Change of Use in Kenya Explained: Costs, Timelines, and Approval Requirements

A practical, developer-guide—and how Lybrae Spatial Solutions de-risks approvals end-to-end.

Why “Change of Use” matters

Changing land from (say) residential to commercial/mixed use can unlock FAR, yields, and bankability—but only if it’s done by the book. In Kenya, Change of Use (CoU) is a statutory development permission. It’s how counties keep growth aligned with zoning, infrastructure capacity, environmental safeguards, and local plans. Skip it or mis-time it and you risk stop-orders, delayed financing, or licenses being withheld.

What exactly counts as Change of Use?

Under Kenya’s Physical and Land Use Planning framework, Change of Use is required when you shift between use classes (e.g., residential → commercial). If you’re only adding a secondary use without altering the dominant one—and it’s within 20% of floor area—counties may treat it as an Extension of Use instead. Where the change stays within the same use class, no CoU is needed (subject to zoning).

Pro tip: We run a fast use-class and zoning screen up front so you don’t apply for the wrong pathway

Apartment Under Construction – Potential Mixed-Use Redevelopment in Nairobi

The legal backbone (the parts you really need to know)

• Development permission is mandatory before carrying out development—CoU inclusive. Counties have clear powers to approve, condition, or refuse applications.

• Public notice is required for CoU: an on-site notice and a newspaper notice for at least 14 consecutive days, with a window for objections.

• If the county doesn’t respond in 60 days, permission is deemed granted by law (though in practice most lenders and registries will still ask for a formal letter).

• Permissions lapse after 3 years if you don’t commence; building works must typically be completed within 5 years (or seek extension).

• No operating license should be issued for a commercial/industrial use without the relevant development permission.

  
  

Step-by-step: How Change of Use gets approved (the Lybrae way)

1. Pre-application due diligence: Title & lease conditions, zoning and CPLUDP alignment, utilities capacity, traffic/parking cues, heritage/environmental constraints, and any EIA triggers (major land-use changes can trigger EMCA requirements).

2. Pre-application clinic with County: We validate the pathway (Change vs Extension of Use), agree documentation, and flag any studies needed (traffic, noise, drainage, EIA screening).

3. Public notices & stakeholder management: We draft and place newspaper notices (14 days) and mount on-site notices; where useful, we run micro-engagements with immediate neighbors to defuse objections early.

4. Submission: Complete planning report by a registered physical planner, forms, fees, proof of notices, title, rates/ground rent clearances, and owner consents (including lessor consent for leasehold).

5. Inter-departmental reviews: Circulation to planning, roads, public health, environment, water & sewerage, etc. We chase comments and resolve conflicts before they become refusals.

6. Decision & conditions: Approval (often with conditions), deferral (supply more info), or refusal (with reasons). If necessary, we prepare appeals to the County Liaison Committee and, subsequently, ELC on points of law.

7. Post-approval actions: Title/lease endorsement of user, NEMA licensing if triggered, then building plan approval and business licensing.

   
   

What does Change of Use cost?

Fees vary by county and zone. As an illustrative example from Nairobi City County Finance Act 2023/24:

• Change of Use fee (zone-based): e.g., KES 60,000 (Category C) up to KES 80,000 (Dagoretti zone).

• Planning site board fees: often KES 5,000–10,000 depending on location/size.

• Newspaper advertising: charged by the publisher (varies by size/day).

Expect additional outlays for professional reports, statutory clearances, and (if applicable) EIA. Whether an EIA is required depends on project type and scale (Second Schedule of EMCA regs includes major changes in land use). We assess this at due diligence so you don’t commission unnecessary studies—or miss mandatory ones.

How long does it take?

• Public notice window: 14 days minimum (newspaper + on-site).

• County decision: statute provides up to 60 days (silence = deemed approval), but timelines depend on completeness, objections, and inter-agency inputs. We keep the file “decision-ready” to avoid resets.

  
  

Common pitfalls that stall approvals (and how we prevent them)

• Wrong pathway (asked for CoU instead of Extension of Use / same-class use). We do a use-class test first.

• Title/lease conflicts (restrictive user clauses, missing consents). We fix the paper trail up-front.

• Mis-alignment with zoning or CPLUDP → objections. We show policy compliance and mitigation clearly.

• Skipping EIA screening when the use change triggers EMCA thresholds. We screen early and, where needed, run NEMA in parallel.

• Under-specifying traffic/parking/drainage for intensifications. We front-load the right technical studies to pre-empt deferrals.

  
  

Edge cases (read this if you’re doing anything ambitious)

• Mixed-use conversions: We model intensity, parking ratios, and shared services to demonstrate net public benefit.

• Special Planning Areas / heritage contexts: Additional controls may apply; we tailor submissions to these regimes.

• Financing & risk: Lenders often want formal approval letters even where “deemed approval” exists in law—we obtain the documentation they’ll accept.

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Why developers choose Lybrae Spatial Solutions

Zero-surprises approvals. We combine deep statutory fluency with practical delivery:

• Deal-screen in 5 days: zoning, policy, EIA triggers, and red-flag map.

• Community-smart notices: we manage objections, not just adverts.

• Digital case room: track comments, conditions, and evidence in one place.

• Bankable documentation: what your lender, NEMA, and the registry need—done once, done right.

  
  

Ready to unlock value on your site?

Whether you’re converting a townhouse to a clinic, assembling a mixed-use corner, or repositioning an industrial plot, we’ll de-risk your Change of Use from day one—from strategy to title endorsement. Talk to Lybrae Spatial Solutions for an express pre-check and a fixed-fee CoU pack tailored to your county and zone.

Note: Processes and fees vary by county. We validate current requirements with the relevant county before we file—every time.