Plant Import Permit and phytosanitary certificate (KEPHIS)
Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service · sources read 1 Oct 2026
Before you ship plants, seeds or plant produce into Kenya, apply online to KEPHIS for a Plant Import Permit (KSh 600). The shipment must arrive with a copy of the permit and a phytosanitary certificate from the exporting country. If you export, KEPHIS inspects your produce and issues the phytosanitary certificate.
- Fee
- KSh 600Plant Import Permit (PIP)FreeImporter registrationKSh 500Phytosanitary certificate for fresh produce exports, per certificate (plus inspection at KSh 0.50 per kg, minimum KSh 100)KSh 1,000Re-export phytosanitary certificate
- How long
- About 3 hours for a Plant Import Permit
- Where
- Online on the KEPHIS certification system (IEICS); inspection at KEPHIS points of entry such as JKIA, Mombasa port and airport, Eldoret airport and border posts. Head office: Oloolua Ridge, Karen, Nairobi.
What you need
- To register as an importer: KRA PIN, Certificate of Incorporation and the directors' ID cards
- To register as an exporter: KRA PIN, Certificate of Incorporation, directors' ID cards and an export licence from the relevant government body
- For each import: a copy of the Plant Import Permit and the phytosanitary certificate from the exporting country
- For fresh produce exports: the consignment itself for inspection, plus the commercial invoice and packing list
Steps
- Register with KEPHIS online as an importer (free) or exporter. Importer registration takes about 2 days.
- Apply online for a Plant Import Permit and pay KSh 600, before the plants leave the country of origin.
- Send the original permit to your supplier so the plant health authority in their country can follow Kenya's conditions and issue a phytosanitary certificate.
- When the shipment lands, declare it to a KEPHIS plant inspector at the point of entry for inspection.
- Exporting? Get the buyer country's import requirements, then present your consignment to KEPHIS for inspection. Consignments that pass get a phytosanitary certificate.
Watch out
- Plants that arrive without a permit and the right documents are not allowed in. They may be destroyed or shipped back at your cost.
- Some plant material can never be imported, for example paddy rice and planting material of cowpea, soybeans, lucerne and lentils.
- Exporters need the importing country's own requirements first; KEPHIS certifies against them.
Who can apply
- Anyone bringing plants, plant products or regulated articles into Kenya, whether for business, as gifts, duty free, or for research.
- Exporters of plants and plant produce, after registering with KEPHIS.
Official sources (5)
- Seed Import kephis.go.ke · read 1 Oct 2026
- Phytosanitary Services kephis.go.ke · read 1 Oct 2026
- Import/Exports kephis.go.ke · read 1 Oct 2026
- KEPHIS Service Charter (English), Revision 08 Issue 01 kephis.go.ke · read 1 Oct 2026
- KEPHIS Integrated Export Import Certification System (IEICS) ieics.kephis.org · read 1 Oct 2026