NAIROBI, Kenya —The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has announced the rollout of a new online system known as the Electronic Rental Income Tax System (eRITS). In a bid to modernize and simplify tax compliance for landlords
The platform will enable property owners to manage their assets, file returns, and pay Monthly Rental Income (MRI) tax more easily through the portal or via eCitizen.
“Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) wishes to notify the public that it has rolled out an Electronic Rental Income Tax System (eRITS), which will facilitate easier payment of Monthly Rental Income (MRI),” the notice states.
“The system enables management of properties, filing and payment of rental taxes in a simple and convenient way.”
KRA urged all persons owning rental properties and earning rental income to update or correct their property details via the new system at erits.kra.go.ke or through the eCitizen portal.
The concept of Monthly Rental Income (MRI) tax was introduced in January 2016, targeting landlords earning rental income above certain thresholds.
Initially, it operated through the iTax self-assessment system, with a flat 10 percent rate on gross rent and no deductions allowed.
Over time, thresholds have been adjusted: as of 1 January 2021, the lower threshold was raised to Sh 288,000 annually, and the upper limit to Sh 15 million, beyond which landlords revert to declaring rental income under the ordinary income tax regime.
However, revenue from rental taxation has historically underperformed expectations.
In April 2025, Treasury officials noted that despite a potential base estimated at over Sh 100 billion, actual collections stood at about Sh 17 billion.
The Treasury has repeatedly flagged the challenge of bringing informal landlords into the tax net, and in February 2024, it announced plans to involve property agents in identifying unregistered landlords to boost compliance.
Critics have argued that the reliance on self-assessment has allowed many property owners to evade compliance and that manual or fragmented systems have hindered enforcement.
The launch of eRITS is part of the government’s broader push under the Medium-Term Revenue Strategy (MTRS) to modernize tax administration, expand the tax base, and deploy digital platforms such as eTIMS and GAVA to improve efficiency.
Whether this new system will significantly close the tax gap in the real-estate sector, however, remains to be seen amid resistance from noncompliant landlords and enforcement challenges.
