Immigration officials said Friday the first batch of visa-free foreigners landed in Kenya four days after the program was scheduled to commence.
Principal Secretary Julius Bitok who led a team on a fact-finding mission said the visitors arrived at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) using the Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA).
One ETA costs Sh4,600, applied via the eCitizen platform.
He said over 5,000 ETA applications have already been received, with 2,141 approved so far. The ETA application replaces the visa, after the President’s directive that the Kenya would be visa free beginning 2024.
The government had postponed the roll out of the ETA system pending its implementation. However, the government provided requirements for the approval of the ETA for travellers.
New rules are being put in place to enhance the process. For instance, all passengers coming into the country will be subjected to advance screening using the Electronic Travel Authorization if proposed amendments to the law are enacted.
The Ministry of Interior has proposed a Bill, The Kenya Citizenship and Immigration (Amendment) Regulations, 2023 that seeks to amend the principal regulations by introducing advance passenger information (API) and to secure the data.
According to the Bill, API means the biographic data of a passenger or crew member and the flight details of an aircraft operator and other relevant details, against security databases before they even arrive in the country.
The regulations and changes in the law will be taken through Parliament for approval. The proposed changes, introducing prescreening, follow President William Ruto’s announcement of visa-free entry to Kenya.
The airlines or agents will play a key role in providing information and where access to specific API is necessary to respond to a threat, the aircraft operator will supply accurate data to the director of Immigration.
If the information is found to be erroneous, faulty or misleading, the airline shall be liable to pay an administrative penalty of USD10,000 (Sh1.57million).
“An administrative penalty shall not be payable where the aircraft operator or pilot in command of the aircraft satisfies the Director that the contravention was not made knowingly or recklessly,” the regulations state.
The amendment also seeks to digitize immigration processes and integrate border services to enhance efficiency, improve security measures, facilitate a streamlined travel experience, and ensure security.
The Regulations seek to amend the principal regulations, the Kenya Citizenship and Immigration Regulations, 2012 by, for example, deleting the word “visa” and substituting it with the words “Electronic Travel Authorization”.
According to the regulations, each person intending to travel into the country shall apply to the Director for ETA through the electronic portal and be in possession of the Authorization before embarkment.
However, possession of an Electronic Travel Authorization shall not constitute final authority to enter the country. Each carrier coming into the country shall not onboard a passenger who does not hold a valid ETA.
The captain in charge of a carrier shall be responsible for ensuring that each passenger on board the aircraft holds a valid Electronic Travel Authorization.
Any carrier that brings into Kenya a person who does not hold a valid ETA shall return that passenger to his or her last port of call or country of origin.
“Each carrier entering into Kenya or its operator or agent shall submit advance passenger information (API) and passenger Name record (PNR) to the Director,” the regulations state.
For the purposes of carrying out assessment under these regulations, an immigration officer may compare API or data against databases of persons sought or under alert watch list, including criminal deportees, suspected terrorists and other persons of interest to the intelligence community.
The officers shall handle the data exclusively within a secure location within Kenya, and all information will be processed in accordance with the provisions of the Data Protection Act, 2019.
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