License a slaughterhouse (local or export)
Directorate of Veterinary Services, State Department for Livestock Development, and county veterinary offices · sources read 2 Oct 2026
Every slaughterhouse needs a licence that expires on 31 December each year. For a local slaughterhouse, apply to the veterinary licensing officer in your area after an inspection; for an export slaughterhouse, apply to the Directorate of Veterinary Services and pay KSh 5,000 once it passes inspection.
- Fee
- KSh 5,000Export slaughterhouse licence (DVS)
- How long
- Example: Makueni County issues slaughterhouse licences in about 7 days after the pre-licensing inspection
- Deadline
- 31 Dec 2026 Slaughterhouse licences expire on 31 December every year, so renew before then
- Where
- Local slaughterhouse: the veterinary licensing officer for your area (county veterinary office). Export slaughterhouse: the Directorate of Veterinary Services.
What you need
- Local slaughterhouse: application for or renewal of a slaughterhouse licence (First Schedule form)
- Export slaughterhouse: construction application form, project proposal and proof of land ownership
- Export slaughterhouse: technical designs, NEMA approval and EIA licence
Steps
- Local slaughterhouse: fill in the application form and submit it to the licensing officer. The licence is issued on an inspecting officer's recommendation, once you pay the fee.
- Export slaughterhouse: apply to the Directorate of Veterinary Services, have the site inspected, then submit designs and plans to get authority to construct.
- Export slaughterhouse: after construction and a test-run inspection, pay the licence fee and collect the licence.
Watch out
- Using a slaughterhouse without a valid licence can mean a fine of up to KSh 10,000, up to six months in jail, or both.
- Local fees are set per county and depend on the slaughterhouse category. In Makueni a slaughter premise licence costs KSh 2,000 to 4,000.
- If the Director of Veterinary Services orders a slaughterhouse closed, its licence stops being valid.
Who can apply
- Anyone who operates a slaughterhouse, abattoir or slaughter slab.
Official sources (3)
- Meat Control Act and Regulations (Cap 356, Rev. 2012): Slaughterhouses (Licensing) Regulations 1996 and Local Slaughterhouses (Licensing) Regulations 2011 infotradekenya.go.ke · read 2 Oct 2026
- Register an export slaughterhouse infotradekenya.go.ke · read 2 Oct 2026
- Citizens' Service Delivery Charter, Department of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Cooperatives Development makueni.go.ke · read 2 Oct 2026