Applicants often ask how to get a mining licence in Kenya and what actually happens between submitting papers and holding a granted right. The journey runs through the Mining Cadastre Registry and the Mineral Rights Board under the Mining Act 2016. The steps below apply to the main mineral rights, though the detail varies with each type. Here is the path, in plain terms.
What should you do before applying?
Start with the cadastre. The Mining Cadastre Registry, available online at cadastre.go.ke, shows where applications and granted rights exist, so you can confirm that the ground you want is open. Then settle your corporate structure, because an application must be made by a properly incorporated company or an eligible individual, and confirm that you can demonstrate the technical and financial capability the Act expects of applicants.
What does the application itself involve?
An application is lodged with the Mining Cadastre Registry in the prescribed form. Supporting documents usually include a proposed work programme, evidence of technical and financial capability, and the plans defining the area sought. Requirements differ by right: a prospecting application is not assessed the same way as a mining licence. Reading the Act itself on Kenya Law before lodging saves months of correction.
Who considers and grants the licence?
Once an application is accepted, the Mineral Rights Board considers it and advises the Cabinet Secretary responsible for mining, who grants or declines the right. Some applications involve a hearing or representations from affected parties. Timelines vary with the type of right and the quality of the application, and no applicant should assume a fixed period.
What happens after the licence is granted?
- Execution of the grant and payment of prescribed charges, recorded in the cadastre.
- Compliance with conditions attached to the right, including reporting and minimum work obligations.
- Environmental licensing before ground is broken, under the Environment Management and Co-ordination Act.
- Renewal and transfer formalities, which require consent and should never be left to the last minute.
Applications are often delayed by avoidable paperwork rather than by geology. If you are preparing an application, our mining law team reviews work programmes and supporting papers before lodgement, and our project finance practice assists where the venture will need external funding.
For guidance on your specific situation, contact CS Advocates LLP , call, WhatsApp, or book a confidential consultation at our Westlands, Nairobi office.