What Changed on 2 September
The week before the directive, Nairobi's trading hubs were shut by protests: Gikomba, Nyamakima and Kamukunji traders closed shops over the Sh3.2 million consolidated cargo benchmark, which had quietly raised the tax floor on the containers they share. Consolidated shipping — dozens of small traders' goods in one container — is how small-scale importers afford freight at all, so a benchmark set at Sh3.2M taxed many consignments on values far above what the goods inside actually cost.
On 2 September, after the demonstrations made national news, President Ruto directed KRA to cut the benchmark to Sh2 million. For a qualifying consignment, every tax computed on assessed value — import duty and the 16% import VAT — now runs off the lower floor. That is real money on a single container, and it is why clearing agents' phones have not stopped since the announcement.
A cut with a carve-out
The reduction is not across the board. Garments, footwear and fabrics — the backbone of exactly the markets that protested — are excluded from the new benchmark and continue on their previous assessment. Voice notes claiming “everything now pays less” are wrong in the way that costs traders money at entry.
How the Benchmark Actually Works
A benchmark value is KRA's answer to under-declaration: the minimum value a category of goods is assessed at for customs purposes, regardless of the invoice. For consolidated cargo, KRA sets a floor per container. If the declared value of everything inside is below the floor, tax is computed on the floor. If your goods genuinely exceed it, your declared value governs — the benchmark is a minimum, not a fixed price.
What that means mechanically for a Sh2M-benchmark consignment: import duty (rate depends on the goods) and import VAT at 16% are computed on at least Sh2 million of assessed value, allocated across the traders in the container. VAT-registered traders can later claim that import VAT as input VAT when they file — which makes proper entry documentation (and eTIMS-compliant onward invoicing) the difference between the VAT being a cost and a credit. Unregistered traders just absorb it, one reason the benchmark debate hits small traders hardest.
It is worth being precise about what the benchmark is not: it is not a tax itself, and cutting it is not a tax holiday. It is the ruler the taxes are measured with. The traders who benefit most from this change are those whose goods values cluster near the floor; traders whose consignments were already assessed above Sh2M see little to no change.
The Exclusion List: Read It Before You Budget a Shipment
The directive excludes three categories from the new Sh2M benchmark: garments, footwear, and fabrics. These continue on their previous assessment values. The practical effect is a two-track system inside the same container: a mixed consignment with household goods and garments pays part of its assessment at the new benchmark and part at the old values.
| Your consignment | Effect of the 2 Sept cut | Before your next entry |
|---|---|---|
| General goods (not excluded) | New Sh2M benchmark applies - lower duty/VAT floor | Ask agent to recompute with Sh2M floor |
| Garments | Excluded - old assessment continues | Budget at old values; no reduction |
| Footwear | Excluded - old assessment continues | Budget at old values; no reduction |
| Fabrics / textiles | Excluded - old assessment continues | Budget at old values; no reduction |
| Mixed container | Split assessment: new floor + old values | Get the split in writing from your agent |
| Air cargo | No change | Plan on existing rates |
The confusion cost here is asymmetric: a trader who assumes the cut applies to their garments over-budgets (annoying), but a trader who assumes their general goods still pay the old floor under-budgets and gets an unexpected bill at entry (expensive, and the reason cargo sits accruing storage). Verify your exact goods mix against the exclusion list with your clearing agent before the vessel docks, not at the terminal.
At Customs This Month: What to Do Differently
Benchmark changes create a transition window, and transition windows are where paperwork errors happen. KRA systems, clearing agents, and freight forwarders do not all update in sync — a release note dated 2 September does not recompute an entry lodged on 1 September. Five practices protect you this month:
- 1Get the assessment in writing before release: ask your clearing agent for the computed benchmark value on your entry, per line, and confirm excluded categories were charged on old values - not 'estimated'.
- 2Watch the entry date cut-off: entries lodged before the directive may assess at the previous benchmark even if they release after. Ask which date governs your file.
- 3Split consignments deliberately: if your container mixes excluded and non-excluded goods, the declaration split is where the money lives. Review the split before lodging, not after assessment.
- 4Keep every entry document for input VAT: VAT-registered traders claim import VAT as input credit, but only with matching entry documentation and eTIMS-compliant onward invoicing.
- 5Dispute quietly and quickly: if an assessment ignores the new benchmark, raising it through the agent at assessment time is a correction; discovering it after release becomes a refund application - a slower, harder road.
The Printable One-Pager for Your Clearing Agent
Half the argument at the counter is having the facts in one place. We put the benchmark change, the exclusion list, and the at-customs checklist on a single printable page — designed to be printed and handed to your clearing agent or kept in your shipment file.
Open the printable one-pagerOne page: what changed, what's excluded, what to check at entry. Print it, hand it over.Frequently Asked Questions
What is the consolidated cargo benchmark in Kenya?
It is the minimum value KRA assigns to a consolidated consignment (many small traders' goods shipped together in one container) for customs duty and VAT purposes. If your declared goods value is below the benchmark, tax is calculated on the benchmark instead. Benchmark values exist so that under-declaration cannot shrink the tax base on small consignments.
What changed on 2 September 2026?
Following protests by Gikomba, Nyamakima and Kamukunji traders, President Ruto directed KRA to reduce the consolidated cargo benchmark from USD-equivalent Sh3.2 million to Sh2 million per container. The cut reduces the assessed value on which import duty and VAT are computed for consolidated consignments that fall under the benchmark system.
Which goods keep the old (higher) benchmark rates?
The reduction comes with an exclusion list: garments, footwear, and fabrics are excluded from the new benchmark and continue on their previous assessment. If your consignment is dominated by these categories, do not assume your tax bill fell - check with your clearing agent against your specific goods mix before budgeting a shipment.
Did air cargo benchmark rates change?
No. The directive addressed the consolidated sea cargo benchmark that triggered the trader protests. Air cargo assessment was not part of this change and follows its existing values and rules.
Is the Sh2M benchmark the value of my goods?
No - it is the minimum assessable value for tax purposes on qualifying consolidated consignments, not a market value or a price. Your actual invoice values still matter for declaration, and if your goods are worth more than the benchmark, tax follows the higher declared value. The benchmark only sets the floor.