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OnAsylum

Africa

Kenya

Hosts several of the world's largest refugee settlements (including Kakuma and Dadaab), and is in the middle of a long-term policy shift away from strict camps and toward integrated settlements — but that transition is only partly complete.

At a glance, for someone deciding whether to come here

Not tourist facts — the things that actually shape daily life while your case is pending and after it's decided.

Right to workFormally restricted for most camp-based refugees, though informal economic activity is common within and around camps.
Cost of living Low Camp living is largely aid-dependent rather than cash-economy — a fundamentally different situation from every other entry here.
Healthcare while pendingBasic healthcare is provided within camps by UNHCR and partner agencies, at a level constrained by funding.
LanguageSwahili and English are official languages; camp populations are highly multilingual.
Family reunificationHandled through the same registration system, common given the scale of family-unit arrivals.
After you're granted statusLong-term prospects are limited without third-country resettlement, which has very limited annual capacity relative to camp populations.
ClimateHot and arid in camp regions (Kakuma, Dadaab) — a harsh practical climate on top of everything else.
Existing communityMassive existing refugee population — you will not be alone, but resources are stretched extremely thin across a very large number of people.
Starter content, pending expert review. This page describes general, publicly known information about how this country's asylum system works. It is not legal advice and may be out of date — policies change often. Last drafted 2026-09-04.

How you could qualify to enter this system

  • Registration with the Department of Refugee Services and UNHCR, generally leading to settlement in Kakuma or Dadaab, or (less commonly, and less formally) urban registration

How the process generally works

New arrivals register with Kenyan authorities and UNHCR, usually near the border, and are transferred to a designated refugee camp. As of our last check, about 86% of Kenya's roughly 852,000 registered refugees still lived in Dadaab (about 49%) or Kakuma (about 37%), with the remainder in urban areas — some estimated 100,000 people live in Nairobi without formal authorization to be there, which carries its own real risks (higher costs, no guaranteed aid access, and reported police harassment).

Step by step

  1. Declare your presence

    At the nearest administrative office, which issues a stamped referral note to the nearest Department of Refugee Services (DRS) office.

  2. Present yourself to DRS Within 30 days of entry

    Legally required under the Refugee Act 2021.

  3. Reception, registration, and screening

    Biographical and civil data collection, plus physical, security, and medical screening.

  4. Settlement allocation

    Most registered refugees end up in Dadaab or Kakuma; urban registration is less common and less formal.

What you'll typically need

  • Any ID available (not always required to register)
  • Details of your situation for registration purposes

Support available while your case is decided

  • UNHCR-run camp services: shelter, food assistance, basic healthcare and education
  • Kakuma now has municipality status as part of a longer-term plan (the 'Shirika Plan') to turn camps into integrated urban settlements by 2036

Life in a large camp setting is very different from an urban asylum process elsewhere on this list — worth understanding clearly before treating this as equivalent to other pathways. The direction of policy is toward more integration and freedom of movement over time, but that's a plan running to 2036, not the situation on the ground today — most people here are still camp-based right now.

Common pitfalls

  • Missing the 30-day window to present yourself to the Department of Refugee Services after entry.
  • Assuming urban life in Nairobi is a safe, formal alternative to camp registration — an estimated 100,000 people live there without authorization, facing higher costs, no guaranteed aid access, and reported police harassment.
  • Expecting the shift toward integrated settlements (the Shirika Plan) to reflect today's reality — it's a plan running to 2036; most people are still camp-based right now.
Sources checked for this page