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Contract and/or any other documents relevant to the sale should be sent to Cotecna International Ltd at their request. At least five working days’ notice of availability of goods for inspection should be given. After shipment, three copies of the final invoice showing fob values together with supplier’s/manufacturer’s invoice should be sent to Cotecna International Ltd. These should be accompanied by either (i) a non-negotiable copy of the numbered and dated clean on board Bill of Lading or Airway bill or (ii) written details of the proposed shipping details which should include the following information: port of loading, port of discharge (including Embakasi where applicable), name of vessel or flight details, date of shipment, number and description of packages (container details where applicable) and gross/nett weight and cube of shipment.
Cotecna will affix a special security label to one original of the exporter’s invoice for banking purposes rather than issue a Clean Report of Findings on security paper.
Other Certificates
A Certificate of Inspection is required for secondhand clothing intended for sale (import licence is also required for secondhand clothing whether for sale or distribution to charity); certificate of maturity for potable spirits. Fresh fruit must be accompanied by a certificate from a government officer of the exporting country, stating a percentage has been examined and found free from insect pests.
INSURANCE
Imports must be insured with companies in Kenya.
CONSULAR FEE(S)
None.
PACKING MATERIAL
Grass products prohibited except in closed cases.
PACKING LIST
Required by Customs authorities. Should show marks and number of packages, gross and net weights, measurements, and description of contents of each package. Not required if these details are shown on Com/I.
MARKING OF CASES
No regulations.
SHIPPING ARRANGEMENTS
P&O Nedlloyd; Mediterranean Shipping Company; Andrew Weir Shipping; West European Container Lines; Safmarine Container Lines; IML Marine Management Ltd, KNSL; CMA/CGM (UK); Hyundai Merchant Marine; Delmas UK; DOAL/Safmarine.
AIR FREIGHT
Kenya Airways; British Airways World Cargo; Air France; Air Mauritius; Emirates SkyCargo; Alitalia; Gulf Air Cargo; KLM; Martinair; Pakistan International Airlines; Saudia; South African Airways; Ethiopian Airlines.
POSTAL PARCELS
Com/I must be endorsed and parcel marked on address side “Invoice enclosed” or with a consignment of parcels must be enclosed in parcel No. 1 and the remaining parcels endorsed “Invoice enclosed in parcel No. 1”. Parcels should be strongly packed preferably in water-proof material.
SAMPLES
Samples of no commercial value may be imported duty-free, otherwise foregoing regulations apply.
BANK(S)
Central Bank of Kenya; Standard Chartered Bank; Barclays Bank Kenya; The National Bank of Kenya; The Commercial Bank of Africa; Kenya Commercial Bank; Stanbic Bank Kenya.
DUTIES
Assessed at specific or ad valorem CIF tariff. Tariff based on the Harmonised System (HS) (see Customs Nomenclatures in Terminology).
UK REGULATIONS
Export Licences required for goods in the Prohibition List. See Part I in Export of Goods (Control) Order 1994 under Export Control Legislation).
Customs Pre-entry necessary for goods exported under Licence (other than Open General Licence), or otherwise under Customs control. See Pre-entry in Customs Entry under Customs Procedures).
Express Point Ltd
Freight forwarder
Len Starling
0118 986 0283
0118 931 3441
sales@expresspoint.co.uk
www.expresspoint.co.uk
Howick, Shinfield Road, Reading RG2 9BE
Mombasa, Nairobi
Weekly
FWD Freight Services Ltd
Freight forwarder
Tim Fillingham
0151 236 2006
0151 236 1317
sales@fwd-freight.co.uk
2nd Floor, 30–32 Pall Mall, Liverpool L3 6AL
Mombasa, Nairobi and all other major towns and cities
Weekly
This information was taken from Croner's Reference Book for Exporters.
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