Applying for Permanent Residency - Please advise

Hi Dee,

As far as i know as long as your spouse is Kenyan you can depend on him/her and we have something known as an aliens card that is issued to the dependent.

Our new constitution also allows dual citizenship or so i've heard. You may want to log into the government's immigration website to know more or more-so get advice from a Kenyan lawyer check out the Kenyan bar to find services of many.

Hope that helps somehow.

regards
Fareedh Kana

Thanks Fareedh.

Are you able to also work using a dependent pass? I am actually trying to see if I can get a permanent residency. I found the below on the immigration website and trying to ascertain whether you need to be living in Kenya and married for three years.

Permanent residence.
37. The following persons, their children and spouses
shall be eligible upon application in the prescribed manner for
grant of permanent residence status in Kenya—
(a) persons who were citizens by birth but have since
renounced or otherwise lost their citizenship status
and are precluded by the laws of the countries of
their acquired domicile from holding dual citizenship;
(b) persons who have held work permits for at least
seven years and have been continuously resident in
Kenya for the three years immediately preceding the
making of the application;
(c) children of citizens who are born outside Kenya and
have acquired citizenship of the domicile; and
(d) the spouses of Kenyan citizen married for at least
three years.

Hello,
I am also married to a Kenyan Citizen (15 years).  To the very best of my knowledge, a Dependents Pass will not permit you to work in Kenya.  The Alien card, referred to above, is a legal requirement for all no citizens who are in Kenya for a period in excess of 90 days and is nothing to do with a right to reside in the country.

As I understand it, your best option would be to apply for Dual Citizenship, as this would give you all the rights enjoyed by citizens of both countries, including the right to work legally, without needing to acquire a work permit, which can be very expensive. All the expats that I know, who are married to Kenyans have applied for Dual Citzenship.  Don't expect the process to be rapid, of free of 'chai'!

Thanks soo much! Unfortunately, I don't qualify for dual citizenship just yet as haven't lived in Kenya for 7 years or been married for 7 years. It would definitely have made life easier.

My easiest option seems to be going down the permanent residency route.

Keep the advice coming in though please - hoping to hear about all the options available.

Thanks soo much once again!

OK. A Dependents Pass may be the best option and easier to obtain when you are married to a Kenyan man.  Unfortunately its the other way round for me, and the authorities find it difficult to accept that a man can be dependent upon a woman.  After 15 years, I live in Kenya on a tourist visa, with regular trips out of the country, but wll be applying for Dual Citizenship this year (lots of chai required, so I have heard).

My recommendation is to contact a lawyer in Kenya. It was very helpfull for me in obtaining workpermit and business visa. It comes at a fee obviously, but it saves all the frustrations of dealing with Nyayo Hse urself. That house is just many stories of evil and corruption.
Collins Oyomba

Oyomba & Company
Advocates
International House, 1st Floor
Mama Ngina Street
P. O. Box 106327-00101
Nairobi

coyomba@oyomba-advocates.com

This one is very good, and on top he is a very pleasant person.
Good luck!

Of course you also need to consider the cost of a work permit, which is Kes 200 000 per annum plus professional fees.  A Dependents Pass is just a few 1000 shillings.