Kenya is set to start keeping an official record of stateless persons within its borders, depending on the outcome of the latest bill tabled in Parliament. The Kenya Citizenship and Immigration (Amendment) Bill, 2025, is sponsored by Kilifi North MP Owen Baya. The main intention of the bill is to enhance the identification and assistance of persons within the country who are not recognized as citizens of any country in the world.
The bill seeks to have the Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary establish an official record of stateless persons within the country. This record will comprise persons who do not hold citizenship in any country in the world.
At the moment, stateless persons who have been residing in Kenya since December 12, 1963, have the option of being registered as Kenyan citizens provided they fulfill certain conditions. The conditions include the ability to communicate in the Swahili language or any other dialect, the lack of a serious criminal record, and the ability to show evidence of their knowledge of the rights and responsibilities of Kenyan citizenship.
The stateless persons must also show clear evidence of their strong connection to the country.
The bill, however, eases some of the restrictions. For instance, the bill eliminates the requirement for the intention to permanently reside in Kenya after acquiring citizenship. Moreover, the bill expands the linguistic requirement to include the capacity to communicate in the local Swahili language or other formats that the disabled can understand.
Another major change is the elimination of the deadline for stateless persons to apply for citizenship. Currently, the deadline for applying for citizenship is seven years after the commencement of the Act, although the Foreign Affairs CS can extend the deadline for up to three years through a Gazette notice.
Other changes include the easing of the restrictions for migrants who entered Kenya before independence. For instance, the bill eliminates the previous deadline for the applicants to apply for citizenship.
Statelessness has been an endemic problem in Kenya for years. Some communities have been in Kenya for decades without the government’s recognition as Kenyan citizens. If the bill is approved, the residents of Kenya who have been considered stateless may have an easier time acquiring permanent residency, which they can later use as the basis for applying for Kenyan citizenship.
