New Immigrants

Citizenship by Birth

Citizenship is granted to a person who is a citizen by birth if on the day of the person’s birth, whether the person is born in Kenya or not, either the mother or father of the person is a Kenyan citizen.

Children born abroad and who have at least one parent with Kenyan citizenship, are considered Kenyan citizens by birth.

Citizenship by Marriage

Citizenship is granted to a person who has been married to a citizen of Kenya for at least seven years.

Stateless Persons

Citizenship is granted to a person who does not have an enforceable claim to the citizenship of any recognized state and has been living in Kenya for a continuous period since 12th December 1963 when Kenya gained independence.

The person is deemed to have been lawfully resident and may, on application be eligible to be registered as a citizen of Kenya if that person meets the requirements prescribed by the Kenyan Law to be registered.

Dual Citizenship

Citizenship is granted to a citizen of  Kenya by birth who acquires the citizenship of another country and would prefer to retain the citizenship of Kenya subject to the provisions prescribed in the Constitution of Kenya.

Endorsement

Granted when a passport of any other country that is held by a dual citizen may be endorsed to indicate that the holder is a citizen of Kenya.

A dual citizen whose passport from another country has been endorsed may use the passport to enter or exit Kenya and is exempted from visa, pass or permit requirements.

Regain Citizenship

Citizenship is granted to a person who was a citizen of Kenya by birth and who ceased to be a citizen of Kenya because he or she acquired the citizenship of another country and may apply to regain Kenyan citizenship.

Widows and Widowers

A foreign national who has been married to a Kenyan citizen who but for the death of the Kenyan citizen would have been entitled, after seven years, to be registered as a citizen of Kenya.

A foreign national is eligible for registration as a citizen on an application upon expiry of the seven years.

Lawful Residents

Citizenship is granted to a person who has attained the age of majority and capacity and has been a lawful resident in Kenya for at least seven years.

Children/Adopted Children

Citizenship is granted to a child of a citizen by registration who was born before the parent acquired citizenship.

An application can be made by the parent or legal guardian to be registered as a Kenya Citizen upon producing requisite documents conferring Kenyan Citizenship to any of the parents, the child's birth certificate, and proof of lawful residence of the child in Kenya.

Persons with Disability

Citizenship is granted to a child or person with a disability dependent on any biological parent or legal guardian who is a citizen of Kenya by registration.

The application can be made by the parent or legal guardian to be registered as a Kenya Citizen upon producing requisite documents conferring Kenyan citizenship to any of the parents or the legal guardian, the child’s or the person with a disability’s birth certificate and proof of lawful residence of the child or person with a disability in Kenya.

Migrants

Citizenship is granted to a person who voluntarily migrated into Kenya before the 12th of December 1963, and has been continuously living in Kenya since then.

To be eligible to be registered as a citizen of Kenya a person is required to meet the following conditions:-

• A person does not hold a passport or any identification document of any other country.
• A person has adequate knowledge of Kiswahili or a local dialect.
• A person has not been convicted of an offense and sentenced to imprisonment for a term of three years or longer.
• A person intends upon registration as a citizen to continue permanently residing in Kenya or maintain a close and continuing association with Kenya.
• A person understands the rights and duties of a Kenyan citizen.

Descendants of Stateless Persons and Migrants

Citizenship is granted to a person who has attained the age of eighteen years and whose parents are or in the case of deceased parents were eligible to be registered as Kenyan citizens.

The person can make an application and be registered as a citizen of Kenya if:-

• The person was born in Kenya and has been continuously living in Kenya since birth.
• The person does not hold and has never held a passport or identification documents from any other country.
• The person understands and speaks Kiswahili or a local dialect.
• The person has not been convicted of an offense and sentenced to imprisonment for a term of three years or longer.
• The person intends upon registration as a citizen to continue permanently residing in Kenya or maintain a close and continuing association with Kenya.
• The person understands the rights and duties of a Kenyan citizen.

Voluntary Renunciation of Kenya Citizenship

Registration is granted to any citizen who renounces his or her Kenya citizenship and shall immediately surrender all documents identifying them as a citizen to the relevant Government agency.