Buy a car in Kenya or Tanzania?

It is possible to buy a car and use it without transferring ownership on the log book.

If you buy it from a dealer it will be already be registered, that is it will have number plates, etc. The dealer will also give you a document saying that he is transferring ownership to you. You should take these to KRA to transfer the log book. However it is perfectly possible to use the car without doing this, problems should only arise if you are required to prove ownership which is very unlikely in day to day usage. It might affect your ability to sell the car, though if you have the log book and the sellers document it may not, not, I don't know. There may be a very slight risk that if you have not transferred ownership someone may do so fraudulently to themselves, though presumably some one must be in possession of all the facts relating to the car to do this. (I have only heard anecdotal evidence of this, I have no personal knowledge).

If you buy a car privately, presumably the owner gives you the log book and may give something that says they are transferring ownership to you, (I have no personal experience of this, I bought both car and motorbike from dealers)

What you do have to do is take the car to an insurance company, have it valued and then obtain insurance coverage. It is the car that is insured, not the driver. You then display the insurance on the car's windscreen. If the police stop you they usually only check your driving licence and sometimes the insurance sticker, I've never known anybody be asked for the log book..

Hello,
In Nairobi buying a car without transferring ownership is a bad advice as a car can be taken and money without any legal problem. So if you buy a car anywhere in East Africa transfer ownership. I would suggest that you call Kenya Revenue Authority and ask them on the issue of PIN. They will advise you on this issue. I do not think that the Alien card is very necessary to get a PIN number. If you expect to sale the car after use, buy a car in Europe and ship to Kenya or Tanzania with European registration. The cars with foreign registration are accepted but you will some tax by buying a carnet book which you will use on your journey to southern Africa. Your car will always be as if it is on transit but you should remember that with this you cannot stay in one country for three months without crossing any border. With this you will not bother with PIN for any Revenue Authority. Most of Overland trucks have UK registration or German registration but they operate in Africa under this. After your journey sell your to anyone who will work out the registration of the where he or she wants.

The previous post reminded me that when i was going through the proper formal process I was told that there are some people in certain internet cafes who can get you a PIN for a fee without going through the full process of getting an alien registration. I was told of one or two ex-pats who got there PIN this way, one went to the KRA and said they needed a PIN urgently, the KRA said they couldn't do anything as the PIN had to be allocated online and for that you need an alien registration number but they gave him the telephone number of someone in an internet cafe who did it for him in a day or so. He checked the PIN on the KRA website and it was there with his details and seemed properly registered. In Africa there is usually a way round problems

This TripAdvisor thread has some advice on getting a PIN though I can't confirm it from personal experience.

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowTopic-g294206-i9216-k5583681-o10-New_Permit_Work_Permit_Costs-Kenya.html

And here are a couple of articles I found on buying a car in Tanzania.

http://mylifeintanzania.blogspot.ca/2011/04/buying-car-in-tanzania.html

http://timmarijetanzania.reismee.nl/reisverhaal/176778/how-to-get-a-car-in-tanzania/

Looks difficult but like in Uganda, it seems to take less time than doing it in Kenya.

Sorry if I am inundating you with posts, but I am going through the same process of deciding which country to buy a car in. I just want it to be as easy as possible and take the least time.

Christopher, I'm happy to hear any information you have. I re-posted the question in the Tanzania TT so we'll see if we learn something new. My husband is not keen on Uganda so that is out.

Muta2010, I'm intrigued about shipping a car over with European registration though it seems complicated at the end when we want to sell it. How would that work so we would not have to pay the import fees?

Doffcocker, I have been to Kenya a couple times and you may be on to something. There is nothing that kitu kidogo can't resolve :)

Christopher,

I wrote the post on about PINs on the Tripadvisor thread, it pretty much just re-iterates what I've said here ヅ

Great work.

In my experience of dealing with any Kenyan agency expect it to take at least 5 time longer that you were initially told. Especially if you are doing it yourself and not through and agent/company/NGO that has an established relationship with someone with influence at the department. My ID card took about 2 months to come through.

I imported a car from Japan recently and I would never do it again. My case was complicated by needing paperwork for duty-free status that was delayed by about 2 months (I was told it would take 3 days initially!) and I ended up paying close to US$1000 in agency fees, I suspect if I was clearing it myself it would still be in port! My logbook still hasn't been issued after 4 months, it can take over a year. And if you want to take a locally bought car out of the country you need to transfer the logbook or you'll get serious hassle at the border so if you buy from a dealer make sure everything is above board and finalized before you try to leave Kenya.

Sorry I'm not trying to be doom and gloom but you need to be aware that what's said and what actually happens can be drastically different resulting in expense and hassle. Even the rules seem to change depending on who you talk to and how they are feeling that day. Basically give yourself lots of extra time to sort it and use a reliable agent when possible.

@KLCINAZ,
RATHER THAN BUYING A GOOD 4X4 CAR IN KENYA WHICH MIGHT COST BETWEEN 15,000- 20,000 DOLLARS, I WOULD ADVISE YOU TO LEASE ONE INSTEAD. IN KENYA, USED CARS TEND TO DEPRECIATE VERY FAST, FOR INSTANCE IF YOU BUY A CAR WORTH 15,000 DOLLARS, YOU WILL SELL IT IN A YEARS TIME WITH ABOUT 7000 DOLLARS. THIS IS NOT ECONOMICAL AT ALL. TO AVOID THE CUMBERSOME TRANSFER PROCEDURES I WOULD ADVISE YOU TO LEASE ONE AT AN APPROXIMATE COST OF 1000 DOLLARS PER MONTH.