Get a water use permit or borehole authorisation (WRA)
Water Resources Authority · sources read 30 Sep 2026
Apply to the Water Resources Authority (WRA) before you drill a borehole or take water from a river, lake or underground. You first get an authorisation to build the works, then the water use permit after WRA inspects them.
- Fee
- We couldn't confirm a fee from the official page. Check it there before you pay.
- How long
- By law, the permit is issued within 31 days of a complete permit application (after the authorisation stage)
- Where
- Online on the WRA customer portal (systems.wra.go.ke/client), or at a WRA basin or sub-basin office
What you need
- Application Form WRA 001
- For a borehole or well with a motorised pump: a Hydrogeological Survey Report
- For bigger uses (Category B, C or D): a site assessment report, a hydrological or hydrogeological report and an environmental impact assessment (EIA) study report
Steps
- Create an account on the WRA customer portal (systems.wra.go.ke/client) and apply using Form WRA 001 with your reports.
- WRA publishes a public notice of your application and visits the site.
- If approved, you get an authorisation to drill or build the works. Build only what it allows.
- Within 28 days of finishing a borehole, send WRA the borehole completion record.
- WRA inspects the works and then issues your water use permit.
Watch out
- Drilling a borehole without WRA authorisation is an offence.
- An authorisation is not a permit. Don't start using the water until you have the permit.
- The permit lasts 5 years, so renew it before it runs out.
Who can apply
- Anyone who plans to use water from a water resource (river, lake, borehole, well) must apply before starting.
- You don't need a permit to draw water for household use without any works (no pump or structure), if you have lawful access.
Official sources (4)
- Water Use Allocation (permitting process) wra.go.ke · read 30 Sep 2026
- Water Resources Regulations, 2021 (L.N. 170 of 2021) wra.go.ke · read 30 Sep 2026
- The Water Act, 2016 (section 37) wra.go.ke · read 30 Sep 2026
- WRA Customer Portal systems.wra.go.ke · read 30 Sep 2026