The High Court has suspended the government directive that would have required every tourist visiting Kenya to purchase a Ksh6.5 million health insurance policy before entry.

🇰🇪 Breaking It Down

Justice Francis Rayola Olel issued the interim orders on August 24, 2026, halting the requirement pending a full hearing of the matter following a case filed by two petitioners.

The two petitioners in the case argued that the Ministry of Health's move to introduce the requirement contradicted an earlier decision by the Ministry of Interior, which had granted tourists easy entry into the country.

Their lawyer told the court that the Health Ministry was effectively usurping powers that belong solely to the Interior Ministry when it comes to managing foreign nationals.

📌 What You Need to Know

The petitioners argued the directive was beyond their powers, since only the Interior and Immigration Departments have authority over who enters Kenya under the Citizenship and Immigration Act.

“The directive is ostensibly ultra vires as the 3rd Respondent is purporting to direct the second respondent on the function of foreign nationals’ management, which is a preserve of the first and second respondents only to the exclusion of the third and fourth respondents under the Kenya Citizenship and Immigration Act,” the petitioner’s lawyer stated.

The petitioners further pointed out that there was no clear mechanism in place to handle mandatory insurance for tourists entering the country.

They also raised concerns that the ministry intended to handle tourists' personal data outside the immigration system, calling the rushed rollout a recipe for hidden costs and potential litigation.

The directive had been introduced through Gazette Notice No. 11492, published by Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale on July 30.

It required that all foreign travelers planning to stay in Kenya for less than 12 months hold a travel health insurance policy of at least USD 50,000, which translates to roughly Ksh6.4 million, an amount critics say would have made Kenya one of the priciest entry points for tourists in the region.

📰 Source: Kenyans.co.ke