Starting a business in Kenya - No $100.000 available

Kajin wrote:

Hello,

I'm looking to start a business in Kenya. I read that when applying for a work permit, you will need to have a bank account with a balance of $100.000. I don't have this amount of money available. Does this mean it is a no go or are there other ways to realize the business?

Basically what I'm trying to accomplish is to work with local woodworkers and to be able to give them directions regarding the production process and to do quality control. I also want to be able to bring materials needed for the production process (e.g. tools, samples) when traveling to Kenya.

In the long run, I would like to move to Kenya. Is there a way to realize the organization and to be able to move to Kenya later on? Does anyone have any knowledge about this? When I take the information that I found on the internet it seems to be impossible, but I can hardly believe this seeing that many people who have moved to Kenya seemingly not fulfilling the conditions.

This is if you want to have a residence permit to run a business which is valid for 1 year. The 100.000USD you need to have you can take out once the permit has been approved. Otherwise you can register a business, there are agencies who are doing so, that will cost you about 1400 USD but you are not allowed to stay as resident in Kenya only to do the business remotely as from your country of origin.

You can also come with Business Visa to Kenya, which is valid for 3 Month but you are not allowed to work only to go and give instructions and hold meetings and do some business arrangements. If you have actually already been in Kenya with 4 visas, you can apply in Kenya, so I heard, for a 1 year business visa.

I had been searching for a solution to remain in Kenya now since I met my wife in 2018 but there is no other way if you want to earn money, speak work or do business.

If you have someone that would employ you, you can get a working permit for about 400.000 KES and still you need a bond of 100.000 KES.

This pattern I see in most African countries and in East Africa it is very similar even in cost of obtaining, so it is for Nigeria, Ghana.

Because of that issue, I am stranded in my country now for 18 Months without my wife, she is in Kenya.
For me if the solution would be more simple, I rather would move to Kenya to stay there with my wife and children then struggling to pay bills in my country, pay major bills in Kenya and trying to get the funds for 4 plane tickets for my wife and Kids to come.

Europe, Iceland or Germany, that is what I know, once you are married to a foreigner he/she has the right to apply for family reunion visa, cost of application per adult is $80 and a bond of $400 for the family, and my wife can choose here to work or do business as she please.

Africa, it looks to me, they make things very difficult but on the other hand, westerners don't make it easy for them as well, as individual that is

Kajin,
The process is basically as described above.  It is easy to register a business and costs Kes 10650 ($100) to register a private limited company and Kes 950 to register a business name.  If you involve a lawyer, then it will be more, but am not sure where the $1400, stated above comes from.

If you register a company, your company will be able to trade, but you will not be able to work within it in any capacity.  This is where the Class G Permit is needed and to qualify for one, you need a minimum $100,000. 

This permit would allow you to work within your company for 2 years, in Kenya.  Part of the application process involves presenting your business/investment proposals and these must be for the benefit of Kenya - personally, I am not convinced that the idea of working with local woodworkers in the way described is an idea that will fly, as Kenya is full of highly skilled woodworkers who produce some high quality products.

The Class G permit may seem unfair, but the idea behind it is to attract serious investors.  Set the financial bar too low and Kenya will be flooded by foreigners starting small businesses and forcing out Kenyans.  What the Class G Permit is not aimed at are foreigners whose primary goal is to settle in Kenya, rather than invest in it.

Unfortunately, it has recently become increasingly challenging to obtain any type of work permit, mainly because after years of corruption and work permits handed out in return for bribes, the government has woken up to the fact that there are many skilled, yet unemployed Kenyan workers and foreign workers cost more.

One of the easiest permits to obtain may be the Class K, if you are over 35 and have an income of $24,000 per year or more from sources not from work in Kenya.

Longonot62 wrote:

Kajin,
The process is basically as described above.  It is easy to register a business and costs Kes 10650 ($100) to register a private limited company and Kes 950 to register a business name.  If you involve a lawyer, then it will be more, but am not sure where the $1400, stated above comes from.

The $1400 is if you use an agency who does all the work, registering a business, open bank account etc. cost included in it. See link below they can help

If he knows how to fill out all the forms on his own and has access to the Kenyan citizen Portal it is cheaper but he has to do all the running on his own, finding a Bank that will do open a Bank account for him without the adequate $100.000 then it is good.

Please check East Africa Business Consultants

Have been there but changed my mind due to the $100.000

Price Table

HalliHuberts: You don't need $100,000 to open a Kenyan bank account, just the minimum opening balance - maybe Kes 10,000 or 20,000 and relevant ID's etc. 

The $100,000 solely relates to the cash needed for the permit and is nothing to do with the banking system.

The agency doesn't do much that you cannot do yourself and charges way too much - Kes 8000 plus VAT to register a company name that costs Kes 950 to do yourself and it takes a day.  There is no way I would pay an agency Kes 7050 to do this for me.

Thank you for the information. I did a lot of research into these work permits, didn't even know there is a business visa. I'll look into that, maybe it's enough to make it work.

Longonot62 wrote:

Kajin,
The process is basically as described above.  It is easy to register a business and costs Kes 10650 ($100) to register a private limited company and Kes 950 to register a business name.  If you involve a lawyer, then it will be more, but am not sure where the $1400, stated above comes from.

If you register a company, your company will be able to trade, but you will not be able to work within it in any capacity.  This is where the Class G Permit is needed and to qualify for one, you need a minimum $100,000.

What does it mean? You are able to trade but not to work? Where do I find the definition that is being used in this context?

HalliHuberts wrote:

Hello,

I had been searching for a solution to remain in Kenya now since I met my wife in 2018 but there is no other way if you want to earn money, speak work or do business.

I believe you should be able to request a dependant pass if you are married?

<<What does it mean? You are able to trade but not to work?>>

What I mean is that the business can operate, for example with a Kenyan business partner, running it day to day but you would not be permitted to carry out any work at all in connection with the operation of the company, while you are in Kenya, unless you have a work permit.

Longonot62 wrote:

HalliHuberts: You don't need $100,000 to open a Kenyan bank account, just the minimum opening balance - maybe Kes 10,000 or 20,000 and relevant ID's etc. 

The $100,000 solely relates to the cash needed for the permit and is nothing to do with the banking system.

The agency doesn't do much that you cannot do yourself and charges way too much - Kes 8000 plus VAT to register a company name that costs Kes 950 to do yourself and it takes a day.  There is no way I would pay an agency Kes 7050 to do this for me.

I am aware of it, now I want to register a business, but I am not in Kenya, how do I do it from here, how do I pay if I do not have m-pesa to pay?

What individual has a $100.000 USD available, at hand that is?
Kenya did had potential before the crises of Covid, still may have, but I rather, so I start to think, find me $10 or $20.000 and do business in my own country, you can even go lower than $10k.

I am married to a Kenyan, and she will be soon coming to my country, on Family-Reunion Permit that cost $80, and she is allowed to work or do business as she is an indigenous person and does not have to present such a ridiculous $100.000 USD

Kenyans by themselves do not even have such a huge amount when they start off a small business and want to employ people. They may start off with 20k (KES) maybe 100k (KES), and if they have more, at most 500k Kenyan shillings.

Why does Kenya not have a Family Reunion Visa? Does Kenya not love families or do they love money over family?
I opened a business for my wife in Kenya for 50.000 kes ($5000 USD about) she did not need 100.000 USD

The dependent pass was denied, definition she did not earn enough, but never mentioned what is enough?

Longonot62 wrote:

HalliHuberts: You don't need $100,000 to open a Kenyan bank account, just the minimum opening balance - maybe Kes 10,000 or 20,000 and relevant ID's etc. 

The $100,000 solely relates to the cash needed for the permit and is nothing to do with the banking system.

The agency doesn't do much that you cannot do yourself and charges way too much - Kes 8000 plus VAT to register a company name that costs Kes 950 to do yourself and it takes a day.  There is no way I would pay an agency Kes 7050 to do this for me.

But to apply for that business permit since Kenya has no Family Reunion permit, I would need that $100.000 don't I?
If you go through all the permits, except the K for retired people who must have at least $24k a year, there is a huge amount of Money asked.

For me, I just wanted to stay with my wife in Kenya because she loves her country and I love her, but the only way for her and me is, she will have to relocate with our children to Iceland, because Iceland values family more than the money needed for to "qualify for business permit" it is automatically in that family reunion

Kajin wrote:

Thank you for the information. I did a lot of research into these work permits, didn't even know there is a business visa. I'll look into that, maybe it's enough to make it work.

Longonot62 wrote:

Kajin,
The process is basically as described above.  It is easy to register a business and costs Kes 10650 ($100) to register a private limited company and Kes 950 to register a business name.  If you involve a lawyer, then it will be more, but am not sure where the $1400, stated above comes from.

If you register a company, your company will be able to trade, but you will not be able to work within it in any capacity.  This is where the Class G Permit is needed and to qualify for one, you need a minimum $100,000.

What does it mean? You are able to trade but not to work? Where do I find the definition that is being used in this context?

HalliHuberts wrote:

Hello,

I had been searching for a solution to remain in Kenya now since I met my wife in 2018 but there is no other way if you want to earn money, speak work or do business.

I believe you should be able to request a dependant pass if you are married?

Dependant pass is a pass for handycapped spouses who are happy to be served and don't want to work to put food on the tabel.
Would it allow me to run a registered coffee shop where I brew coffee, bake cakes and cookies, run a fast food chain?
If so, I come and do that business, because after my calculation I won't need more to invest than 120k kes.
Brewing coffee and baking cake, and trade it for money, is this called trade or work and trade?
What about photography school? Web-Design school? Photo-design school? being a nutrition advisor, mental coach, relaxation coach or fitness trainer?
I just mentioned all my qualifications

I'll have a lawyer look into it, thank you.

A dependant's pass allows a non-Kenyan spouse of a Kenyan to live in the country. It does not allow one to work or be employeed.

<<Dependant pass is a pass for handycapped spouses who are happy to be served and don't want to work to put food on the tabel.

Would it allow me to run a registered coffee shop where I brew coffee, bake cakes and cookies, run a fast food chain?>>

My comment; The dependent pass is for foreign spouses who want to be with their partners in Kenya.  You have to put those old fashioned views about your role, away and just accept that you won't be able to work for a while at least.  It is not about a partner not wanting to work, it is about making a compromise so that you get what you want.  After 3 years of marriage, you would be eligible to apply for permanent residency, but the Dependent Pass, or other type of work permit must come first (you won't be able to apply for PR unless you have been in Kenya for over 6 months continuously, so only a Dependents Pass, or Class K or similar would allow this to happen).

You would only be able to 'run' a coffee shop, or any of the other jobs you have listed, without a work permit, if someone else operated the business completely - so wouldn't be working anyway.  To run the business/be involved in it, you are back to needing the $100,000 capital.

I am a lawyer who is happy to assist you explore different options as to moving in legally in Kenya.

Silvana Wanjiru wrote:

I am a lawyer who is happy to assist you explore different options as to moving in legally in Kenya.

If you have a way, I would be pleased to hear about it. I had been searching for a solution since 2018 and the outcome has always been the same.
Dependentpass - after 3 years permanent dependentpass - 7 years citizenship, but to aquire that there is the requirement of having dependentpass prior, this to obtain the certificate of good conduct or how it is called in englis, we call it Police Record.
I had substancial finances when I married but with time and the weird laws in Kenya made me use those to support living instead of business to make an income.

That’s a good idea and business idea recommendable.

If I am to advice you like I helped some friends start tour companies in Kenya, the easiest way is first to get the person in the kind of business you want to establish.

Partner with him or her or invest in the said business with a short term agreement. That will help you learn and understand logistics. After expiry or before you will have learnt everything from logistics to operations and above all the network you need.

Most important is to get honest partners as some have also lost investment in the same way leading to court battles that could have avoided.

@Silvana Wanjiru

can you send me your email ? I want to discuss with you available options

Hello Moataz,

Welcome to expat.com!

Unfortunately, Silvana Wanjiru has not been active for a while and you may not get a response.

Since you are new, feel free to browse on the Kenya forum. You can engage and participate in more active discussions there.

Cheers,

Yoginee

Expat.com team