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Land transfer costs in Kenya

Stamp duty on a transfer of land on sale in Kenya is 4% of the consideration or value where the property is in a municipality (Stamp Duty Act, Cap. 480, Schedule item 12A) and 2% elsewhere (item 11). The Act draws the line by location, not by citizenship or by residential or commercial use. A transfer between husband and wife pays nil (item 12B), a first-time home owner buying under an affordable housing scheme is exempt (s.117(1)(la)), and a gift of land is charged like a sale at the value of the property. The Government Valuer may assess the value, and any additional duty is due within 21 days of the notice (s.10A). The Land Registration (General) Regulations, 2017 charge KES 1,000 for an official search, KES 1,000 to register a transfer and KES 2,500 for a certificate of title or lease. Checked on Kenya Law on 31 October 2026.

Checked: 31 October 2026, against official sources onlyRows: 14Licence: CC BY 4.0How to citeDownload CSV
Gaps in this table: Land Control Board consent, survey, valuation and advocates’ fees and capital gains tax are outside this table, and so are any charges Ardhisasa adds at payment. The Land Registry fees come from the 2024 consolidation of the Regulations; the date each fee took effect is not given.
Stamp duty on a transfer on sale of immovable property situated in a municipality

Item 12A bands: up to KES 500 = KES 20; up to 1,000 = 40; up to 1,500 = 60; up to 2,000 = 80; then KES 40 for every KES 1,000 or part above KES 2,000. Item 12A in the consolidation names no payer; item 11 (same instrument outside a municipality) names the purchaser or transferee. The Act draws the line by location (municipality), not by citizenship or residential/commercial use. Debts secured by mortgage or charge are excluded from item 12A.

4% of the consideration or value (KES 40 per KES 1,000 or part above KES 2,000)Stamp Duty Act (Cap. 480) Schedule item 12A; ss.43-52kenyalaw.org Checked 31 October 2026
Stamp duty on a transfer on sale of immovable property situated outside a municipality

Item 11 bands: up to KES 500 = KES 10; up to 1,000 = 20; up to 1,500 = 30; up to 2,000 = 40; then KES 20 for every KES 1,000 or part above KES 2,000. Payable by the purchaser or transferee. Item 11 covers any property other than stock, marketable securities and immovable property charged under item 12A.

2% of the consideration or value (KES 20 per KES 1,000 or part above KES 2,000)Stamp Duty Act (Cap. 480) Schedule item 11; ss.43-52kenyalaw.org Checked 31 October 2026
Stamp duty on a conveyance or transfer of real property between husband and wife

Schedule item 12B reads 'Nil'.

KES 0 per instrumentStamp Duty Act (Cap. 480) Schedule item 12Bkenyalaw.org Checked 31 October 2026
Stamp duty on the purchase of a house by a first-time home owner under an affordable housing scheme

Exempt under s.117(1)(la). The exemption is limited to purchases under an affordable housing scheme; it is not a general first-home exemption.

KES 0 exemptionStamp Duty Act (Cap. 480) s.117(1)(la)kenyalaw.org Checked 31 October 2026
Gift of land (voluntary disposition inter vivos)

Charged as if it were a transfer on sale, using the value of the property in place of a price (so 4% in a municipality, 2% elsewhere). s.52(2) exempts gifts to certain public-benefit bodies and charitable trusts; transfers between spouses are nil under item 12B.

Rule (see notes)Stamp Duty Act (Cap. 480) s.52kenyalaw.org Checked 31 October 2026
Valuation of the property by the Government Valuer and demand for additional duty

The Collector refers transfers on sale of immovable property to the Chief Government Valuer (or a valuer he appoints) to find the open market value at the date of transfer. Any additional duty is demanded by written notice and must be paid within 21 days; a caveat or restriction is registered against the title until then. Also applies to gifts (s.52(1)) and partitions.

21 days to pay additional duty after noticeStamp Duty Act (Cap. 480) s.10Akenyalaw.org Checked 31 October 2026
Penalty for stamping a transfer out of time

Payable with the unpaid duty when the Collector gives leave to stamp late. Capped at 100% of the principal duty outstanding. The Collector may remit up to KES 1.5 million of penalty; more needs the Cabinet Secretary's approval.

5% of the duty per 3 months or part of 3 months late (KES 1 per KES 20 of duty)Stamp Duty Act (Cap. 480) s.20(2)kenyalaw.org Checked 31 October 2026
Official search of the land register

Seventh Schedule: 'Application for official search under section 34 of the Act (online and manual)'. Read from the Kenya Law consolidation dated 25 April 2024 ('latest version' on the check date), which includes L.N. 36 of 2024 and L.N. 77 of 2024. The amending notices themselves are scanned PDFs and were not read, so the date each figure took effect is not given.

KES 1,000 per applicationLand Registration Act, 2012 (No. 3 of 2012); Land Registration (General) Regulations, 2017 (L.N. 278 of 2017) r.97(1) and Seventh Schedule, as amended by L.N. 36 of 2024 and L.N. 77 of 2024; Land Registration Act s.34kenyalaw.org Checked 31 October 2026
Registration of a document or instrument (e.g. a transfer)

Seventh Schedule: 'Application for registration of documents/instruments in the prescribed forms and any other whose forms are not prescribed'. Stamp duty is separate and must be paid before registration (Stamp Duty Act s.19(2)). Read from the Kenya Law consolidation dated 25 April 2024 ('latest version' on the check date), which includes L.N. 36 of 2024 and L.N. 77 of 2024. The amending notices themselves are scanned PDFs and were not read, so the date each figure took effect is not given.

KES 1,000 per document or instrumentLand Registration Act, 2012 (No. 3 of 2012); Land Registration (General) Regulations, 2017 (L.N. 278 of 2017) r.97(1) and Seventh Schedule, as amended by L.N. 36 of 2024 and L.N. 77 of 2024kenyalaw.org Checked 31 October 2026
Issuance of a certificate of title or certificate of lease

Seventh Schedule line 'Issuance of certificate of title or certificate of lease'. Read from the Kenya Law consolidation dated 25 April 2024 ('latest version' on the check date), which includes L.N. 36 of 2024 and L.N. 77 of 2024. The amending notices themselves are scanned PDFs and were not read, so the date each figure took effect is not given.

KES 2,500 per certificateLand Registration Act, 2012 (No. 3 of 2012); Land Registration (General) Regulations, 2017 (L.N. 278 of 2017) r.97(1) and Seventh Schedule, as amended by L.N. 36 of 2024 and L.N. 77 of 2024kenyalaw.org Checked 31 October 2026
Resubmission of a document previously rejected for an error or a missing prerequisite

Seventh Schedule. Read from the Kenya Law consolidation dated 25 April 2024 ('latest version' on the check date), which includes L.N. 36 of 2024 and L.N. 77 of 2024. The amending notices themselves are scanned PDFs and were not read, so the date each figure took effect is not given.

KES 1,000 per document rejectedLand Registration Act, 2012 (No. 3 of 2012); Land Registration (General) Regulations, 2017 (L.N. 278 of 2017) r.97(1) and Seventh Schedule, as amended by L.N. 36 of 2024 and L.N. 77 of 2024kenyalaw.org Checked 31 October 2026
Placement of a caution or restriction (other than by the Land Registrar or a government entity)

Seventh Schedule, under s.71 of the Land Registration Act. Read from the Kenya Law consolidation dated 25 April 2024 ('latest version' on the check date), which includes L.N. 36 of 2024 and L.N. 77 of 2024. The amending notices themselves are scanned PDFs and were not read, so the date each figure took effect is not given.

KES 1,000 per applicationLand Registration Act, 2012 (No. 3 of 2012); Land Registration (General) Regulations, 2017 (L.N. 278 of 2017) r.97(1) and Seventh Schedule, as amended by L.N. 36 of 2024 and L.N. 77 of 2024; Land Registration Act s.71kenyalaw.org Checked 31 October 2026
Replacement of title

Seventh Schedule. Read from the Kenya Law consolidation dated 25 April 2024 ('latest version' on the check date), which includes L.N. 36 of 2024 and L.N. 77 of 2024. The amending notices themselves are scanned PDFs and were not read, so the date each figure took effect is not given.

KES 2,500 per titleLand Registration Act, 2012 (No. 3 of 2012); Land Registration (General) Regulations, 2017 (L.N. 278 of 2017) r.97(1) and Seventh Schedule, as amended by L.N. 36 of 2024 and L.N. 77 of 2024kenyalaw.org Checked 31 October 2026
Value used where an instrument states no consideration

Regulation 98: where fees are based on value and no consideration is expressed in the instrument, the value for assessing stamp duty is the estimated market value of the property. Regulation 97(2): no registration fees for dealings in favour of the National or a County Government or a public body. Read from the Kenya Law consolidation dated 25 April 2024 ('latest version' on the check date), which includes L.N. 36 of 2024 and L.N. 77 of 2024. The amending notices themselves are scanned PDFs and were not read, so the date each figure took effect is not given.

Rule (see notes)Land Registration (General) Regulations, 2017 (L.N. 278 of 2017) rr.97(2) and 98kenyalaw.org Checked 31 October 2026

How the table was checked

Each row was compiled from the official source linked next to it (legislation, regulations or the registry’s own fee schedule) and then checked a second time, row by row, against the same source. Government fees only: agent, lawyer and notary fees are not included. Fees change, so open the official source before you file.

  • "Municipality" is not defined in the parts of Cap. 480 that were read. Whether a given parcel counts as in a municipality is decided by the Collector of Stamp Duties; this table does not list areas.
  • Item 12A's "persons liable" column is blank in the consolidation; item 11 names the purchaser or transferee.
  • The Seventh Schedule figures are from the 2024 consolidation. L.N. 36 of 2024 and L.N. 77 of 2024 are scanned PDFs on Kenya Law (no text layer), and the 31 Dec 2022 version of the Regulations is not viewable there, so the table does not say which fees changed in 2024 or from what.
  • The Ministry of Lands site (lands.go.ke) has no fee page we could find, and ardhisasa.lands.go.ke did not respond on the check date, so Ardhisasa's own fee display was not checked. Ardhisasa may add its own convenience charges; not included.
  • Land Control Board consent fees (Land Control Act), survey fees, valuation fees, advocates' fees and capital gains tax are outside this table.
  • Lease stamp duty (item 21) is in tenancy_stamp_duty_2026; premiums on leases are charged as a conveyance on sale under s.57, at the item 11 / 12A rates in this table.

How to cite

Attribution (CC BY 4.0)

“Land transfer costs in Kenya” by Forms Legal, https://forms-legal.com/facts/kenya-land-transfer-costs. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

BibTeX
@misc{formslegal_kenya_land_transfer_costs,
  author       = {{Forms Legal}},
  title        = {Land transfer costs in Kenya},
  year         = {2026},
  publisher    = {Forms Legal},
  url          = {https://forms-legal.com/facts/kenya-land-transfer-costs},
  howpublished = {\url{https://forms-legal.com/facts/kenya-land-transfer-costs}},
  note         = {Dataset. Licensed under CC BY 4.0}
}

Link to a single row with its anchor (click the fee name to get it), or use the “Copy citation” button in the row. The table was added on 31 October 2026 and is not yet part of the DOI-archived release of the Forms Legal fact tables, so cite this page and its check date. Licence: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International.

Where official sources disagree

Rules change: dated changes to the law in Kenya are listed in the legal changes log.

Related guides

Reference data, not legal advice. Forms Legal is not a law firm.