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MPs have directed the State Department for Immigration and Citizen Services to republish the new fees and levies for various services offered by the department following public outcry that some of them were too high.

The MPs, who sit in the departmental committee on delegated legislation, raised concerns that the fees ought to be made affordable.

At a meeting with Immigration Principal Secretary Julius Bitok, the MPs also pointed out that some of the notices made to effect the new changes had factual errors.

“We may need to republish this regulation and revoke the ones that are already there because if we consider them in the manner they are in, they will not have served the intended purpose,” warned Ainabkoi MP Samuel Chepkonga, who chairs the committee.

PS Bitok explained that the changes have been made as the current levies were made 36 years ago. He said that the changes have been prompted to take into consideration inflation costs and also because of the increase in the cost of raw materials.

“These fees are being revised after 36 years to take care of inflation because it has grown ten times more. This was done because the cost of materials has gone up, inflation has also gone up as well as to take care of fraud where a person can apply for an Identity Card more than one time,” the PS explained.

On the issuance of ID cards from Sh100 to Sh300, he explained that this is actually subsidised as the cost of producing one identity card currently is Sh600.

Yesterday the MPs raised concerns that some of the fees being imposed are way too high. They said that some of the fees being imposed would be discriminatory to the less privileged. Chepkonga in particular raised the issue with the increase of re-registration of birth fees from Sh100 to Sh1,000 saying this was too high and proposed that the fee be capped at Sh500.

 “If it were possible to categorise those in employment and indigent this would be better because having a figure that cuts across all sectors amounts to discrimination,” he said.

Reflective services

Samburu Woman Representative Pauline Lengurus voiced a concern that every government department appearing before them is increasing fees and levies, yet Kenyans are already complaining over the high taxes. She proposed that the increase should have been done gradually as opposed to one-off as it is the government that had delayed making the changes over time.

Some MPs also said that the increase in fees should also be reflected in the services offered by the State.

Citizenship costs

In the new levies, registration of birth and death is free while birth and death certificates are being issued at Sh200, from Sh50. Late registration of birth and death certificates is Sh500, up from Sh100. Re-registration of birth certificates will be charged Sh1,000, up from Sh100. Registration of a Kenyan citizen living abroad is charged at US$150.

Verification of a Certificate of Birth or Certificate of Death for private Kenyan agencies has gone up from the Sh900, from the current Sh100 while authentication of certificates for the Government of Kenya agency is now being charged at Sh500, up from Sh100. The issuance of a Maisha card is being charged at Sh1000, which is the same cost being charged on replacement of a lost Identity Card (ID).