Kenya Weighs Golden Visa Offering Immediate Permanent Residency

Kenya is exploring a golden visa program that would grant wealthy foreign investors immediate permanent residency, according to the Kenya Investment Authority. The proposal is still in drafting and consultation, with no eligibility threshold announced and new legislation required before it could launch.

John Mwendwa, the agency's chief executive, said officials are studying residency tied to investment as part of an effort to attract capital, create jobs and expand exports. "We are exploring residency by investment," he said on July 16, 2026, adding that the framework needs parameters that make commercial sense. He first revived the idea at a Nairobi consultative session in May 2025.

What is being proposed

The new route would differ from Kenya's current investor permit by offering permanent status upfront, rather than another temporary permission. It targets investors able to commit substantial capital and deliver measurable economic benefits.

Crucially, the investment agency cannot create the immigration category on its own. Because immigration policy sits with the Ministry of Interior, Parliament would need to pass new legislation. The Interior Cabinet Secretary and the Director General of Immigration Services would be involved in implementation.

No investment amount has been set. Officials are weighing whether to use a flat financial figure or to measure eligibility through outcomes such as jobs created and export volume. A previous proposal referenced $200,000, but that figure is not the current plan's finalized threshold.

How Kenya works for investors now

Investors currently rely on Kenya's Class G Investor Permit, which requires at least $100,000 (about KSh 13 million) invested in an active Kenyan enterprise. That permit does not provide immediate status: an investor must complete at least seven years of legal residence before applying for permanent status or citizenship by registration. Class G permits also require renewal every two years, an administrative burden the proposed golden visa is intended to remove.

What it means for nomads

For globally mobile founders and investors, a golden visa offering immediate permanent residency would be a significant shift, providing long-term certainty without the recurring renewals and multi-year wait of the existing permit. Officials frame the pitch around using Nairobi as a regional base, competing with hubs such as Mauritius, Kigali and Cape Town.

However, this remains a proposal. There is no legislation, no threshold and no launch date. Kenya floated a citizenship-by-investment plan in 2019 that stalled over money-laundering and security concerns, and this residency-focused version still faces debate over screening and eligibility. Public reaction has been mixed, with critics raising concerns about land ownership and effects on local businesses.

Separately, Parliament is considering the Investment and Export Promotion Authority Bill, 2026, which would create a broader "golden certificate" for strategic projects. That measure concerns investment incentives, not residency, and should not be confused with the golden visa.

Anyone considering Kenya as a base should treat the golden visa as an early-stage idea and continue to rely on existing permits until concrete rules are published.

Originally reported by VisaVerge.