Renew or replace a refugee ID card
Department of Refugee Services · sources read 2 Oct 2026
A refugee ID card lasts 5 years. To renew it, take your expired ID to the DRS office that issued it. If it's lost, get a police abstract first, then go to a DRS office. It's free.
- Fee
- We couldn't confirm a fee from the official page. Check it there before you pay.
- How long
- Up to 2 months
- Where
- In person at the DRS office that issued your ID (Kakuma, Dadaab, Nairobi, Nakuru, Eldoret or Mombasa)
What you need
- Your expired refugee ID card (and any other expired DRS documents)
- If the card was lost: a police abstract from the nearest police station
Steps
- If your card is lost, report at the nearest police station and get a police abstract.
- Go to the DRS office where your ID was issued with your expired ID (or the police abstract). DRS offices are in Kakuma, Dadaab, Nairobi, Nakuru, Eldoret and Mombasa.
- Collect the new card yourself. Nobody else can pick it up for you.
Watch out
- All DRS services are free. Don't pay anyone for a refugee ID.
- If a detail on your card is wrong or has changed, apply to the Commissioner on Form 11 to change the particulars.
Who can apply
- Recognised refugees aged 18 and above. Children under 18 get a refugee identification pass instead.
- The card is valid for 5 years, so you renew it when it expires.
Official sources (4)
- DRS FAQs (leaflet) refugee.go.ke · read 2 Oct 2026
- Refugee Service Guide refugee.go.ke · read 2 Oct 2026
- FAQs refugee.go.ke · read 2 Oct 2026
- The Refugees (General) Regulations, 2024 (L.N. 39 of 2024) refugee.go.ke · read 2 Oct 2026