Kenya gambling licensing set to proceed following High Court ruling

The High Court of Kenya has partially lifted a stay order which halted all gambling regulations last month.

The majority of regulations are enforceable once more, except increased licensing fees and capital requirements which remain suspended.

In July, Justice William Musyoka issued a stay order against the Gambling Control (Licensing) Regulations 2026 following a legal challenge brought by Thomas Buckley Opar Owuor and Ken Brance.

The order effectively put Kenya’s licensed gambling sector on hold, with the new regulations only applicable to authorised entities.

But on Friday, Musyoka partially lifted the order, after the Kenyan government and the new Gambling Regulatory Authority (GRA) requested that only the most controversial aspects would remain suspended.

The regulator claimed the full stay order created a “regulatory vacuum” in which unlicensed operators could operate without oversight from the GRA.

The ruling meant the GRA could resume regulatory functions such as receiving and processing licence applications, conducting due diligence on operators and carrying out anti-money laundering and consumer-protection oversight.

Despite the partial lifting of the stay order, the full substantive judicial review case will still proceed as to whether the suspended provisions will remain so. Written submissions are due by 21 September, with a full judgment scheduled for 2 October.

What is still suspended?

The key issues that remain suspended are the increased licensing fees, as well as the gambling capital requirements for licensees.

David Sarinke, partner at Kenyan law firm McKay Advocates, tells iGB that despite scrutiny over increased fees, the ruling does mean the licensing process can now resume.

According to Sarinke, the court did not specify which licensing fees should apply while the increased fees remain suspended.

He expects the regulator will issue renewed guidance reverting back to the licensing fees utilised prior to the overhauled legislation.

“Obviously, the reasonable thing to do is go back to the previous fees it was applying as a way for the court to make a determination on that point,” Sarinke said.

“We expect the regulator basically to give some kind of guidance as to their understanding, but obviously I will expect that they will reopen applications for licences, and then they will have to guide us to which fees will now be applicable.”

However, Steve Kipruto David, founder of KDS Advocates, told iGB he expects the outcome to be less straightforward, arguing the government is unlikely to simply revert to the previous fee structure.

This, he says, is in part due to a desire for stricter compliance and a greater concentration of larger operators.

“I doubt it,” he declared. “I view these fees as, yes, they’re exorbitant, but it’s now a big game, and the big game is for the big guys. So for me, I think it will not be reviewed downward.

“I think the government is also trying to regulate gambling by imposing these fees. There are, I think, more than 150 licensed firms right now. I don’t think even half or even a quarter of that number will meet the capital requirements.”

How much have the fees increased?

Kenya announced its move towards a new regulatory framework for gambling last year, seeking to overhaul laws from 1966.

The existing regulator, the Betting Control and Licensing Board (BCLB), was replaced with the GRA, while a raft of new regulations were introduced.

The most controversial new measure was the significantly increased licensing fees.

Under the previous regulations, iGaming operators typically paid a little over Ksh10,000 ($77) for a licence application, and then between approximately Ksh400,000 and Ksh1 million in licence fees a year.

The application fees for an online bookmaker licence rocketed to Ksh5 million, while the licence fee stands at Ksh50 million. It is worth noting that licences now cover a three-year period rather than the previous scenario of operating as a series of annual renewals.

According to the initial request for a stay order, licensing fees have increased by between 200% and 49,900%.

There is also a new gambling capital requirement of Ksh100 million for online bookmakers and iGaming operators, marking another significant increase.

The initial suit claimed that “numerous operators” had raised concerns about their ability to meet the higher fees under the new regulations, with some reportedly considering closure.

It warned this could put thousands of jobs at risk, leading to the withdrawal of investments and ultimately reducing government tax revenues.

The public participation aspect

The ongoing legal case argues that increased capital requirements could be considered unconstitutional, as they were set above the figures proposed in a public consultation.

Under Article 10 of Kenya’s 2010 Constitution, public participation is recognised as a national value and principle of governance.

However, according to Sarinke, the government presented substantial documentation showing that public and stakeholder engagement had taken place during the development of the regulations.