Kenya Requires Pre-Arrival Health Insurance for All Foreign Visitors from October 2026

By Safari News — Africa Calling Safaris, Partner desk, Nairobi · 13/10/2026

Updated 23 October 2026

Kenya has made government-approved travel health insurance compulsory for all foreign nationals entering the country, with the rule fully enforced from 6 October 2026. The requirement stems from Gazette Notice No. 11492, signed on 29 July by Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale under the 2023 Social Health Insurance Act, and covers any non-Kenyan staying under 12 months, including tourists, business visitors and students. Kenya’s Electronic Travel Authorization portal now refuses to process applications unless recognised cover is shown, effectively making the policy a prerequisite for entry rather than an optional add-on.

The scheme requires a minimum of $50,000 in benefits: $25,000 for medical evacuation, $20,000 for treatment, $5,000 for repatriation, $1,000 for mental health care and $300 for medicines. Only insurers licensed under Kenya’s Insurance Act may issue it, at a listed $44 plus a $1 access fee, though test transactions have shown a final charge nearer $52. Cover can be bought directly during the ETA process or separately via the eCitizen platform beforehand; foreign-issued travel insurance is not accepted under the current system. A legal challenge briefly paused enforcement, but a Marsabit High Court judge upheld the scheme on 7 October, while a separate consumer-rights petition remains unresolved.

For travellers routing through the Caucasus toward East Africa, this means factoring the Kenyan purchase into pre-departure planning alongside visa and transit arrangements, since the ETA will not finalise without it. Those continuing to Tanzania or Zanzibar face comparable mandatory schemes, each priced at $44 and valid up to 92 days, meaning a single Mara-Serengeti-Zanzibar itinerary can require three separate compulsory policies in addition to standard travel insurance.

Based on reporting by Safari News, the travel desk of Africa Calling Safaris (Nairobi), GTour’s partner for East Africa. Read the original there.