What happens if I miss my criminal court date?
Criminal Procedure Code · sources read 4 Oct 2026
If you miss a criminal court date, the court can issue a warrant for your arrest, and if the charge is not a felony it can carry on with the case without you. You and your sureties can be made to pay the bond amount, and missing court can count against you the next time you ask for bail.
- Where
- The court handling your case (the one that issued the warrant); appeals on forfeited bonds go to the High Court
Steps
- Go back to the court that issued the warrant. A warrant stays in force until you are arrested on it or that court cancels it.
- If you were convicted while absent, you can ask the court to set the conviction aside. The court must be satisfied your absence was beyond your control and you had a probable defence.
- If the court finds the bond forfeited, it can ask you or your surety to pay it, or to show cause why it should not be paid. That is your chance to explain.
- A magistrate's order on a forfeited bond can be appealed to, or revised by, the High Court.
Watch out
- If you are charged with a felony, the court cannot go on without you. It must issue a warrant and have you brought before it.
- If a forfeited bond is not paid, the court can have the person's movable property attached and sold; if that fails, they can be jailed for up to 6 months.
- A court can refuse you bail later if you were given bail before, failed to turn up, and are likely to fail again.
Who this covers
- Anyone released on bail or bond: the bond requires you to attend court at the set time and place, and keep attending until the court says otherwise.
- Anyone summoned to court as an accused person: if you do not appear, the court can issue a warrant to arrest you.
- Every arrested person has a right to bail or bond on reasonable conditions, unless there are compelling reasons not to release them.
Official sources (2)
- Criminal Procedure Code (Cap. 75) new.kenyalaw.org · read 4 Oct 2026
- Constitution of Kenya, 2010 new.kenyalaw.org · read 3 Oct 2026