Registration or Incorporation of Trusts (whether family trusts or charitable trusts) in Kenya has traditionally been the function of the Principal Registrar of Lands (with the certificate of incorporation signed by the Cabinet Secretary responsible for Lands). This requirement has traditionally meant that significant time is taken before a certificate of incorporation of Trust may be issued. Indeed, previously, the estimated period of incorporation of Trusts has ranged from between 6 months up to even 2 years.
However, on 24th April 2024, the President signed the Statute Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Act 2024 which has now amended the Trustees (Perpetual Succession Act) Cap. 164 effectively transferring the mandate of registering and maintaining records of Trusts in Kenya from the Principal Registrar of Lands to the Registrar of Companies, at the Business Registration Service. The amendment seeks to streamline the registration procedures of Trusts. The registration regime will therefore be similar, in many ways, to registration of private limited companies, which currently happens in record time.
It is envisaged that this new registration regime will reduce the current red tape and delays that have been previously associated with registration/incorporation of Trusts.
For more details on the benefits of registering a Trust especially for preserving generational wealth, please see our earlier alert titled Family Trust.
In case you wish to register a Trust, whether a family trust or charitable trust, please contact Muriuki Muriungi at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
