Govt waives Sh1,000 ID fees replacement

The Interior Cabinet Secretary Kpichumba Murkomen has waived fees charged for replacement of national IDs and changing of particulars in the document.

The announcement was contained in a special gazette notice issued today October 31, 2025.

The waiver will last for a period of six months.

“This is in line with H.E. President William Samoei Ruto’s directive aimed at ensuring that every Kenyan acquires the document, which is a crucial access point to government services and other opportunities,’ he said.

“This waiver follows our other reforms, which include free issuance to first-time ID applicants, abolition of the extra-vetting requirement for border counties, and the scrapping of authentication fees for birth certificates when applying for IDs and passports,” the CS added as he urged the public to take advantage of the waiver period and obtain the IDs.

The waiver takes effect immediately and will offer temporary relief to Kenyans seeking to update their ID records or replace lost identification documents.

The gazette notice follows a directive from President Ruto to remove the Sh1,000 charged fee on free replacement of national identity cards.

The President explained that the replacement fee was initially introduced to deter citizens from repeatedly losing their IDs, which were provided free of charge, and requesting replacements. However, to prioritize access to voter registration, the government decided to suspend these fees to facilitate the registration of voters. "We will make sure no one is denied the opportunity to register as a voter because of a lack of an identification card," Ruto emphasized.

In March this year, the president, during his tour of Kibra slums in Nairobi, directed that Kenyans should be issued with IDs at no cost. “Every Kenyan has a right to identity. We will end this culture of favouritism and long delays in ID issuance,” he said.