Settling a tax dispute with KRA out of court (ADR)
Tax Procedures Act; Kenya Revenue Authority · sources read 5 Oct 2026
Yes. You and KRA can settle a tax dispute through Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), a facilitated talk with a neutral facilitator, after you object or even once an appeal is at the Tax Appeals Tribunal or court. ADR runs for up to 120 days, and an agreement reached is filed with the Tribunal or court as a consent.
- How long
- Up to 120 days; for court-initiated ADR, the time the court allows
- Deadline
- Once the Tribunal or a court allows ADR, the settlement must be reached within 120 days of that permission
- Deadline
- ADR ordered by a court follows the timelines the court sets
- Where
- KRA Tax Dispute Resolution Office, Ushuru Pension Towers, Block B, 7th Floor, Nairobi (P.O. Box 48240-00100)
Steps
- Start with an objection to the assessment. ADR can run during KRA's review of your objection, or later if your appeal is at the Tribunal or a court.
- Pay the tax you don't dispute, then tell KRA's ADR Division you want to use ADR.
- Fill in the ADR application form and hand it in with all your supporting documents at the Tax Dispute Resolution Office, Ushuru Pension Towers, Block B, Nairobi.
- If your appeal is already filed, get permission from the Tribunal or court to hold ADR talks, and follow any directions it gives.
- If you agree, you, KRA and the facilitator sign an ADR agreement. It becomes a consent filed with the Tribunal or court.
Watch out
- Not every dispute qualifies: KRA won't use ADR where a settlement would break the law, the issue needs a court to interpret the law, or the public interest needs a court ruling.
- The facilitator can't decide the case for you. It only works if you and KRA agree.
- If the settlement isn't reached in time, the dispute goes back to the court or Tribunal that allowed it.
- A signed ADR settlement is binding on you and KRA and is a full and final settlement unless it says otherwise. The Tribunal or court records the consent as its order, and either side can ask it to enforce the deal.
- Disputes where there is evidence of tax fraud, or where you and KRA have already tried and failed to settle out of court, can't go back to settlement.
- Each side pays its own costs. If you choose an accredited mediator as facilitator instead of a KRA officer, you pay the facilitator.
Who this covers
- Any taxpayer with a tax dispute with the KRA Commissioner
- Disputes at objection stage, or already before the Tax Appeals Tribunal or a court
Official sources (8)
- Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) - Learn About ADR kra.go.ke · read 3 Oct 2026
- Disputes Eligible for ADR kra.go.ke · read 3 Oct 2026
- The ADR Framework kra.go.ke · read 3 Oct 2026
- Alternative Dispute Resolution - Everything you Should Know (2022) kra.go.ke · read 3 Oct 2026
- KRA Service Charter (April 2026) kra.go.ke · read 3 Oct 2026
- Tax Procedures Act (Cap. 469B), version of 1 September 2026 new.kenyalaw.org · read 5 Oct 2026
- Tax Appeals Tribunal Act (Cap. 469A), version of 1 July 2023 new.kenyalaw.org · read 5 Oct 2026
- Tax Procedures (Settlement of Tax Disputes Out of Court or Tribunal) Regulations (L.N. 123 of 2020), version of 31 December 2022 new.kenyalaw.org · read 5 Oct 2026