Kenya's New Import Documentation Rules: What the Finance Act 2026 Requires of Importers

• The Finance Act, 2026 was assented to on 23 June 2026. Most provisions took effect on 1 July 2026. The import documentation rules started on 1 September 2026, and the new individual filing deadline starts on 1 January 2027.

• Section 23B requires anyone importing, or claiming to have imported, goods to obtain an export declaration, export entry, customs export certificate or equivalent customs document from the country of export.

• The document must show the exporter, importer, description and quantity of goods, value, tariff classification and country of export, together with identifying details of the export.

• Records must be kept for five years from importation and produced to the Commissioner on request.

• Without them, KRA may reject claims on value, origin, cost or ownership, determine customs values and tax liabilities on available information, and impose administrative penalties.

• The rule was added late. It did not appear in the Finance Bill, 2026, and it has already caused clearance friction that KRA has publicly acknowledged.

• Importers should act now: collect export documents for every shipment since September, build the requirement into supplier contracts, and reconcile export and import data before filing.

The Finance Act, 2026 received presidential assent on 23 June 2026 and was published in the Kenya Gazette on 26 June 2026. It amends the Income Tax Act, the VAT Act, the Tax Procedures Act, the Excise Duty Act, the Miscellaneous Fees and Levies Act and several other statutes. It does not come into force on a single day:

The two-month deferral for the import rule gave importers, suppliers and clearing agents a short window to adjust. That window has closed. Every consignment imported since 1 September 2026 falls under the new regime.

The obligation sits in a new Section 23B of the Tax Procedures Act, 2015. It applies to every person who imports goods into Kenya, and to anyone who claims to have imported them. That second limb matters. It appears to reach anyone whose tax position rests on an import, such as a claim for a deduction, relief or refund, and not only the importer of record.

The document. The importer must obtain and retain one of the following, issued by the competent authority in the country of export:

• an export declaration;

• an export entry;

• a customs export certificate; or

• another equivalent customs document.

The document is evidence that the goods were lawfully exported from the country of export. A commercial invoice, packing list or bill of lading issued by the supplier does not meet the requirement, because the document must come from the exporting country's customs authority.

What it must show. Taking KRA's guidance together with published analyses of the Act, the document should carry:

Retention and production. The documents must be kept for five years from the date of importation and produced to the Commissioner on request. The obligation therefore survives clearance: it will be tested in post-clearance audits and objections, not only at the port.

Waiver and regulations. The Commissioner may waive the requirement where the country of export does not issue export declarations for the category of goods concerned. The Cabinet Secretary may make regulations prescribing the form of export declarations and identifying which equivalent documents are acceptable.

Not in the Bill. The export declaration regime did not appear in the Finance Bill, 2026. It was introduced during the legislative process and enacted in section 43 of the Act. Importers and advisers who prepared on the basis of the Bill would have found no trace of it. It arrived as new compliance machinery, alongside other late additions such as KRA's power to recover non-tax fees and levies as if they were tax.

The policy aim. KRA says the measure strengthens verification of imported goods by requiring documentary evidence that they were lawfully exported from the country of origin or export. In practice, the export record gives KRA an independent, government-issued reference to compare against the import declaration. Differences in value, quantity or tariff classification between the two become visible. Commentators read the measure as aimed squarely at undervaluation and misdeclaration.

A layered customs framework. The rule sits alongside the Certificate of Origin requirement in Section 44A of the Tax Procedures Act. Other Finance Act changes point the same way. The Act now requires the East African Community Customs Management Act valuation rules to be used when valuing imports for the Import Declaration Fee, Railway Development Levy and other miscellaneous fees. Taken together, these changes tighten the link between documentation, valuation and every charge levied on imports.

Early friction. Within a week of commencement, KRA publicly acknowledged concerns from the Kenya International Freight and Warehousing Association, clearing agents, motor vehicle dealers and other stakeholders about cargo clearance. KRA's response was clear on the legal position: the requirement is anchored in Section 23B, and the authority is bound to administer it. It committed to working with stakeholders to limit unnecessary disruption to legitimate trade.

The rule's real force lies in what happens to an importer's tax position when a valid export document cannot be produced. In that case the Commissioner may:

1. Reject claims about the importation, value, origin, cost or ownership of the goods.

2. Determine the position independently. This covers customs values, tax liabilities and claims for deductions, exemptions, refunds or reliefs, based on whatever information is available to KRA.

3. Impose administrative penalties.

The second power carries the greatest practical risk. Without an export document, an importer loses its best independent evidence that the declared transaction value is genuine. KRA can then value the goods on the information it holds. Across the five-year retention window, the consequences reach well beyond duty:

The burden of proof in Kenyan tax disputes generally rests on the taxpayer. An importer who cannot produce the prescribed document will therefore find it hard to displace a KRA valuation on objection or appeal. The waiver for countries that do not issue export declarations is the main safety valve, and it is exercised by the Commissioner, not claimed as of right.

Importers: close the September gap now. Every consignment imported since 1 September 2026 needs an export document. Importers should identify all shipments since that date and request the missing documents from suppliers while the records are still easy to obtain. Chasing them in a post-clearance audit years later will be much harder.

Build the requirement into supply contracts. Purchase orders and supply agreements should oblige the supplier or its forwarder to provide the export declaration, or its equivalent, with each shipment. The document should carry the particulars listed above and match the Kenyan import entry. Where a supplier cannot comply, that is a commercial risk to price in or a reason to change supplier.

Verify before filing. Check that the value, quantity, description and tariff classification on the export document are consistent with the import declaration. Unexplained differences are exactly what the regime is designed to expose.

Map the waiver cases. Establish whether each country of export issues export declarations for the goods concerned. Where it does not, document that fact and engage the Commissioner on the waiver early rather than at audit.

Keep five years of retrievable records. Link each export document to its import entry, commercial invoice and payment records in a system that can produce them on request.

Clearing agents and freight forwarders. Agents are at the front line of clearance and of the early delays. They should agree with clients who is responsible for obtaining the documents, and flag gaps before goods arrive rather than at the port.

Watch for regulations and KRA guidance. Cabinet Secretary regulations on the form of export declarations and acceptable equivalents, together with further KRA operational guidance, will shape how strictly the rule is applied.