To register a business entity, you will need to first have an E-Citizen Account. Every Kenyan citizen with a National Identity Card, Foreign Residents with a valid foreigner certificate or Business entities registered in Kenya can open an E-Citizen account.
Once you have registered an E-citizen account, log in to your account then proceed to the Department indicated as “Business Registration Service.”
The following are various entities that once can register:
Once you have identified which business entity you want to register, check for the availability of the name that you intend to register, conduct a Name Search by first logging into E-Citizen portal. Choose the business entity you want to register and then proceed to make an application for the name that you intend to register. If the name is available for registration, it will be reserved for 30 days and can be extended for another 30 days. If the name is not available, the applicant will be required to a conduct a fresh name search.
It costs Kshs. 150/= for each name search which is paid via well outlined procedures as per the payment.
To register a Business Name, log into your E-Citizen account. Then click on MY APPLICATIONS and there will be link prompting you to register the Business Name. Click on it and you will be required to fill in the details as per the webpage fields. The details include; the name(s) of the partner(s)/proprietor(s), ID Number, KRA PIN Number, email address, mobile number, the physical address on the Business Name and the nature of the business. Each of the partner(s)/proprietor(s) will be required to attach a copy of their KRA PIN(s) and a passport photo(s).
Once you have filled in all the details, the system will generate a form called Statement of Particulars BN/2 that you will be required to download and print. Once printed the form must be signed by each partner/proprietor and then scanned and re-uploaded back onto the system. You will then be required to pay Kshs. 850/= via well-outlined procedure as per payment page and submit.
The application will be processed from our back end and within 24 hours, you will log into the system and download the Certificate of Registration.
To register a company, log into your E-citizen account, click on the reserved name and there will be link prompting you to register the company. You will be required to fill in the following:
Once you have filed the necessary fields, you will be required to download the system generated forms and to sign them then upload the signed forms in the ecitizen system. You will then be required to pay Kshs. 10,650 /= via well outlined procedures as per the payment then click the SUBMIT button.
The application will be processed from our back end within 3-5 working days. You will log onto the E-citizen system and download the Certificate of Registration and Status Report (formally referred to as CR12).
To register a Limited Liability Partnership (LLP), log into your E-Citizen account, click on the reserved name and there will be link prompting you to register the LLP. Click on it and you will be required to fill in the details on the link. The details include; the name(s) of the partner, ID Number, KRA PIN Number, email address, mobile number, the physical address of the LLP and the nature of the business. Each of the partners/proprietors will be required to attach a copy of their KRA PINs and a passport photo.
Once you have filled in all the details, the system will generate a form called Statement of Particulars (LLP1) which you will be required to download and print. Once printed, the form should be signed by each partner and then upload the signed form back onto the system. You will then be required to pay Kshs. 25,000/= via well-outlined procedures as per the payment and then submit the application.
The application will be processed from our back end and within 1-2 working days, you will log onto the E-citizen system and download the Certificate of Registration.
Any individual intending to be a director of a company can log in to their E-Citizen account and lodge an application for the registration of a company on his/her behalf and that of the co-directors. The applicant must be keen on the details and the mandatory fields that need to be filled.
An advocate of the High Court of Kenya who is registered with the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) or a Company Secretary registered by the Institute of Certified Public Secretaries (ICPSK).
Each of the directors and shareholders of a company should attach a scanned copy of the directors or shareholders Kenyan National Identity Card or a valid Passport, Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) Personal Identification Number (PIN) (for citizens and residents) and a scanned passport photo.
For an individual who is not a resident in Kenya, they must attach a scanned copy of their passport bio data page and a passport photo.
Yes, an individual can register a single member company as provided under Section 103 of the Companies Act 2015.
Section 128(1) of the Companies Act 2015, provides that a private company is required to have at least one director who must be a natural person. There is no limit to the number of directors but the maximum number of shareholders is 50 for private company.
No, Section 131 (1) of the Companies Act 2015, a person who has not attained the age of eighteen years cannot be appointed as a director.
Link a business is a feature that seeks to eliminate the issue of missing files and conveyancing of wrong information to the Registrar. This is a free service.
Link a business further enables the company owner to make sure that the company complies with law such as filing of Annual Returns and make any necessary changes in the company without physically visiting the company registry.
The "link business" option requires clients to provide details for their business entities and we, in turn, verify the details against the data that we have. This essentially means that only the proprietor, directors/shareholders or a Certified Company Secretary (CPS) can utilize the "link business" option.
The procedure is as follows
NB!! Should your company be a Public limited company you may omit the shareholders information. Enter only Director and Director-shareholder details.
NB!! It is recommended that you ensure your manual records of registration held at the company registry are up to date prior to linking the business as per your current company status. This is to facilitate prompt action by our backend team
In order to effect changes, you have to use the “LINK BUSINESS” feature on the eCitizen portal.
Currently, Annual Returns are filed online. You will be required to log into your E-citizen account. If you registered the company online, you will click on the company name then click on VIEW button. You will be directed to a webpage where you click on the MAINTAIN A COMPANY icon then you click on ANNUAL RETURNS. You will be able to upload the ANNUAL RETURNS (Form Cr 29) then click SUBMIT button. However, if you registered your company manually, you will be required first to link the business and then follow the above cited procedure.
Currently, Annual Returns are filed online. You will be required to log into your E-citizen account. If you registered the company online, you will click on the company name then click on VIEW button. You will be directed to a webpage where you click on the MAINTAIN A COMPANY icon then you click on ANNUAL RETURNS. You will be able to upload the ANNUAL RETURNS (Form Cr 29) then click SUBMIT button. However, if you registered your company manually, you will be required first to link the business and then follow the above cited procedure.
No, all payments are made through the well outlined procedures on the e-citizen payment gateway.
In order to obtain a Status Report (CR12) one must link a business then the status report (CR12) will be automatically generated by the system.
An Individual submitting a request for a file perusal must have an E-citizen account. The type of account could either be: