Taxes · 🇰🇪 Kenya
Crypto and tokenized asset taxes in Kenya
Kenya repealed its 3% Digital Asset Tax from July 2025 and now charges 10% excise duty on platform fees; how individuals' crypto gains are taxed has no specific KRA guidance.
Crypto
Gains
No crypto-specific rate; 3% Digital Asset Tax repealed 2025. General income or capital gains tax rules may apply (no specific guidance)
Losses
No specific guidance
Also
Since the Finance Act 2025, fees charged by virtual asset service providers carry 10% excise duty (paid via the platform). Some commercial guides cite 15% capital gains tax, but no KRA or legislative text confirming this for crypto was found.
Income and tokenized assets
Staking, lending, yield
No specific guidance on staking, lending, DeFi yield or airdrops. Regular trading or yield could be treated as ordinary income under the Income Tax Act; this is not confirmed by KRA.
Tokenized stocks, bonds, funds
No specific guidance. Tokenized securities are not addressed in Kenyan tax law or KRA material found.
Filing
Tax year
Calendar year (1 January – 31 December); individual return due 30 June of the following year
Reporting
Declare income in the annual iTax return. The Finance Act 2026 requires virtual asset service providers to file annual information returns on users with KRA. VASPs are licensed under the VASP Act 2025 (in force 4 November 2025; regulations Legal Notice 134 of 2026).
Tax authority
Watch out
- The 3% transaction tax is gone, but 10% excise applies to platform fees
- Platforms will report user data to KRA under the Finance Act 2026
- No official rule yet on whether gains are income or capital gains
Sources
- Deloitte Kenya – excise duty meets crypto · deloitte.com
- KPMG – Finance Act 2025 analysis · assets.kpmg.com
- EY – Kenya enacts Finance Act, 2026 · ey.com
- KRA – Finance Act 2026 (PDF) · kra.go.ke
- Kenya Law – VASP Regulations 2026 · new.kenyalaw.org
Not confirmed
- Whether individuals' crypto gains fall under capital gains tax (15%) or income tax: only commercial guides, no KRA source
- Staking/DeFi treatment
- Exact wording of Finance Act 2026 reporting duty (KRA PDF extract garbled)
- Existing summary (29 Oct) is correct; it can add the Finance Act 2026 VASP reporting duty
Researched 2026-11-01 for private individuals resident in Kenya. Information, not tax advice — rules change; check the tax authority before you file.