Kenya drops plan for tourists to declare mobile phone IMEI after public concerns

The policy, announced by the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), aimed at curbing the rise of unregistered devices that often avoid tax and safety standards. It was set to take effect on January 1, 2025. 

In the new development, Tourism CS Rebecca Miano announced that tourists would not be required to comply with the new directive, citing the government's commitment to make Kenya easily accessible to foreigners. 

"KRA has announced that Tourists will NOT be required to declare their gadgets IMEI numbers upon arrival. Kenya’s strategic location as the gateway to East Africa positions it as a regional hub for tourism and business and must therefore remain easily accessible," Miano stated. 

The decision followed consultative discussions with the relevant authorities to chart a suitable way forward. 

The government had previously floated the idea of placing tourists entering Kenya on a 'greylist' to grant them a grace period to comply with the new policy. 

This was announced by Communications Authority's Director General David Mugonyi during a summon by the National Assembly's Committee on Communication, Information and Innovation.

During the hearing, the lawmakers questioned whether KRA would infringe privacy laws under the guise of data protection. 

Mugonyi, however. assured the public that the Authority would not access Kenyans' data. 

"This engagement has nothing to do with the transactions we carry out on our phones. We want to ensure the right products are in the country, and the tax compliance aspect is strictly for that. KRA will not have access to people's data," Mugonyi said.