Frequently Asked Questions
There are 3 offices in the USA offering consular services namely Kenya Embassy in Washington DC and the Consulates in New York and Los Angeles. All consular services are well explained in the Consulate Website website: www.kenyaconsulatela.go.ke. Washington DC and The Kenya consulate in LA are currently the only centers in the USA where Kenyans can apply for the issuance of e-passport. Persons who are in urgent need of Kenya passports are encouraged to write to the Consulate through [email protected]Â Â explaining why the urgency/emergency.
The Government of Kenya has recently extended the validity of the dark blue machine readable passport period to November, 2022. Kenyans are therefore requested to take advantage of the extension and apply for e-passports as this might be the government’s final extension. It is important to note that Kenyans whose passports have expired can apply for the issuance of emergency travel documents in DC, NY or LA.
Currently, there several stations outside Kenya processing epassports, this includes Washington DC, Los Angeles Consulate, London, Berlin, Paris, Dubai and Pretoria. The Washington office is serving USA, Mexico, Canada, Latin America and the Caribbean.
This Service is currently available in DC, NY and LA. Just like passport, this service is at the moment available strictly on appointments as it involves close contact. First time applicants and Kenyans who have lost their IDs are encouraged to apply for it now.
a)Â Can one get visa on arrival?
Kenyans who are dual citizens should hence apply for their visas well in advance through the ecitizen online portal www.evisa.go.ke. Children below 16 years of age are currently exempted from the necessity of obtaining Kenya visas.
- Single Entry visa, East Africa Visa and Transit Visa applications once successfully submitted online are issued within 5 working days
- Referral Visa and Multiple Entry Visa cases may take up to 6 weeks or more to get approved/rejected
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Login to your evisa account and download the visa directly from there. If your status reads processing after 7 days, check if you have to make any correction and resubmit your application.
The collection of biometrics is a sensitive process that has security bearing. Consequently, the use of third party to collect biometric may not be feasible due to necessary security precautions.
Kenyans who were born before 27 August 1987 and had acquired other citizenship before 27 August 2010 (the date of promulgation of COK, 2010) are deemed to have lost their Kenyan citizenship and hence are required to apply to regain their Kenyan citizenship under the provision of Article 14(5) of COK, 2010. Elsewhere, all Kenyans who are Dual citizens and above the age of maturity are required to file an application for Dual citizenship disclosure. All duly signed applications can be mailed to DC, NY or LA for onward transmission to Nairobi for processing.
The Consular paused the programmes of visiting large metropolitan cities with huge population of Kenyans to offer consular services after the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic. However, once the situation eases, the Embassy will restore the visits.
The Embassy issues no objection letter for the transportation of the remains of Kenyans who passes on, including cases due to COVID-19 complications.
Visas can only be obtained at www.evisa.go.ke. The Consular section page has more information under visas. NB. The websites listed below might be for scammers and are NOT affiliated to the Kenya Government in any way. PLEASE DO NOT APPLY FOR E-VISA THROUGH THEM.