It is official (in Kenya) you can search a business name and register it in less than 7 minutes thanks to ecitizen portal launched by president sometime back. What you need is to log on to www.ecitizen.go.ke.
STEP ONE (1 MINUTE)
Fill in your first name as it appears on your ID. The your ID and phone numbers should follow. Activate your account by following a link that will be sent to your email account.
STEP TWO (1 MINUTE)
An SMS code will be sent to your phone as a way to confirm that your ecitizen account is valid and active. Now go back to www.ecitizen.go.ke homepage and here you will find a dashboard that has five agencies namely:
- National Transport and Safety Authority
- Office of The Attorney General and Department of Justice
- Department of Immigration Services
- Ministry of Land, Housing & Urban Development
STEP THREE (1 MINUTES)
Click on the Office of The Attorney General and Department. Select on Business name search or business registration. For Business name search you fill a form with the name (s) you would like to search. A brief description is also required. Click continue, review your entry and submit. An invoice for sh 150 and a name search letter are generated.
STEP FOUR (2 MINUTES)
Next is payment for your application. Payment methods include;
- M-pesa.
- Debit/credit/prepaid cards
- ecitizen agent
For M-pesa transaction follow the Steps Below.
- Go to M-PESA on your phone
- Select Pay Bill option
- Enter Business no. 206206
- Enter Account no. ….. NB: this will be generated automatically.
- Enter the Amount. KES 150
- Enter your M-PESA PIN and Send
- You will receive a confirmation SMS from MPESA
STEP FIVE (30 SECONDS)
Once you receive a successful reply from Mpesa. Click the complete button.
An application is queued and within one working day you will get the feedback.
Finally by clicking on services. You will see services requested and application summary. Application Summary shows.
- Service requested
- Submitted by
- Date of submission.
- Date of approval
- Days in progress
- Application status
Clearly, getting your business registered and up and running has become much easier a process than it was a few years back when you had to wait for months just to get a certificate of registration. I hope this article has enlightened you.
FURTHER READING: How To (Manually) Register a Business in Kenya
About the Writer
Joel Mwaniki is a student at Mt Kenya University taking Bcom- finance option, working for a company in the dairy industry.
