Cost of transferring land

Stamp duty and the land registry’s own fees, added up, each line quoted from the instrument that sets it. An official search is KES 1,000, registration of the transfer is KES 1,000, and the Seventh Schedule wording for every figure is printed below.

Built from the Stamp Duty Act (Cap. 480), Schedule and the Land Registration (General) Regulations, Seventh Schedule [r. 97(1)] · checked on 26 October 2026

Price, or the government valuation if it is higher

Where the land is

Inside a municipalityTown or city land — item 12A, 4%Outside a municipalityAgricultural or rural land — item 11, 2%Between husband and wifeNo stamp duty — item 12B

A new certificate of title will be issuedAdds KES 2,500

Enter a price and the costs appear here.

Every fee, and the line that sets it

Land Registration (General) Regulations, Seventh Schedule [r. 97(1)]

Official search — KES 1,000

“Application for official search under section 34 of the Act (online and manual). 1,000”

Confirms who owns the land and what is registered against it before you pay anything.

Registration of the transfer — KES 1,000

“Application for registration of documents/instruments in the prescribed forms and any other whose forms are not prescribed. 1,000”

The transfer is not effective until it is registered.

New certificate of title or lease — KES 2,500

“Issuance of certificate of title or certificate of lease. 2,500”

Only where a fresh certificate is being issued in your name.

What is not in this total

Land Control Board consent, where the land is agricultural, and any county rates or land rent clearance the transfer needs first.
The valuation. Stamp duty follows the Chief Government Valuer’s figure where it is higher than your price, so a bargain purchase does not buy a smaller duty.
Capital Gains Tax, which is the seller’s, not the buyer’s — but it shapes what a seller will accept.
Other registry fees, where they apply. The same Seventh Schedule prices work this transfer may or may not need:
- Discharging the seller’s charge — KES 5,000. Where the land is mortgaged, the charge has to be discharged before the transfer can register.
- Opening a new register — KES 1,000. Where you are buying a subdivided portion rather than a whole existing parcel.
- Resubmitting a rejected document — KES 1,000. Charged per document, where the registry rejects one and it goes back in.

Buying? Start from the free sale agreement template.