Moving from the UK to Kenya (2026): Complete Guide

Relocating from the UK to Kenya means managing two separate bureaucracies at once: HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) and Border Force on the exit side, and the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), the Directorate of Immigration Services and the Directorate of Veterinary Services (DVS) on arrival. This guide is written for a UK resident — employee, retiree or business owner — planning a household move to Nairobi, Mombasa or elsewhere in Kenya. It covers what you must do in the UK before you leave, what happens at Kenyan customs when your shipment lands, and the small set of rules that apply if you later move back the other way.

Key takeaways

• Your Kenyan immigration status (work permit, dependant’s pass, or ordinary-resident status) determines whether your household goods qualify for duty relief — apply for the correct work permit class or special pass before your goods arrive.
• Tell HMRC you are leaving using form P85 (unless you file a Self Assessment return) and check the wider moving or retiring abroad checklist, including deregistering from your GP.
• Goods leaving the UK commercially, or as a shipped vehicle, need an export declaration through HMRC’s Customs Declaration Service.
• Carrying £10,000 or more in cash out of Great Britain must be declared to Border Force; Kenya has its own inbound/outbound limit of US$5,000 or KES 500,000 before a currency declaration is required.
• Used personal effects are generally duty-exempt on arrival in Kenya, with a separate concession of up to US$2,000 for other personal/household items — see KRA’s passenger clearance guidance.
• Dogs and cats need a UK export health certificate plus a Kenyan DVS import permit (VS01) obtained in advance.
• Used vehicles imported into Kenya must be right-hand drive, no more than 8 years old from first registration, and pass KEBS Pre-Export Verification of Conformity before shipping — this rule is tightened periodically, so confirm the current cut-off year with KEBS before committing to ship a car.

1. Your Kenyan immigration status decides your customs treatment

Kenyan customs duty relief on household effects is tied to your immigration status, not simply to the fact that you are "moving." Foreign nationals working in Kenya generally hold a Class D employment permit or, for self-financed long-stay residents aged 35 or over with an assured annual income of at least US$24,000, a Class K ordinary-resident permit; shorter engagements use a Special Pass, initially issued for one to three months and renewable once, up to a maximum of six months. All permit and pass applications go through the Directorate of Immigration Services’ eFNS portal. Whichever route applies to you, get the permit (or at least an approval letter) organised before your sea freight departs, because Kenyan clearing agents will ask for your permit or dependant’s-pass number, and your passport, to process the personal-effects exemption at the Kenya Revenue Authority. Arriving on a tourist visa with your household goods still in transit is a common cause of clearance delay and unexpected duty assessments.

2. The UK export side: HMRC, deregistration and tax exit

The UK’s customs and tax authority is HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). There is no single "deregistration" certificate for leaving the UK — instead, several separate notifications matter:

• Tax: tell HMRC you are leaving using form P85 – "Get your Income Tax right if you’re leaving the UK", unless you are completing a Self Assessment return for the year you leave, in which case you declare your residence position on the return itself. This is separate from establishing whether you become UK tax non-resident, which HMRC assesses under the Statutory Residence Test — see tax if you leave the UK to live abroad.
• Health: deregister from your NHS GP practice, since ongoing free NHS treatment generally stops once you are no longer ordinarily resident — see the moving or retiring abroad guidance.
• Voting, council tax and benefits: the same gov.uk guidance links to notifying your local council and the relevant benefits offices.
• Export declaration: most people shipping used household goods as personal effects do not need a commercial export declaration. But if your mover or you personally are exporting goods commercially, or shipping a vehicle, HMRC requires an export declaration lodged electronically through the Customs Declaration Service (CDS) — which fully replaced the older CHIEF system for UK exports in March 2024 — using an EORI number and Government Gateway credentials. See how to make a UK customs export declaration.
• Cash: if you or your family are carrying £10,000 or more in cash (combined, if travelling together) out of Great Britain, you must declare it to Border Force up to 72 hours in advance or at the port, using form C9011.

3. Ports and transit — UK to Kenya

Household shipments to East Africa typically move by sea freight in a shared or sole-use container, or as air freight for smaller, time-critical consignments.

Common UK origin ports/airports: Felixstowe and Southampton (the UK’s largest container ports) for sea freight, and London Heathrow or Gatwick for air freight.

Kenyan destination: sea freight is discharged at the Port of Mombasa, Kenya’s principal seaport, with onward inland transport (often by the Standard Gauge Railway or road) to Nairobi’s Inland Container Depot for customs clearance. Air freight arrives at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA), Nairobi.

Indicative transit times (freight-industry estimates, not official government figures):

• Sea freight, Felixstowe/Southampton → Mombasa: roughly 4–7 weeks door-to-port, depending on shipping line, transhipment routing and container consolidation.
• Air freight, UK → Nairobi: typically 3–7 days door-to-door once booked.
• Add extra time at both ends for UK export processing/consolidation and Kenyan customs clearance, which can itself take one to several weeks depending on documentation completeness.

These figures are commercial estimates used across the relocation industry; always confirm actual sailing schedules and lead times with your chosen freight forwarder.

4. The Kenya import side: customs process and forms

Kenyan customs is administered by the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), whose customs functions run primarily through the Integrated Customs Management System (iCMS), which has replaced the older Simba 2005 system, alongside the Kenya TradeNet single-window platform. For a personal household relocation, the practical steps are:

1. Import Declaration Form (IDF): your Kenyan clearing agent lodges this before or on arrival, covering the importer’s details, description of goods, and intended use, via Kenya TradeNet.
2. Passenger declaration: arriving passengers complete the prescribed Form F88 declaration, and used personal effects are generally exempt from customs duty, per KRA’s passenger clearance FAQ.
3. Personal-effects concession: beyond used household goods, KRA allows a concession of up to US$2,000 on new items for personal/household use per traveller — see KRA’s importing-goods guidance. Anything above this, or items intended for resale, is dutiable.
4. Regulated goods: electronics, vehicles and certain other product categories may need a Certificate of Conformity/Roadworthiness from a KEBS-appointed PVoC inspection agent before they leave the UK (see Section 6).
5. Use a licensed Kenyan clearing agent — nearly all unaccompanied baggage/household-goods shipments are cleared through an agent rather than by the importer directly.

5. Pets: what both authorities require

Moving a dog or cat from the UK to Kenya is a two-sided paperwork process, and both sides must be completed — one government’s approval does not substitute for the other’s.

UK export side: because Kenya is outside the EU, the relevant document is an Export Health Certificate (EHC), not the EU-only "animal health certificate." Requirements and the country-specific EHC/EXA application forms are listed at gov.uk’s export health certificate finder, with the non-EU travel process explained at taking your pet abroad — travelling to a non-EU country. An Official Veterinarian must sign off the EHC before departure. Because rabies vaccination and any required waiting periods must be completed before the EHC is issued, start this process well ahead of your travel date.

Kenya import side: dogs and cats are regulated by the Directorate of Veterinary Services (DVS), part of the State Department for Livestock Development within the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development. You need an import permit (Form VS01), obtainable in advance from DVS or a Kenyan High Commission, plus proof of current rabies vaccination and a veterinary health certificate — see the official procedure on the Kenya Trade Information Portal and the DVS page on kilimo.go.ke. Confirm current fees and any quarantine conditions with DVS directly, as these are set administratively and can change.

6. Vehicles, money and things people forget

Vehicles: as of the current rules, Kenya only allows import of right-hand-drive used vehicles that are no more than 8 years old from their year of first registration, and every used vehicle needs a Certificate of Roadworthiness/Conformity from a KEBS-contracted inspection agent (in the UK, this is arranged before shipping) — see KEBS’ Pre-Export Verification of Conformity programme. This age threshold is a rolling window tied to the calendar year and has been tightened before, so confirm the current cut-off year with KEBS or your freight forwarder before committing to ship a car.

Money: declare £10,000+ in cash leaving Great Britain to Border Force; on arrival in or departure from Kenya, cash above US$5,000 or KES 500,000 must be declared on Form CBK/C.D./1 under the Central Bank of Kenya (Declaration of Currency) Regulations.

Easy-to-forget items:

• Confirm your work permit or pass number reaches your clearing agent before your sea freight arrives — clearance without it means duty is charged as if you had no residency status.
• New (unused) items, including gifts or anything still boxed, do not qualify for the used-personal-effects exemption and count toward the US$2,000 concession instead.
• If you rent out or keep a UK home, notify your mortgage lender/insurer of the change in occupancy — this sits outside HMRC/customs but is commonly missed.
• Retain proof of ownership and dates of purchase for higher-value items (electronics, appliances); KRA can request this to confirm goods are genuinely used personal effects.

How Flyto handles your UK to Kenya move

Flyto runs its own offices, warehouses, crews and vehicles across Northern, Central and Southern Europe, so the UK collection, packing and consolidation stage of your move is handled in-house wherever our network reaches. For the ocean leg to Mombasa and the final Kenyan customs clearance and delivery, we work through a carefully vetted network of subcontracted carriers and trusted local partners on the ground in Kenya, who know the KRA and DVS processes and keep your shipment moving once it lands. You get one point of contact throughout, backed by partners chosen for their track record on this specific corridor.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a Kenyan work permit before I can import my household goods duty-free?
Duty relief on personal effects is assessed alongside your immigration status, so having your permit, pass, or at least an approval letter in hand when your shipment clears customs avoids being treated as a non-resident importer. See the Directorate of Immigration Services for permit classes.

Do I still pay UK tax after I move to Kenya?
It depends on your residence status under HMRC’s Statutory Residence Test, not simply on filing a P85. Review gov.uk’s guidance on tax if you leave the UK to live abroad, and take personal tax advice for your situation.

Can I bring a car from the UK to Kenya?
Only if it is right-hand drive, no more than 8 years old from first registration, and has passed KEBS’ Pre-Export Verification of Conformity inspection before it ships — arrange this with a KEBS-appointed agent in the UK ahead of time, and confirm the current age cut-off first, as it is revised periodically.

How much can my pet’s move cost and how far ahead should I start?
Costs vary by vet and airline, but the process itself — a UK export health certificate plus a Kenyan DVS import permit — should be started as early as possible, since UK certificates require pre-travel vaccination timelines and Kenyan permits (Form VS01) must be issued before arrival; see gov.uk’s non-EU pet travel guidance and the DVS import procedure.

What happens if I move back from Kenya to the UK later?
Returning UK residents can generally bring personal belongings back without UK customs duty or VAT, under HMRC’s transfer-of-residence relief, provided conditions on prior overseas residence and ownership periods are met — see gov.uk’s transfer of residence to Great Britain guidance. Kenya’s own export-side rules (customs clearance out of Mombasa/JKIA, and any KRA formalities for goods leaving the country) should be checked with KRA before you ship.

Is there a limit on cash I can carry when I travel?
Yes on both ends: £10,000+ leaving Great Britain must be declared to Border Force, and US$5,000/KES 500,000+ entering or leaving Kenya must be declared under the Central Bank of Kenya currency regulations.

Sources

• HMRC — Get your Income Tax right if you’re leaving the UK (P85)
• GOV.UK — Moving, living or retiring abroad
• GOV.UK — Tax if you leave the UK to live abroad
• GOV.UK — Transfer of residence to Great Britain
• business.gov.uk — How to make a UK customs export declaration
• GOV.UK — Take cash in and out of the UK
• GOV.UK — Taking your pet abroad: travelling to a non-EU country
• GOV.UK — Export health certificates
• Kenya Revenue Authority — Passenger Terminal Clearance in Kenya
• Kenya Revenue Authority — Importing goods
• Directorate of Immigration Services — Work Permits and Passes
• Directorate of Immigration Services — Class K (Ordinary residents)
• Directorate of Immigration Services — Special Pass
• Kenya Bureau of Standards — Pre-Export Verification of Conformity
• Kenya Law — Central Bank of Kenya (Declaration of Currency) Regulations
• Kenya Trade Information Portal — Import permit for dogs & cats (VS01)
• Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development — Directorate of Veterinary Services