President Ruto Assents to the Value Added Tax Amendment Bill 2026

President William Ruto has signed the Value Added Tax (VAT) Amendment Bill 2026 into law.

The Head of State signed the new law on Friday, April 17, during a ceremony at State House, Nairobi.

The bill was introduced into the National Assembly by Kilifi North Member of Parliament Owen Baya on Thursday, April 16 and passed by lawmakers on the same date.

Highlighting the new law, National Assembly Clerk Samuel Njoroge said the bill was introduced in the house following a dispatch from the National Treasury.

“This bill follows a dispatch that came from the National Treasury dated 10th of April, which advised that his excellency the President requests the National Assembly to amend Cap 476 of the VAT Act so as to cushion Kenyans from the possible effect of the rising cost of petroleum and petroleum products,” said Njoroge.

He noted that the bill amends section 6 of the VAT Act which previously permitted the Treasury CS to vary VAT by not more than 25 percent of the standard 16 percent VAT.

Njoroge outlined that the 25 percent provided in the VAT Act was not enough to cushion the public from the rising fuel prices.

“Conscious that the 25 percent may not be able to cushion Kenyans appropriately, the National Assembly responded to your request and amended the act to provide that the VAT rate applicable to petroleum products for a period of 90 days shall be at 8 percent,” the National Assembly clerk stated.

Further, Njoroge said the new law allows the Treasury CS to extend the VAT rate for an additional 90 days should the need arise.

“The bill is also conscious that should the situation persist more than 90 days, they may need to extend the VAT rate further, and therefore it permits the Cabinet Secretary to extend for a further 90 days,” Njoroge added.

This comes after the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) revised retail fuel prices following a change in VAT from 13% to 8%.

In a statement on Wednesday, April 15, EPRA announced that pump prices for Super Petrol and Diesel in Nairobi have decreased by Ksh9.37 and Ksh10.21 per litre, respectively.

As such, super petrol, diesel and kerosene now retail at Ksh197.60, Ksh196.63 and Ksh152.78 respectively in Nairobi.

"The pump price per litre in Nairobi of Super Petrol and Diesel decreases by Ksh9.37/litre and Ksh10.21/litre respectively, while that of Kerosene remains unchanged.

"Consequently, the level of subsidy on Kerosene reduces from the current Ksh108.10/litre to Ksh96.56/litre," the statement read in part.