Business Name (sole proprietor or firm)Kenya
What it takes to form, own and run a sole trader in Kenya, and how its profit is taxed. Each figure links to the page it was read from.
This company type
At a glance
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The Business Name is not a legal entity. It simply refers to a person who owns the business and is personally responsible for its debts.
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The registration of a firm, individual or corporation under this Act shall not be construed as authorizing the use of a business name
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every firm, individual or corporation required under this Act to be registered shall send by registered post or deliver to the Registrar a statement in writing in the prescribed form (hereinafter called the statement of particulars) which shall contain the following particulars—
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Self-employed people and Sole proprietorships are not subject to corporation tax. They are required to declare their total income of the year in the Individual Income Tax Return and pay Income Tax.
Form it
Who registers it
- Registry
- Formed without visiting
- Not stated
The registry’s and the law’s own pages do not mention it.
- Formed online
- Yes
What it takes to form
Not in our records A notary, A resident director, Paying up the capital: none of these is in our records for the Business Name (sole proprietor or firm).
Own it
Who may own and run it
- Directors
- Does not apply
- Shareholders
- Does not apply
- Members
- At least 1 · one person may form it alone
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The registration of a firm, individual or corporation under this Act shall not be construed as authorizing the use of a business name
- A local company secretary
- Does not apply
- A local registered agent
- Does not apply
Each year, at the registry
Not in our records Annual registry fee, Accounts on the public record, Audit for a small company, Audit: none of these is in our records for the Business Name (sole proprietor or firm).
Important dates
When each obligation falls due, as the authority states it.
Not in our records No dates for the Business Name (sole proprietor or firm) are in our records.
What is public
Not in our records What the register shows the public is not in our records for the Business Name (sole proprietor or firm).
Tax
Tax on profit
How this company type is taxed, which can differ from its place’s headline rate.
Through owners+1 regime
Self-employed people and sole proprietorships are not subject to corporation tax; they declare income in the individual income tax return.
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Self-employed people and Sole proprietorships are not subject to corporation tax. They are required to declare their total income of the year in the Individual Income Tax Return and pay Income Tax.
Special regimes that may apply
- Export Processing Zone enterprise corporation tax exemption free zone · 100% exempt
Export Processing Zone enterprises which do not engage in any commercial activities Income Tax Act (Cap. 470) as administered by the Kenya Revenue Authority, read with the Export Processing Zones Act
Whether a company qualifies depends on its activity and conditions set in each statute.
- CFC rules in Kenya
- Not in our records
Close it
Closing it
The other end, which most guides leave out.
- Route
- When the business ceases, the owner (or the partners, or the corporation) must notify the Registrar within three months, and the Registrar may cancel the entry; the Registrar may also cancel after a twelve-week notice if the business is not being carried on (Cap 499 s.15).
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If any firm, individual or corporation registered under this Act ceases to carry on business, it shall be the duty of the persons who were partners in the firm at the time when it ceased to carry on business
- Statutory fee
- KES 800
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Cessation of Business Name Kshs 800 subject to penalties BN 6 Letter of Confirmation 1 day
Every business in Kenya
VAT
- The tax
- Value Added Tax (VAT)
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VAT is an indirect tax that is paid by the person who consumes taxable goods and taxable services supplied in Kenya and/or imported into Kenya.
- Standard rate
- 16%
The 8% rate that applied to certain petroleum products was deleted by the Finance Act, 2023, leaving the 16% general rate and the 0% zero rate.
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There are two (2) tax rates:- 16% (General rate) – this rate applies to all taxable goods and taxable services other than zero-rated supplies.
- Other rates
- 0% Specific supplies listed in the Second Schedule to the VAT Act, 2013 (zero-rated supplies)
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0% (Zero-rate) – this rate applies to specific supplies listed in the Second Schedule to the VAT Act, 2013.
- Registration threshold
- KES 5,000,000
taxable goods and taxable services supplied; in a year
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Any person supplying or who expects to supply taxable goods and taxable services with a value of Kshs 5 Million or more in a year is required to register for VAT.
- A foreign company
- Registers from its first taxable supply
A non-resident making supplies in Kenya over the internet, an electronic network or a digital marketplace must register whether or not the taxable supplies meet the KES 5 million threshold, under a simplified registration and filing system; KRA's page names no representative requirement.
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Non-resident persons making supplies in Kenya over the internet or an electronic network or through a digital marketplace are required to register for VAT whether or not the taxable supplies meet the annual turnover threshold of KES 5 million.
- Returns filed
- Monthly
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VAT is due on or before the 20 th day of the following month. This includes both the return and payment.
- Tax authority
- Registration page read 2026-10-22
Payment and banking services
1 service names Kenya on its own list: Stripe. Each provider, and what a listing means.
Reference
Its name and code
- Kind
- Sole traderDerived our grouping, the same words in every country
- Name in law
- Business Name (sole proprietor or firm)
- Identifier
- KE-BUSINESS-NAMEA form ISO 20275 does not list.