Kenya
Digital Nomad Work Permit (Class N): health insurance requirements
Yes: health insurance is required
Yes. Kenya's Class N Digital Nomad Work Permit (introduced 2024) requires proof of health insurance covering the full stay, described as comprehensive including emergency care, hospitalisation and repatriation, though no minimum sum is published. It is for people working for non-Kenyan employers or clients, runs one or two years renewable, and given Kenya's reliance on air evacuation (the home of AMREF Flying Doctors), evacuation cover is the priority. The income threshold is in flux, launched at US$55,000/year with some 2026 reports of a reduction to ~US$24,000.
The requirements at a glance
| Minimum policy duration | Full duration of stay |
|---|---|
| Local-licensed insurer required | No: compliant international IPMI is accepted |
| Accepted proof | Proof of health insurance covering the full duration of stay; secondary guidance describes comprehensive cover including emergency care, hospitalisation and medical repatriation. No minimum sum is published. Because air evacuation is routine in Kenya, prioritise a policy with strong evacuation cover. |
For remote workers earning from non-Kenyan employers or clients (no local Kenyan employment). One or two years, renewable. Income threshold is unsettled: launched at US$55,000/year, with some 2026 sources reporting a reduction to about US$24,000, so verify on the eFNS portal. Requires a clean criminal-record certificate and proof of accommodation. Apply online via the eFNS portal (Form 25). Separately, all tourists need an approved eTA to enter.
Who qualifies for the Kenya nomad visa
The income bar is what decides most applications, and it is the number people look for first. Here is the current one, with the conditions that come attached to it.
- Income required
- $55,000/yr
- Length of permit
- 12 monthsrenewable
- Who can apply
- Employed remotely, Freelancer
The 2024 regulations cite $55,000/yr, but some reports claim a cut to ~$24,000 and the info-pack now just asks for payslips — the binding figure is in flux.
What the income bar really means
Two things get people rejected on income even when they earn enough. The first is proving it: consulates want a documented, repeating history, usually bank statements and contracts covering several months, not a screenshot of a good quarter. Irregular freelance income clears the bar on average and fails on paper. The second is dependants, who almost always raise the threshold, and by a percentage of the base figure rather than a flat amount.
Treat the number above as the floor for the paperwork, not as a comfortable income for living there. It is set by the country’s own cost of living or minimum wage, which means it moves, and in several countries it is re-set every year.
Kenya's Class N Digital Nomad Work Permit (2024) requires proof of health insurance for the stay (no published minimum); with air evacuation routine, Kenya is the base of the 60-year-old AMREF Flying Doctors service, so evacuation cover is the priority. The income threshold launched at US$55,000/year, with 2026 reports of a reduction to ~US$24,000.
Our take
Kenya is an evacuation-first destination, literally the base of AMREF Flying Doctors, and for serious cases air evacuation, within the country or abroad, is normal.
The permit requires insurance without a number, so let the evacuation risk set the limit, not the paperwork; note big upfront deposits at private hospitals too.
What happens if you get it wrong
A policy without strong evacuation cover misses the central Kenyan risk.
Uninsured, private hospitals demand large deposits before they treat you.
Interactive
Verified pricesWhat would it cost in Kenya without insurance?
Off a kerb, off a bouldering wall, off a wet bathroom floor. No admission, just a bad afternoon.
| Emergency room, on arrival | $100–$500 |
| X-ray to confirm the break | $15 |
| You pay, out of pocket | $115–$515 |
That is the bill you carry alone. Insurance exists for exactly this.
See what cover costsTypical private-care estimates for illustration, not a quote. Actual bills vary by hospital, city and severity.
FAQ
Yes, proof of health insurance covering the full stay (comprehensive, including emergency care, hospitalisation and repatriation). No minimum sum is published; given routine air evacuation, insure for it well.
The threshold is unsettled: launched at US$55,000/year, with some 2026 sources reporting a reduction to about US$24,000. Verify on the eFNS portal.
Because air evacuation is routine here, Kenya is the home of AMREF Flying Doctors, and complex cases are sometimes moved abroad to South Africa or India.
One or two years, renewable on continued eligibility.
Tourists need an approved eTA to enter Kenya (required since January 2024); the Class N permit is the separate route to stay and work remotely.
How to apply
- Processing time
- Not stated on the official page. Commonly reported at roughly 1 to 3 months depending on completeness and immigration workload.
- Government fee
- US$200 processing fee (non-refundable) plus US$1,000 per year issuance fee.
- Where to apply
- Online through the eFNS portal (fns.immigration.go.ke) after registering on the eCitizen single sign-on. Applications can also be presented at Immigration HQ, Nyayo House, Nairobi.
- 1
Register on the Government of Kenya Single Sign-On portal, then log in to the eFNS immigration platform.
- 2
Select Apply Now, choose the Permit Issuance tab and the Class N permit, and complete Form 25 online.
- 3
Upload the required documents: passport copy, two colour passport photos, a signed cover letter from you and one from your employer, three months of bank statements or payslips, proof of accommodation, and a no-objection letter from your home country's embassy.
- 4
Submit the application to generate an invoice, then pay the US$200 processing fee online.
- 5
Track progress through email and account notifications.
- 6
On approval, pay the US$1,000 per year issuance fee to collect the permit, which is valid for up to one year and renewable.
Fees and processing times move, sometimes without announcement, and a consulate can add a document the published checklist does not mention. Treat the above as the shape of the process rather than a guarantee, and check the current requirement with the mission handling your application before you book anything.
What policy actually satisfies this visa
Kenya does not publish a minimum figure, which sounds permissive and is not. It means you are judged against somebody's unwritten idea of adequate, and the safe reading of adequate is enough to cover a serious hospital admission in Kenya, not the cheapest policy that technically exists.
A compliant international policy is accepted, so you are not forced into a local insurer. That matters more than it sounds: it means one policy can follow you when you leave, instead of expiring at the border.
Repatriation is not named as a condition, though it is the benefit you would most want to have if the worst happened, and it costs very little to add.
The dates are the other thing that gets applications rejected: full duration of stay
Ask your insurer for a certificate of cover that states your full name as it appears on your passport, the exact policy period, the territory covered, and the benefit amounts. That is a normal request and any decent insurer issues it without fuss. The insurance being real and the paperwork still failing is a more common way to lose an application than being uninsured.
The visa tells you the minimum. It does not tell you what to actually carry. Those are different questions, and the paperwork minimum is nearly always the smaller of the two answers.
Get a policy that satisfies this visa
Three minutes of honest questions, then we'll match you to insurance that meets Kenya'srequirements and actually works where you're going.
Find my plan