Tenancy Agreement Kenya: What Yours Must Legally Include

A legally sound tenancy agreement in Kenya must be in writing and must, at a minimum, name both parties and the exact property, state the rent and how it is paid, record the deposit and the conditions for its refund, fix the term and any renewal, set out notice and grounds for termination, divide repair responsibilities, name the forum where disputes will be heard, and be signed, witnessed, and properly stamped. A handshake or a WhatsApp “yes” is not enough. When arrears pile up and you need the tribunal or an eviction order, the paper you signed on day one is the first thing that is read, and the clauses you left out are the ones that cost you.

This matters more in the current climate. Through 2026, Nairobi landlords are seeing tenants stretch payment dates and, in some cases, default outright. A properly drafted agreement is your first line of defence. It is what turns a “he said, she said” into an enforceable claim, and it is the backbone of any serious rent collection process. At Real Management we have spent 30 years drafting tribunal-ready agreements for Nairobi landlords, investors, and apartment owners, and the pattern is always the same: the owners who get paid on time and win at the tribunal are the ones whose agreements were watertight before the first tenant moved in.

Does a tenancy agreement in Kenya have to be in writing?

In practice, yes. A verbal tenancy can technically exist, but it is close to useless the moment there is a dispute, because nobody can prove what was actually agreed. Once a lease runs beyond a short fixed period it should be in writing, and longer leases must be registered against the title at the Lands registry. Kenyan courts and rent tribunals enforce the terms of a written, properly executed agreement, so the document is not a formality. It is the evidence.

There is a second reason writing matters. Under the Stamp Duty Act, an instrument that is required to be stamped and has not been stamped is inadmissible as evidence. In plain English: an unstamped lease can be shut out of court exactly when you need it most. Getting the agreement drafted, signed, and stamped is not bureaucracy for its own sake. It is what keeps your agreement usable.

What clauses must a tenancy agreement include?

Below is the clause-by-clause checklist we work through on every Nairobi tenancy. Every tenancy agreement Kenya landlords sign should carry all of these; treat the list as the minimum, not the ceiling.

Clause
What it does
Why it protects the landlord

Parties and property
Names the landlord and tenant in full and identifies the exact unit, plot, or LR number
Removes any argument about who is bound and which premises are covered

Rent and payment
States the rent, the due date, the payment method, and the account
Fixes a clear default point so arrears are provable to the day

Deposit and refund
Records the deposit held and the exact conditions for its return
Lets you lawfully offset damage or unpaid rent instead of fighting over it later

Term and renewal
Fixes the start date, the length, and how renewal works
Stops a tenant claiming an open-ended right to stay

Notice and termination
Sets the notice each side must give and the grounds for ending early
Gives you a clean, documented route to recover possession

Repairs and maintenance
Splits structural repairs from tenant upkeep
Prevents the tenant withholding rent over works that were never your duty

Permitted use and subletting
Limits the property to agreed use and controls subletting
Blocks unauthorised businesses, extra occupants, and hidden sub-tenants

Service charge and utilities
States who pays for water, power, garbage, and common-area costs
Closes the most common source of month-to-month billing fights

Dispute resolution
Names the tribunal or court and the governing law
Sends any dispute to the right forum without a jurisdiction argument

Signatures, witnesses, stamping
Executed by both parties, witnessed, and stamped
Makes the agreement admissible and enforceable when it counts

The two clauses landlords most often skip are the deposit conditions and the repair split. Those are also the two that generate the most disputes. Spell out, in the agreement itself, what the deposit can be used for and the state the unit must be returned in. Spell out that the landlord handles structural and major systems while the tenant handles day-to-day upkeep and any damage they cause. Vague wording here is what lets a departing tenant demand a full refund on a unit that needs repainting.

Which tribunal or court will hear a tenancy dispute?

This is the clause landlords underestimate, because it decides how fast and how cheaply you can act. Kenya routes tenancy disputes to different forums depending on the type of premises, and your agreement should name the correct one.

• Controlled residential tenancies fall under the Rent Restriction Act and are heard by the Rent Restriction Tribunal. These are typically older, lower-rent residential units the relevant Cabinet Secretary has designated as controlled.
• Business premises, meaning shops, hotels, and catering establishments on periodic or short-term tenancies, fall under the Landlord and Tenant (Shops, Hotels and Catering Establishments) Act and are heard by the Business Premises Rent Tribunal.
• Everything else, including most modern residential leases that are not “controlled”, is a matter for the ordinary courts, with land and possession questions going to the Environment and Land Court under the Judiciary.

You can confirm the governing statutes yourself on Kenya Law, the official free-access source for Kenyan legislation and judgments. Naming the right forum in your agreement, and drafting the clauses to match that forum’s expectations, is exactly the kind of detail that separates an agreement that holds from one that unravels on a technicality. A quick note on the horizon: the Landlord and Tenant Bill, 2021, which proposes to consolidate these frameworks under a single Landlord and Tenant Tribunal, was still before Parliament as of mid-2026 and is not yet law. Draft to the rules that apply today, not to a bill that may change.

Do I need to pay stamp duty on a lease in Kenya?

Leases that require registration must be stamped, and the duty is administered by the Kenya Revenue Authority through its online systems. The principle to hold on to is simple: shorter leases attract a lower duty band and longer leases a higher one, the tenant usually bears the stamp duty on a lease unless the agreement says otherwise, and the instrument must be presented for stamping within the statutory window after signing. Because an unstamped instrument can be refused in evidence, treat stamping as part of finalising the agreement, not an afterthought once a dispute has already started.

We deliberately do not quote a figure here, because rates and bands are set by law and change, and because the number that matters to you depends on your specific term and location. Your advocate or your managing agent will calculate the exact position for your agreement. The point for planning is that the cost is real, it is the tenant’s by default, and skipping it can make your whole agreement unusable at the tribunal.

Should a lawyer or a managing agent draft the agreement?

A downloadable tenancy agreement template can look like a shortcut, and for a very simple arrangement it is better than nothing. The problem is that a generic template does not know your building, your tenant mix, your service-charge structure, or which tribunal your premises answer to. It fills the blanks and leaves the judgement calls to you.

For agreements of any real value, have the document drafted or reviewed by a qualified advocate. You can verify that an advocate holds a current practising certificate through the Law Society of Kenya. Where the lease must be registered, business registration and related filings run through the government’s eCitizen and BRS services. Many Nairobi landlords hand the whole chain, from drafting to stamping to registration to enforcement, to a property management agent who does it every week and keeps the paperwork ready for the day it is needed.

That is the work we do. Real Management drafts tenancy agreements that name the correct forum, protect the deposit, fix the repair split, and are stamped and filed so they stand up when a tenant stops paying. Over 30 years managing property across Nairobi, we have learned that the cheapest agreement is the one you never have to litigate, and the way you get there is by drafting it properly the first time.

The bottom line for Nairobi landlords

A tenancy agreement is not a welcome letter. It is the instrument that decides whether you get paid, whether you can recover your property, and whether the tribunal will even look at your claim. Get the parties, the rent, the deposit, the term, the notice, the repairs, and the dispute forum on paper, then sign, witness, and stamp it. In an arrears-heavy year, that discipline is the difference between a quick, documented remedy and a long, expensive fight you may not win.

If you want your agreements drafted or reviewed to be genuinely tribunal-ready, talk to us. Call Real Management on 0735 281 111 and we will make sure the paper protects you before you ever need it.

Frequently asked questions

Is a verbal tenancy agreement legal in Kenya?
A verbal tenancy can exist, but it is very hard to enforce because there is no proof of the terms agreed. Any tenancy of real value should be in writing, and longer leases must be registered. A written, signed, and stamped agreement is what tribunals and courts actually rely on.

What happens if my tenancy agreement is not stamped?
An instrument that is required to be stamped but has not been stamped can be treated as inadmissible in evidence. That means an unstamped lease may be shut out of court or tribunal proceedings exactly when you are trying to enforce it, so stamping should be completed as part of finalising the agreement.

Which tribunal handles landlord and tenant disputes in Kenya?
It depends on the premises. Controlled residential tenancies go to the Rent Restriction Tribunal, business premises such as shops and hotels go to the Business Premises Rent Tribunal, and most other residential leases are matters for the ordinary courts and the Environment and Land Court.

Who pays stamp duty on a lease in Kenya, the landlord or the tenant?
By default the tenant, as the party taking the lease, bears the stamp duty, unless the agreement states otherwise. Longer leases attract a higher duty band than shorter ones, and the duty is administered by the Kenya Revenue Authority.

Can I just use a downloadable tenancy agreement template?
A template is better than nothing for a very basic let, but it cannot account for your building, your service charge, or the correct dispute forum for your premises. For anything of value, have the agreement drafted or reviewed by a qualified advocate or a managing agent who prepares them regularly.