National Assembly invites public views on Business Laws Amendment Bill

The National Assembly has invited Kenyans and other stakeholders to submit their views on a proposed law that seeks to amend six key statutes, with Parliament saying the changes are aimed at improving the country's business environment and streamlining investment processes.

In a notice issued on Thursday, Clerk of the National Assembly Samuel Njoroge said the Business Laws (Amendment) Bill (Senate Bill No. 51 of 2024) had already undergone its First Reading and was referred to the Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning for consideration before being reported back to the House.

The Bill, sponsored by the Senate Majority Leader, proposes amendments to the Investment Promotion Act, the Employment Act, the Occupational Safety and Health Act, the Affordable Housing Act, the Land Act and the Anti-Counterfeit Act.

According to the notice, the proposed legislation “seeks to amend the Investment Promotion Act, Cap. 485” by introducing a number of measures intended to regulate and facilitate investments in the country.

Among the proposed changes are provisions “to provide for the accreditation of facilitators for foreign investors and the registration of foreign direct investments with the Authority before engaging in such investments”, as well as requirements on the issuance of investment certificates and limits on the transfer of those certificates after they have been granted.

The Bill also seeks to require the investment authority to keep records of registered investments and establish “a centralized facility for the provision and coordination of government services and regulatory approvals required by investors, including services relating to business registration, taxation, immigration, licensing and permits”.

Further proposals under the Investment Promotion Act would address work permit entitlements for holders of investment certificates and require government institutions to cooperate with the authority in carrying out its mandate.

The Employment Act would also be amended through changes to the definitions of employee and employer. The Bill further proposes “the definition of the term business process outsourcing” and sets out responsibilities for business process outsourcing firms and providers of information technology services.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act, the proposed amendments would redefine the terms employee, employer and workplace to recognise remote working locations as workplaces.

The legislation also targets the Affordable Housing Act by revising the definition of an affordable housing scheme and introducing new definitions for administration fee and social, physical and urban infrastructure.

Changes proposed under the Land Act are largely focused on affordable housing units and timelines linked to default notices. The Bill proposes “to reduce the period for rectifying a default from three months to forty-five days”, reduce the period before statutory remedies can be exercised from ninety days to forty-five days, and cut the notice period for the sale of charged land from forty days to twenty days.

The Anti-Counterfeit Act would also be amended through the introduction of additional definitions, expansion of board membership and tougher enforcement provisions.

Among the proposed penalties is “a fine of two million shillings or imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years or both” for offences involving counterfeit labelling materials or documentation.

The Clerk has called on members of the public and stakeholders to submit memoranda to the Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning by 5.00pm on July 9, 2026, as part of the public participation process on the Bill.