Last Updated, August 2017

Resident Individuals : National Identification Number and Date of Birth
Non – Resident Individuals: Alien Registration Number
Companies and Partnerships: Certificate of Registration Number

How to Apply For KRA Pin Using ITAX Portal

The Kenya Revenue Authority has upgraded the tax collection and management system. They have thus shifted from Integrated Tax Management System (ITMS)to the new ITAX system. Those individuals with PINs generated using the old system are being requested to update them into the new Itax system. The same case applies to those who are applying for new PIN, they are supposed to use the new ITAX system. I will try to give you a simple procedure of how to go about it when you are applying for your PIN the first time using Itax Portal.

If you already have a Pin generated using the older ITMS system, you should Update your KRA pin to iTax.

How to Update KRA Pin to iTax

It has become mandatory for Kenyans with old ITMS Personal Identification Number (PIN) to update to iTax. Kenya Revenue Authority recently upgraded the tax collection and management system from Integrated Tax Management System (ITMS) to the new iTax System. Even those applying for new Pin must apply for KRA Pin using iTax option.

How to Update Your KRA Pin to iTax

The first thing is to go to iTax portal; you can click on this link. This will land you to iTax online services page.
Enter your pin number and click on continue.
You will get a message that ‘you have not updated your details in iTax. Click here to update.’
A new page will appear where you will select tax payer type and citizenship. Tax payer type is either individual or non-individual (for company, NGOs, and others).
Fill your national identification number, date of birth and security stamp. Click on submit. Confirm you want to submit the data.
Ipage update page will open and most of your details will be auto populated.
Check if all the information is okay on all tabs. You can update any information you want like the address and contact details. Ensure the email provided is the right one because your updated pin will be sent to it. The income tax will be automatically set to what you had previously chosen and you cannot change unless you visit any KRA office.

Submitting Your Pin

Perform the arithmetic operation at the bottom and then click submit. There will be a pop up asking if that is the email you want to use for the PIN you have applied. If you are okay with that and click okay, the form will be submitted. You will get a PIN immediately on your iTax page. Download it and print. Another copy of your PIN will be sent to your email.

You can leave things as they are but you will be missing one crucial final stage of creating your iTax log in password.

Creating your iTax Log in Password

Log in to your email and you will find your PIN and password that have been generated by iTax. Open iTax portal again and input your pin, password, and arithmetic calculation. In some area copy paste is disabled so you will have to rely on manual entry. A new page will appear that will let you change your password and as well as create a security question. Make sure you do not forget your password.

After getting your Pin using Itax, it will be easier to apply for Tax Compliance Certificate.

How to Apply for Your KRA Pin Using Itax Portal

The first thing is to go to the iTax Portal you can use this link https://itax.kra.go.ke/KRA-Portal/ . Upon the portal opening, you will see two options or rather two questions:-

Do you have a PIN?
Do you want to apply for a PIN?

When applying for a PIN for the first time, use the second option. Click on the “Register’ link and a new web page will open.

On the new page, you have to fill two questions:
a) Tax Payer type – individual – this is for an individual person as opposed to a company. Non individual – this is the option to use when applying for a company, NGO, International Organization, Diplomatic Organization, Government Organizations, and such other types of PINs.

b) Mode of registration – there are two modes – Online and Upload form. Use the online mode and click next to proceed.

On the new page there are four tabs at the top;

Basic Information
Obligation Details
Source Income Details
Agent Details

Basic Information

On this Tab, you will have to fill residential details first. Select your citizenship and move on to select your profession. Next input your ID number and date of birth. If the two are correct, a lot of information will be populated automatically. The other details you will have to input are your physical address information, postal address, and contact details. When inputting your email, make sure it is one you have access to or it is functioning. Once you have filled the necessary parts click on next button at the bottom of the page.

Obligation Details

On the Obligation Details page you are supposed to fill your tax obligation. The obligations available are Income Tax Resident, Income Tax Non Resident, Income Tax PAYE (for employer only), Turnover Tax, and Value Added Tax. For an individual Kenyan citizen, you will use Income Tax Resident. Remember to choose the registration date which will be the date you are applying for the PIN.

Source of Income

This is the last tab you will have to fill and what is required is your source(s) of income. There are three options, Employment Income, Rental Income, and Business Income, just fill in the appropriate one and click Add. Below that, you will also have to select the sector of the economy you are involved in among the ones on the list. Click Add to save it on the database. Click on next to continue when done.

Agent Details

You will most likely skip this option unless you have an agent authorized to make any submission on your behalf.

Final Stage

Perform the arithmetic operation at the bottom and then click submit. There will be a pop up asking if that is the email you want to use for the PIN you have applied. If you are okay with that and click okay, the form will be submitted. You will get a PIN immediately on your Itax page. Download it and print. Another copy of your PIN will be sent to your email.

You can leave things as they are but you will be missing one crucial final stage of creating your Itax log in password.

Important

Once you become registered and get your PIN, you are supposed to be filling returns. For VAT, it is done monthly and Income Tax Individual once in a year.

Creating your Itax Log in Pasword

Log in to your email and you will find your PIN and password that have been generated by Itax. Open Itax portal again and input your pin, password, and arithmetic calculation. In some area copy paste is disabled so you will have to rely on manual entry. A new page will appear that will let you change your password and as well as create a security question. Make sure you do not forget your password.

How to Apply For KRA Tax Compliance Certificate Online

The KRA Tax Compliance Certificate is a valid documentation issued by Kenya Revenue Authority to indicate that an individual or a company has been paying taxes. There are some places one cannot be able to transact without showing this vital document. For instance those who intend to apply for tenders need to have this certificate for them to be able to proceed. This hub will show you the necessary steps to follow in order to be able to apply for KRA Tax Compliance Certificate online.

Apply for Tax Compliance Certificate Online

There has been rapid technological improvement in most government offices in Kenya. This has mostly been done to create transparency in these offices and in the process eliminating corruption. The digitization or rather computerization of services has also helped increase the efficiency of how business is done. Kenya Revenue Authority has also not been left behind. In early days, application for the Tax Compliance Certificate was being done manually. Now things have changed and you apply for TCC online.

Before You Apply for Your TCC Make Sure You Have

Make sure you have a pin and if you do not have apply for KRA pin Using iTax portal.
Filed tax returns for the registered tax obligations
Paid the assessed taxes
Declared the correct income.

How to Apply For Your Tax Compliance Certificate Online

For you to apply for the TCC you must be a person or company that pays taxes and has got no arrears. If you have missed some months, you will not get issued with the certificate. The best thing if you have not paid your taxes will be for you to check with your KRA office and sort out the issue. For those who have paid their taxes, this is what you need to do to be issued with the certificate. It is an easy process.

Process of Applying for Tax Compliance Certificate

Make sure you have upgraded your PIN from ITMS to ITAX.
Log in to the ITAX portal using your PIN and the password you created and the security stamp provided (in form of a math test) and login.
After logging in, head straight to the Certificates link. Click on the Apply for Tax Compliance Certificate.
A new window will open with the tax payer Pin and name displayed. There is a text area where you will give the reason why you are applying for Tax Compliance Certificate.
Click on submit after typing the reason for your TCC application.
You will get a message that application for Tax Compliance has been submitted successfully.

The next thing is to download the acknowledgement receipt which is a sort of waiting document. Click on the link provided and download the acknowledgement receipt.

The Acknowledgment Receipt

The acknowledgment receipt is also sent to your email. The next thing is now to wait for your Tax Compliance Certificate to be processed by those responsible for it. The waiting period is not defined and can go up to a week or even exceed. You should keep on checking your email for feedback concerning your Compliance Certificate. The best thing is to apply for it early enough so that you do not end up feeling frustrated as you wait.

Tracking the Status of Your Tax Compliance Certificate

You can use the acknowledgement number to track the status of your application any time.

To do this, go to useful links option and click on Track Status of Application
Enter the case type which should be Other Registration, enter your PIN, date you applied and up to when date.
Enter the reference number – get this one from the acknowledgement receipt and then click on consult. You will get the status of your application though it is not much information.

Once your certificate is processed and sent to your email, the next step is to print. It is valid for one year from the date of issue.

How to file Nil VAT Returns on Itax

It is compulsory for companies in Kenya to file VAT returns. VAT returns are filed every month and the last day of filing is the 20^th of any month. Filing yours returns after the deadline will attract a penalty. Failing to file your returns is catastrophic as you will be fined 10,000 for each month you have not filed. Also late registration for Value Added Tax for a company will attract a penalty.

Thus it is absolutely necessary for any company Limited or Partnership to file their VAT returns monthly. If your company has not conducted any business, you are still supposed to file your returns. This is where you file nil return. In early days, these returns were being filed manually but a lot of changes where digital technology is being applied have occurred in Kenya. Nowadays, filing is being done online using the iTax platform.

Requirements for Online VAT Filling

For nil returns, you will be required to have your pin number and password to be able to log into the iTax platform. If however you have not updated your pin from ITMS to iTax, you will be required to do so first. You can check this guide on how to update your PIN to Itax Portal.

Logging Into the Itax Platform

Armed with your pin and password, you only need to type itax.kra.go.ke on your browser. Then enter your pin and click on continue.
Enter your password and answer the mathematical quiz you will encounter (security stamp). Click on log in to gain access to the Itax portal.
After logging into your portal, locate the ‘Returns’ menu and click on it. Then select the option ‘file nil return’.
Select the obligation which of course will be Value Added Tax (VAT).
Select the period of return which is usually the previous month and then click on submit. You will get this warning, “Dear Taxpayer filing of NIL returns is only applicable in cases where you have NO transactions to declare for the period, Are you sure you want to file Nil Return?”
After successful submission, a PDF receipt will be available for download. Download it and print it for your records. However, it is not necessary to print this receipt; you can always query the system to see your previous payments.

In Case Of System Errors

There are times when the system is having problems. Such times it does not generate an automatic PDF receipt for printing. What you need to do is to view your filed returns to see if your transaction has gone through. You can also print from this point if need be. To view your filed returns click on “Returns’ menu and click on filed returns. Select the tax obligation (VAT), Type of return, entity type, the return period from and to, and then click on consult. You will be able to see the detailed report for that specific month you have selected.

How to Apply for KRA Pin Certificate

KRA Pin Application

This method of using ITMS has been stopped please apply for your PIN using Itax option.

KRA PIN application is a hub that has been specifically created to help people apply for KRA PIN number online in Kenya without problems and to shorten the time it will take you to apply and get the KRA (Kenya Revenue Authority) PIN.

The issuance of PIN has been fully automated following the successful launch of electronic registration services in Kenya. The use of Personal Identification Number (PIN) has also become mandatory in most government offices thus it is important to know how to apply for the KRA pin online.

University students applying for HELB loan also require the KRA pin.

Steps to follow for successful KRA pin application

The following steps will guide you on how to apply for the KRA pin. Before you proceed, make sure you have your National Identity card. If not, make sure you know the exact details in it.

The best way to do it, is to have another tab open where you are going to access the KRA’s website. Then you can be able to follow these simple steps one by one. Do not be in a hurry, read every line here and also on the website as you start filling in your details.

1. Visit the KRA’s website by typing the following in your browser, www.kra.go.ke/portal. Alternatively, you can Google KRA and select the first link you see.

At the center of the page that will open, you will notice an area written “KRA Online”, below there, click on where it is written “Click Here, To Apply for your PIN and/or Submit Online Returns.”

2. On the new window that opens, below the message “Welcome to KRA Online services.
Please enter your ‘User Id’ and ‘password’ to access the system services”. click “on new tax payer”.

Click on ‘New Taxpayer’ when applying KRA pin for the first time

3. On the new tax payer window, which is written “Pin assignment for new tax payer”, select whether you are applying pin for Resident, Non-Resident or Company. Then click on validate.

4. A new window opens where you have to fill the following details:- ID Number, Date of Birth of applicant, District of Birth of applicant, (these fields are mandatory). Then you can also fill Mother’s last name and Father’s last name, although these two are not mandatory. Then you will have to type the year of birth of the applicant and then click on validate.

5. If the information you have entered is correct, a new window will open with some of your details like Father’s and Mother’s name already pre-recorded.

6. Now fill in the following details correctly found in Section 3, the ones marked by an asterisk are a must; for physical address, City/town, Street/road, building/location, Area code, Lr No (you can click on any number there). For the details you do not have, you can write NONE.

For postal address, fill in the Box No and postal code.
For telephone fill in the land line and area code, and mobile.
For Email address, enter your email address and make sure you enter the correct email address because that is where your pin will be sent.

The other information to fill is your Main business activity (if you do not find the one you want, you can select others not defined) and lastly the tax payer obligation. Leave alone the Secondary business activity.

Four Section 4 fill in you tax payer obligation, most of the people are under the Income Tax Individual (IT1).

Section 6 – Once you are satisfied the information you have given is correct, tick the check box at the bottom and then submit your form.

Thank you, Dear Customer, Your registration has been successful, Your PIN and password will be sent to the email address provided by you for reconfirmation, as well as security stamp that is also sent, whose content must be entered also next time you log in.

Please change your password the first time that you will connect to KRA.

7. Now you can open another window for your mail and check the details that have been sent to your email account. These are, your Pin, Password, and security stamp.

8. Go back to the KRA Website and at the top right hand side click on Main menu. Once the main menu opens, input your pin, password (you can copy paste these) and the security stamp (if the security stamp is not clearly visible, you can download it). Then you click on the log in button.

9. In the next window that opens, you must change your password, so input a new Password which should be of 8 characters were 6 of them must be letters and 2 must be numbers. Note down your password in case you forget.

10. Now to print your Pin certificate, click on main menu and under the Registration Application click on the Registration Certificate. Now you can print your Pin certificate.

KRA Pin Processes

How to apply for a company’s PIN

The process of applying for a company’s pin is easy and straight forward as long as you have the following with you :-

Company’s Certificate of Registration
Date Business Commenced
Associates PIN (These individuals PINs must be registered through the online process, you can not use the old manual PIN)

Follow stage 1 and 2 as above.
Select company and validate.
Fill the fields for Company’s Certificate of Registration and Date Business Commenced.
Click on validate, if the details are okay, a page opens.
Fill one or all the associates PIN, select relation and add to list.
Proceed filling the form as above for individual.

The process of KRA online pin application should take you just a few minutes. If the explanation was helpful or if there is an area that needs improvement, you can tell me.

Kenya Revenue Authority: How to make payment of your Returns via M-Pesa on iTax

FAQs For Other General Questions

How can I know my PIN and station if I have my ID?
You can query through dialling (572) from your mobile phone and follow the steps to get the information. You are charged a small fee of Kshs 5.

Does KRA offer training on iTax?
i.Yes. Training is done free of charge every Thursday at 5th floor Times Tower. You can also visit our nearest KRA office. . .

ii.User guides are also available at KRA offices and website to provide step by step instructions on how to navigate through the iTax system. . .

iii.KRA intends to partner with appointed, licensed and trained Intermediary Agents who will assist taxpayers in Registration and filing of tax returns. . .

iv.KRA registered Tax Agents (Including ICPAK/ LSK members) will be enabled to transact on iTax on behalf of taxpayers using their own log in credentials.
How secure is my information on iTax? Does KRA intend to secure taxpayers information by ensuring that no other party has access to the files once the data is uploaded on to KRA website? Who will be able to access the system and who will not?

1.Some of the security features integrated into iTax are: . .

2.During the update of registration details, the taxpayer is required to provide an email address that is unique for every PIN registered. The security features for the creation of a password have been strengthened and the taxpayer is at liberty to determine the strength of his/her password. In addition the security question authenticates the rightful user on issuance of a new password. . .

3.The security stamp provided upon log in is to prevent phishing programs that attempt to hack into the taxpayers iTax account. . .

4.There is an on-going Government initiative under the National Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) Project in which KRA is a pilotee. This security feature will enable taxpayers to securely transact on iTax and verify their identity via digital signature.

Where can I get support in case I have any issue with iTax?
Through email Callcentre@kra.go.ke and DTDOnlineSupport@kra.go.ke or call 020 2390919 and 020 2391099 an

How to Apply for KRA Pin