Obtaining a Building Permit in Kenya
A building permit is a legal regulatory document required by the Kenyan government when one has decided to start a construction project.
The essence of this regulatory document is to ensure that the house being built is in accordance with the stipulated building codes and regulations.
Below are the steps that are adhered to when one wants to get themselves a building permit in Kenya:
1. Obtain a Survey Plan from the Survey of Kenya
Start by visiting the Survey of Kenya Offices in the Ministry of Land Departments so that you can obtain a survey plan.
Request for Folio Registry number search: You are required to provide proof of land ownership when requesting the survey plan.
After which, proceed and pay for the Folio Registry number search, and on this, you will be required to produce an authorization of payment for this service.
Without forgetting, confirm the availability of the survey plan and pay for the survey plan.
The whole process will take you a maximum of one day to complete.
2. Obtain a project report from an environmental expert
Once the survey plan has been obtained, a licensed environmental expert must be hired to make the necessary arrangements so that the project can be submitted to NEMA.
The process can take 3–5 days.
3. Obtain approval of the environmental impact study from the National Environment Management Authority.
Following the current enactment of the Environmental Management and Co-ordination Act on February 27, 2009, companies now have to obtain approval of projects from the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA).
Projects in all risk categories are subject to approval and an environmental impact assessment (EIA).
4. Submit and obtain approval of architectural plans from the county government
The documents to be submitted entail:
The proposed development
A survey plan from the Survey of Kenya
Ownership documents
Up-to-date rates and payment receipts
Structural plans
Pay for permit fees: The county government will issue an invoice that must be paid; this can take up to 2–3 weeks to be obtained.
Also, obtain authenticated architectural plans and a construction permit.
The building permit fee is based on the size of the building and varies from county to county depending on how it is applied. e.g., some counties charge a specific amount per square meter.
5. Submit and obtain approval of the structural plans
Visit your county’s development control office and follow the following guidelines:
Submit structural plans.
Obtain structural plan approval.
With approved drawings, construction may start while the application for a building permit is being processed.
The following documents are to be submitted for approval:
project plans
architectural drawings
Location survey of property documents and others.
It takes approximately one day for approval.
Then you can consider submitting the structural plans for signing.
6. Obtain stamps on architectural and structural plans from Nairobi City County, specifically from the Development Control Section
Once the plans have been approved, the architect must submit hard copies of the plans to be stamped by the county government, even after submitting the documents online.
The engineer must also do the same after the architect’s plans have been stamped.
The process roughly takes 10 days to be ready.
7. Apply for project registration with the National Construction Authority
The building company must then submit a project registration form to the National Construction Authority (NCA) containing information about the proposed construction project.
The process of getting the compliance certificate takes around a week.
The building business obtains a provisional certificate after submitting the application, attesting that the registration is being processed.
8. Receive on-site visits by NCA to check for compliance and obtain an invoice
Following the submission of the application, the construction site is inspected to ensure that it complies with the authorized designs and the NEMA clearance.
The applicant will receive an invoice with the amount due after this site inspection.
9. Submit payment receipt, obtain preliminary compliance certificate, and compliance certificate
Once payment is made, a provisional certificate of compliance, valid for 90 days, is given to the applicant.
If later there are no violations of compliance, then the final compliance certificate will be issued.
It takes approximately seven days for approval.
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