Making a notice of objection valid
The three conditions that make a Kenyan notice of objection valid, how to serve it on KRA through iTax or otherwise, and what KRA's sixty days mean.
By Achekam · · 4 min read · For Accountants & audit firms in Kenya
An objection that KRA treats as invalid is worse than a weak one. A weak objection is decided on its merits. An invalid one may never reach them, and the time spent arguing about validity is time the client's thirty days were meant to cover.
The Tax Procedures Act is precise about what makes a notice of objection valid, and KRA has published how it wants the notice served. Getting both right is mostly a matter of discipline in the days after the assessment arrives. This article sets out the conditions, the ways of serving the notice, and the evidence-gathering that makes the difference.
Thirty days from notification
KRA says a taxpayer who disputes a tax decision may lodge a written notice of objection with the Commissioner within thirty days of being notified of the decision, under section 51(2) of the Tax Procedures Act. KRA's public notice of 29 February 2024 on service of objection notices explains how and where the notice must be lodged.
The thirty days run from notification, so the first job is to establish when the client was notified. A client that forwards an assessment a fortnight after receiving it has already spent half the time.
The three conditions for validity
The Tax Procedures Act, as published on Kenya Law, says in section 51(3) that a notice of objection is valid only if three things are true.
Precise grounds and the amendments sought
The notice must state precisely the grounds of objection and the amendments the taxpayer wants. "The assessment is excessive" is not a ground. "The assessment treats the deposit received on the March contract as income of the year, when the work was delivered and invoiced in the following year" is a ground, and the amendment sought follows from it: remove that amount from the year's income.
Write one ground per disputed item, each with the change it asks for. A reader at KRA should be able to see exactly which figures the client accepts and which it does not.
The tax not in dispute is paid
The tax that is not in dispute must have been paid, or an extension to pay applied for. This is the condition clients find hardest, because they want to hold back everything until the matter is settled. The Act does not allow that. Work out the undisputed portion from the grounds, have the client pay it, and keep the payment evidence with the notice.
Every relevant document submitted
All relevant documents must have been submitted. An objection that promises "documents to follow" is exposed on this condition. Gather the evidence before the notice goes in: contracts, invoices, eTIMS records, bank statements, correspondence, and the working papers that show how the client's figure was reached.
Serving the notice on KRA
KRA says notices of objection and supporting documents must be served on the Commissioner, Legal Services & Board Coordination, by uploading them on iTax.
Where documents cannot be uploaded on iTax, KRA says they may be e-mailed to LSBCIROStaff@kra.go.ke or hand delivered to an Independent Review of Objections office, such as the one on the 7th Floor, Ushuru Pension Towers, Elgon Road, Upper Hill, Nairobi. KRA also lists offices in Mombasa, Kitengela, Thika, Kisumu, Eldoret and Nakuru. Keep proof of whichever route was used: the iTax acknowledgement, the sent e-mail with its attachments, or a stamped receipt.
Sixty days, then deemed allowed
The Tax Procedures Act requires the Commissioner to make an objection decision within sixty days of receiving a valid notice of objection. If no decision is made in that time, the objection is deemed allowed. A taxpayer dissatisfied with the decision may appeal to the Tribunal within thirty days of being notified.
The word "valid" links the two. The sixty days, and the deemed allowance that follows them, depend on a notice that meets all three conditions. That is the practical reason to treat validity as the first test of any draft.
Collecting the client's evidence through Achekam
Staff can create, send and track requests to clients for documents, answers and confirmations in one RFI console, whichever screen the request was raised from. For an objection, that means one request listing everything the notice needs, sent the day the assessment arrives, with each item tracked until it comes back.
As documents arrive, they belong in the client's folder in the Document Centre, where staff can upload files and folders, keep versions, tag and search. Tag them with the assessment reference so that the bundle submitted with the notice can be assembled in one pass and kept as served.
Achekam computes objection and appeal deadlines for Kenyan assessments from its approved administration rule, setting each to the end of the day in Nairobi time. Its filing calendar leaves out any deadline whose rule is awaiting approval or contested and says why, so the team knows when it must diary the date itself.
A validity check before the notice goes in
| Condition | Question for the reviewer | Evidence on file |
|---|---|---|
| Lodged in time | Is it within thirty days of notification? | Date notified, date lodged |
| Precise grounds | Is every disputed item named, with its reason? | The grounds section |
| Amendments sought | Does each ground say what change is wanted? | The amendments section |
| Undisputed tax | Is it paid, or has an extension been applied for? | Payment or application |
| Documents | Is every document relied on attached? | The bundle as submitted |
| Service | Was it uploaded on iTax, or served another way KRA accepts? | Acknowledgement or receipt |
If the objection fails on its merits, the next stage is the Tribunal, covered in appealing to the Tax Appeals Tribunal. For the deadlines side by side with Nigeria's, see tax objection deadlines in Nigeria and Kenya.
General guidance only, not advice on your own circumstances. Tax and payroll rules change: check the current position with the authority or your adviser.
