Pensions & tax

KRA Tax Amnesty 2026: How to Waive 100% of Penalties and Interest

The Kenya Revenue Authority will wipe penalties, interest and fines on tax debts up to 31 December 2025, if you pay the principal by 31 December 2026. Here is who qualifies, what to do on iTax and what happens if you wait.

By Oscar Radido Oyomba, Editor-in-ChiefPublished 8 November 2026 · Updated 10 November 2026 · 6 min read

A Kenyan woman in a black blazer frowns at a tax document at her desk, with a laptop, a stack of papers and the Nairobi skyline behind her

About 7 weeks left to pay your principal tax and keep the waiver.

The window closes on 31 December 2026. Pay your principal tax before then to keep the 100% waiver.

Infographic: KRA tax amnesty 2026 gives a 100% waiver of penalties, interest and fines. Pay the principal by 31 December 2026. Covers who qualifies, two ways to settle, what is not covered and a 4-step checklist. — KRA tax amnesty 2026 at a glance.

The bottom line

The 2026 amnesty was introduced under the Finance Act 2026 and runs from 1 July to 31 December 2026. It gives a 100% waiver of penalties, interest and fines on tax liabilities that accrued on or before 31 December 2025. The tax itself is not cancelled.

Three key facts about the KRA tax amnesty 2026: 100% waiver of penalties and interest, applies to debts up to 31 December 2025, window 1 July to 31 December 2026 — The three facts that matter: what is waived, which debts qualify, and the window.

Item	Detail
Window	1 July 2026 to 31 December 2026
Debts that qualify	Accrued on or before 31 December 2025
What is waived	100% of penalties, interest and fines under the Tax Procedures Act
What you must pay	All principal tax, in full, by 31 December 2026
After 31 December 2026	Unpaid principal attracts interest and penalties again, with no amnesty

The core rule: pay the principal, lose the penalties

Think of your tax debt as two parts. The principal is the tax you owe. Penalties and interest are the enforcement charges KRA added on top. The amnesty removes the second part once you clear the first.

Total tax debt equals principal tax, which must be paid by 31 December 2026, plus penalties and interest, which are 100% waived. Example: owe KSh 400k VAT and KSh 150k penalties, pay KSh 400k, KSh 150k is waived — If you owe KSh 400,000 in VAT and KSh 150,000 in penalties, you pay the KSh 400,000. The KSh 150,000 is waived.

The critical timeline

Only debts up to 31 December 2025 qualify. You then have from 1 July to 31 December 2026 to apply, arrange a payment plan and clear the principal. From 1 January 2027, anything still unpaid starts attracting standard interest and penalties again.

Timeline: accrual period up to 31 December 2025, relief window 1 July to 31 December 2026, penalty resumption from 1 January 2027 — Three phases: the debts that qualify, the relief window and the point where penalties resume.

Are you eligible? Find your situation

KRA groups taxpayers by what they still owe. Find the row that matches you and follow the action in the last column.

Eligibility table: principal paid by December 2025 gets an automatic waiver; unpaid principal gets a waiver after settlement; unfiled returns with no tax due get a late-filing penalty waiver; unfiled returns with tax due get a waiver after filing and paying; active disputes get relief after the principal is resolved — Five common situations and the action each one needs.

What is covered and what is not

The amnesty applies to amounts imposed under the Tax Procedures Act, including self-assessments, amendments, additional KRA assessments and objection or appeal decisions recorded in iTax. It does not touch the principal tax, charges for periods from 1 January 2026, customs duties under the East African Community Customs Management Act, or agency revenues.

What is covered: Tax Procedures Act liabilities, self-assessments and amendments, additional assessments, objection or appeal decisions in iTax. What is not covered: principal tax, liabilities after 31 December 2025, customs duties under EACCMA — Covered on the left, excluded on the right.

Pathway 1: the automatic waiver

If you already paid all principal for periods up to 31 December 2025, you do not need to apply. iTax finds accounts with a zero principal balance, removes the related penalties, interest and fines from your ledger and generates an amnesty certificate.

Automatic waiver in three steps: system scan of zero-principal accounts, ledger update removing penalties and interest, amnesty certificate issued with no manual application — Scan, ledger update, certificate. No application needed.

To download the certificate, go to Taxpayer Profile, then Useful Links, then Consult and Reprint Acknowledgement Receipts and Certificates, then Debt and Enforcement, then Amnesty Certificate.

Pathway 2: resolving unpaid principal

If you still owe principal, you have two routes. You can pay the full balance in one transaction during the window, and the waiver follows once it clears. Or you can apply for a payment plan on iTax and clear the principal in instalments, finishing by 31 December 2026.

Two options for unpaid principal: lump sum payment during the amnesty window, or a payment plan that must conclude by 31 December 2026 — Lump sum or payment plan. Either way the principal must be cleared by 31 December 2026.

How to apply on iTax, step by step

For a payment plan, follow the steps below. When you register the payment, change the amount so it covers the principal only. KRA warns that penalties, interest or fines paid by mistake cannot be refunded or moved to another tax.

Nine-step iTax process: log in, open Payments and Apply Payment Plan (new), choose amnesty periods, create the plan ending on or before 31 December 2026, go to Payments Registration, select tax head, sub-head and period, adjust the amount to exclude penalties and interest, complete payment, KRA auto-waives charges and generates the certificate — The iTax payment plan process from login to certificate.

Structuring a payment plan: apply early

KRA says a plan applied for in July 2026 can have a maximum of 6 instalments. Because every plan must end by 31 December 2026, each month you wait removes an instalment. Applying later means larger payments over a shorter period.

Two scenarios compared: applying in July 2026 spreads the principal across 6 months, delaying until October 2026 leaves only 3 months to clear it — Illustration of how a later start compresses the repayment period. Bar heights are illustrative, not KRA figures.

Unfiled returns and disputes

The amnesty works best alongside active compliance. File any missing income tax, VAT, PAYE or turnover tax returns for periods up to 31 December 2025. Nil returns qualify automatically. If filing creates a tax liability, the return qualifies once that principal is paid by 31 December 2026. If you have an objection, appeal or alternative dispute resolution case, it qualifies once it is concluded and the agreed principal is paid by the same date.

Four actions that unlock the 100% waiver: identify triggers such as late or unfiled returns, rectify the record by filing missing returns, resolve disputes through KRA processes, clear the finalised principal — Identify, file, resolve, pay.

The cost of missing the deadline

KRA's position is firm. Principal still unpaid after 31 December 2026 will resume attracting standard interest and penalties, and no amnesty will be granted on those later charges.

Chart: during the amnesty window only principal accrues, then after 31 December 2026 total tax liability rises sharply as penalties and interest resume — Conceptual chart of liability before and after the deadline.

2024 amnesty vs 2026 amnesty

This is Kenya's third amnesty window. The Finance Act 2023 amnesty covered periods up to 31 December 2022 with a principal deadline of 30 June 2024. The Tax Procedures (Amendment) Act 2024, effective 27 December 2024, extended it to periods up to 31 December 2023, with principal due by 30 June 2025. The 2026 amnesty moves both dates forward again.

Comparison table: the 2024 amnesty covered periods up to 31 December 2023 with payment due 30 June 2025; the 2026 amnesty covers periods up to 31 December 2025 with payment due 31 December 2026; both require full settlement of principal — Same principle, later dates.

Metric	2024 amnesty	2026 amnesty
Law	Tax Procedures (Amendment) Act 2024	Finance Act 2026
Qualifying period	Up to 31 December 2023	Up to 31 December 2025
Principal payment deadline	30 June 2025	31 December 2026
Condition	Full settlement of principal	Full settlement of principal

Frequently asked questions

Quick-fire FAQ: where to find the amnesty on iTax, whether KRA SMS links are legitimate, whether you must apply if you already paid, and where to get in-person help — Four quick answers. More below.

Do I need to apply if I already paid my principal tax?

No. If you cleared all principal for periods up to 31 December 2025, iTax waives the related penalties, interest and fines automatically and issues the certificate.

Where is the amnesty application on iTax?

Log in, go to Debt and Enforcement, then select Amnesty application. For instalments, use Payment, then Apply Payment Plan (new).

Is the principal tax waived?

No. Only penalties, interest and fines are waived. The principal must be paid in full by 31 December 2026.

Can I pay in instalments?

Yes, through an iTax payment plan. A plan applied for in July 2026 can have up to 6 instalments, and every plan must be fully paid by 31 December 2026, so a later application gets fewer instalments.

Why do I still see penalties on my ledger?

KRA has said the waiver is still being rolled out for some penalties, especially late-filing penalties, and that seeing them does not mean you were denied the amnesty. If you only have late-filing penalties, file all pending returns and they are waived automatically.

What happens if I miss 31 December 2026?

Unpaid principal attracts interest and penalties again, and no amnesty is granted on those later charges.

Does it cover customs duties?

No. Customs duties under the East African Community Customs Management Act and agency revenues are excluded.

Are KRA SMS and email links genuine?

KRA says it may send email or SMS links that lead to the iTax application page. If you are unsure, type the iTax address into your browser yourself instead of clicking.

Where can I get in-person help?

Visit any KRA Tax Service Office or the KRA help desk at a Huduma Centre. You can also call 020 4 999 999 or 0711 099 999, or email callcentre@kra.go.ke.

Your 2026 compliance checklist

Compliance checklist: audit your ledger early, file outstanding returns, pay the principal or start a payment plan well before December, secure your amnesty certificate — Four things to do before 31 December 2026.

Audit your ledger early. Log in to iTax and check for principal, penalties and interest up to 31 December 2025.
File outstanding returns. Submit missing nil, VAT, PAYE or income tax returns so you know the real principal owed.
Pay the principal or start a payment plan. Do it well before December to avoid system delays.
Secure your certificate. Confirm penalties show as zero on your ledger and download the amnesty certificate.

This article is general information based on KRA's published guidance, not tax advice. Rules and iTax steps can change, so confirm your own position on iTax or with KRA before you pay.

Sources

Figures last verified 9 November 2026.