I know many people have written to me seeking various answers for their spouses on what to apply for them to confer residency. According to the constitution of Kenya 2010 article 45 confers the right to family and marriage to spouse of opposite sex. Section 11 of Cap 172 laws of Kenya ( Kenya Citizenship and Immigration Act 2011) provides for spouses of Kenyans acquiring citizenship by marriage while section 37 provides for acquisition of permanent residence based on marriage while section 36 provides for passes, including dependent passes for spouses of Kenyans as well. Section 27 (2) B. of the Kenya Citizenship and Immigration Regulations 2012 specifies that a spouse of a Kenyan can be issued with a Dependent pass if they apply in the prescribed manner.
My view is that none of these provisions of the law talk of the gender of the spouse meaning that either a male or female spouse of a Kenyan qualifies. However, there has been some hesitation from some Immigration officials dealing with such applications when male spouses of Kenyans apply for Kenya Dependant Passes (KDPs). This is partly due to historical and security reasons. It is important to note Kenya Immigration may ask for more documents in support of such application and even call the said spouses for an interview to find out some more information that may be useful in helping in the issuance of the KDP. This should not be construed to mean that such applications are being declined….I know for obvious reasons, most African societies are patriarchal in nature and in most cases men are “not expected” to depend entirely on women for upkeep! This is not in the spirit nor in the letter of the law and therefore cannot be used to create bottlenecks to spouses of Kenyans.
This brings me to another point: There is need to consider creating a category of work Permit for spouses of Kenyans who choose to be on KDPs rather than Permanent residence (PR) or acquiring citizenship as spouses of Kenyans. However, the assumption is spouses of Kenyans should apply for PR that allows them to work…the challenge with this is that one need to have been married for at least 3 years before they can apply for PR meaning that those who are newly wed cannot apply for this and KDP doesn’t allow them to work. It is therefore my personal view that we need to come up with a category of work Permit like the former class D to allow spouses of Kenyans to work in Kenya instead of being stay at home mums and dads as is the case with KDP holders.
I could be wrong but we at least need to accept that Kenyans, male or female will continue to marry foreign nationals who will opt to reside with their spouses in Kenya. So folks lets discuss this issues that is affecting a big number of Kenyans married to Foreign Nationals.
ImmigrationKenyaNews 
Since polygamy is now legal can people who are in Islamic or polygamous marriages apply for KDP after marriage if they have more than one spouse?
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Well can they apply? YES! CAN THEY GET IT? WELL, I DONT KNOW!
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Am married to an Indian guy for the past six yrs now..n blessed with a daughter..i want to apply for a dependant pass for my hubby as I hav all legal documents with me..is it possible coz am Kenyan…thank you ..Nadia
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Yes you can but male spouses dependent passes are a bit controlled. They ask for more information and at times call you for interviews
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Hi George, I’m a Kenyan citizen who has been going through this process with my American husband since May of this year. We have been married for 8 years and relocated to Nairobi last October. He’s been in and out of the country renewing his Kenyan visa while the dependent pass application is being processed. This has been very expensive and disruptive because we have two small children and are living on my income as he cannot work in Kenya. We’ve had several immigration officials outrightly state that my husband will not be issued with a dependent pass and that we should just apply for a work permit. In your first paragraph you cited all the various articles of the constitution that allow the spouses of Kenyan citizens the ability to acquire dependency, permanent residence, and citizenship. Why should I pay for an expensive work permit that I’ll have to renew annually, when the constitution allows me the right to give my spouse a more stable and sustainable status? This has been very demoralizing to hear as we cannot directly apply for permanent residence or citizenship. Technically we are eligible because we’ve been married for 8 years, but because he has not “resided” in the country, we have to first get a dependent pass. Is there any other option available to us other than the dependent’s pass? My husband and I have suffered jeers and other humiliating remarks at Nyayo house from immigration officials. The officer who accepted our application laughed and mocked us, exclaiming for all to hear “Ati who is dependent on who? This big man? Dependent on you? Hahahaha!” Needless to say, it has been a very frustrating and trying period in our lives. We want to raise our children in my home country. Why can’t this senseless discrimination just be put aside?
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Dear FA,
I really am sorry for that state of affairs. If you read in my blogs, I have explained that there is a disconnect between the law and practice. Sadly officers don’t really apply the law as it should be…email me your question( chabarim@yahoo.com)
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I live in the North America right now but I want to get dependent pass. My wife is Kenyan citizen she wants to apply the dependent pass for me but she lives in northeastern Kenya (I mean ruler area). so how she can apply without her coming to Nairobi?. or is it something I can apply myself if I come to nairobi?
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Hi Dakir. Your Kenyan wife must travel to Nairobi to make the application once she has all the requisite documents. It is her that will apply on your behalf not the other way round. If you have read my blogs, you will see I have advised that dependent pass for a male spouse is not a mean task…if at all it will be considered. Should this be issued, then you will be a stay at home dad because you can not work or run a business on a dependent pass. Having said that, she can still try and apply for you and see how Immigration will handle it. Hope this is useful
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Hi, George
Kenya work permit, is it only allowed to work for the employer who requested the permit for me or I can work other employer if I leave the first one ?
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George,thank you very much for your time. that was quick answer.
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Most Welcome. Please note that a work permit is specific to an employee and employer. It is not transferrable to another person or another company. If you change jobs, it is cancelled and new one applied under your new employer. Hope this is useful
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I am strongly believing in getting to work with KDP. They should at least give opportunity to dependents to work as they will add something in economy. I am an ICT graduate and depending on Kenyan Husband, have work experience of almost 12 years and had to sit at home because of same reason. Work permit so expensive that even if I am a good candidate for some organizations, they hesitate to buy my work permit. I really want to request that we who are married to Kenyans and can work and also going to stay in Kenya should get special work permit or allow us to work with dependent pass.
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Sorry but for now you can’t work on KDP.
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Hi George,
Thank You for the counsel you are offering; it’s a blessing. I am a kenyan lady married to a zambian man for 13 years now. He lived in Kenya about 7 years, before we married in Kenya and had a child, thereafter, we all moved to Zambia, where we lived for ten years, before our relocation to SA…..and now,we are in Kenya. He entered Kenya three weeks ago on a visitors visa. We want to live here for now, as our daughter in now in school here. Does he have to get any permit before a dual citizenship? He needs and is able to work too. The government e-service has not given me any conclusive guidance on this. What do you advice? Thanks,Charity
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Thanks for your kind words. Your husband qualifies for both citizenship permanent residence as your spouse. They have been insisting on getting a temporary residence. If you have time you can come over to my office for a detailed analysis.
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Okay,thank you very much.
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hi, he can apply for citizenship i think now as a spouse. or permanent residency and then work. or apply for work permit / dependent pass.
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Yes. Although both citizenship and PR take ages and one can not wait for a process without timelines if they need to work. He can apply for either citizenship/PR and still apply for a work permit to allow him to work as the processing goes on
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Thanks Simran
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Thank You George.It’s unfortunate it appears an expensive process just for families to be united! Is the work permit specific or can it be a general one?meanwhile,what’s the longest duration allowed to stay as a visitor?he got a three month stamp….
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Hi George I’ve been married to my Kenyan wife now for 6 years January 2017 she has been living with me in the uk and has PR here we are wanting to come back to Kenya because after all home is where the heart is , I want to work there but we seem to never get a straight answer
when can I get residency ?
to stop all the costly work permit renewal every year
Do I have to be in town myself, To apply or can family take in my documents for me ?
On line / in country ?
Surely the right to be together should apply and it shouldn’t just be one way ref getting permits after all,
I’m a big guy like in previous posts but I was raised by just a woman and they kick ass
Thanks George
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Hi JD. Do you mind sending me an email on chabarim@yahoo.com
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Hi George,
I’m married to Kenyan wife now for 9 years. I’m legally married at Kenyan marriage office in Nairobi and we are happy with our life here , but wife want to be back to her country Kenya. Want to know if I could get a working permit to work as I have 2 kids with my wife.
Regards
B.Roopun
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Hawajambo bwana,
Could you please enlighten me on the details regarding spouses of H class permit applicants? Specifically; Are spouses granted entry? Are spouses entitled to work permits? Has the H class permit been reclassified? For example here http://www.immigration.go.ke/Information.html the class G permit is exactly the same as my understanding of an H class. Could you please clarify?
Thank you in Advance,
G
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It is saddeing to learn that the consititution is not clear on how to deal with foreign spouses married to kenyans. Totally discriminative on female kenyans who are married to foreigners that want to settle in Kenya . All kenyans are to blame for electing members of parliament who do not understand their purpose in parliament.
All spouses have a right to be citizens on application and a right to stay on family visa, a right to work, a right to invest and own property. Most of the immigration officers need training on these laws, then kenya can become one of the greatest nations on earth.
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I fully concur Emo. I have looked at the posts here and wonder what the state of play is for those who take up Dependent Spouse and would like to find out what the boundaries are i.e. can they undertake any kind of work in order to earn their keep instead of being stuck at home?
Otherwise the Foreign Nationals will move on and take any gifts they have to offer the country with them.
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Dependent are not allowed to work unless they independently get employment and apply for a work permit. Simply put if you are a dependent you stay at home.
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I fully concur Emo. I am looking to nout more info on the boundaries of Dependent Spouse i.e. can they undertake any kind of work in order to earn their keep , else they are stuck at home in limbo.
If that’s the case, then I can only see the Foreign Nationals taking their gifts with them and moving on, instead of offering them.
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Hi George!
I’m from India. I recently came back to my home country from Mombasa Just because of work permit issues. Let me tell you was in a relationship with a Kenyan national women in this specific period of time. Everything is okay between us. Now we are looking further to marry each other. My question is — I can stay together and work in Kenya. So that we can plan for a bright future.
Awaiting for ths reply ASAP
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Hi George,
I’m David from Liberia. I’m married to a Kenyan under the Kenya Marriage law. It is over a year since we got married. We are blessed with a baby boy. My wife applied for a dependent pass on my behalf. She submitted all the require documents that was stipulated on the application check list. We were 100% sure that we were going to be issued the dependent pass after we were invited for an interview. During the interview, we were asked a few basic questions such as: “Why have you applied for a dependent? How long have you been married? Can we see a copy of your marriage certificate; passport or ID? we answered all the questions and provided original copies of all the documents requested for. In facts, my wife submitted copies of the same documents during the application. We left the interview room so positive that we would be issued the pass. Unfortunately, when I wife checked her e-portal that night, it read “NOT APPROVED, ADVISE TO APPLY FOR MULTIPLE ENTRY VISA. The reason for the denial was not stated. We are so frustrated because we want to raise our baby boy together, especially during this early stages of his life. We also found that a dependent pass may be a require for a permanent resident application. Meaning if we want to apply for PR after 3 yrs in marriage, we may need a DP. Now I’m preparing to leave. We are so downhearted! Your advise will be appreciated.
Thank You.
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Indeed sad. But again we have seen this trend where mail spouses are denied Dependent pass. We can revisit this and see how to help. By the way I lived in Monrovia for 1 year in 2012/2013.
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