Electronic Invoicing in Kenya: How to Comply with Regulations 

The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has made electronic invoicing mandatory for all taxpayers registered for Value Added Tax (VAT). To ensure the traceability and authenticity of each commercial transaction, the government has implemented the Tax Invoice Management System (TIMS), an advanced real-time tax control model. 

What Is TIMS and How Does Electronic Invoicing Work in Kenya?

The Tax Invoice Management System (TIMS) is the official platform for managing electronic invoicing in Kenya. Through this system, the KRA requires that every commercial transaction carried out by VAT-registered businesses be reported in real time to the tax authority.

TIMS relies on electronic fiscal control devices known as Electronic Tax Registers (ETRs) or Control Units, which integrate with a company’s invoicing systems. These devices validate, digitally sign, encrypt, and immediately transmit each invoice’s data to the KRA.

KRA Requirements for Taxpayers

To comply with electronic invoicing in Kenya, several requirements set by the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) must be considered:

• Possess a certified TIMS device: It is essential to have an updated Electronic Tax Register (ETR), also known as a fiscal control unit, integrated with your invoicing system. This KRA-approved device is responsible for validating, digitally signing, encrypting, and transmitting each electronic invoice to the tax authority in real time.
• Include mandatory data in each electronic invoice: New electronic invoices must contain specific mandatory fields to be considered valid. These include the buyer’s tax identification number, the serial number of the Control Unit (ETR) used, the unique invoice number assigned, and a QR code generated by the system. These elements allow both the KRA and the recipient to verify the authenticity of the invoice. In addition, each invoice must be electronically signed to ensure the integrity and non-alteration of the original document.
• Archiving of electronic records: Electronic invoices must be archived for at least 5 years in digital format, in compliance with tax regulations.

Timeline for Mandatory Electronic Invoicing in Kenya

The implementation of TIMS was carried out in phases between 2021 and 2022, with a transition period for taxpayers to adapt. Since November 30, 2022, the use of electronic invoicing through the TIMS system has been mandatory for all VAT-registered businesses.

Failure to comply with this regulation may result in financial penalties and legal actions. Therefore, it is essential to have a solution that ensures regulatory compliance in an automated manner.

EDICOM: Global Electronic Invoicing Solution

Kenya’s experience with the TIMS model reflects a growing global trend: the shift toward digital and automated tax environments. In this context, companies operating in multiple markets face the challenge of adapting to diverse local regulations, each with its own technical and legal requirements. Given this complexity, having a centralized and flexible technological solution becomes a key factor for competitiveness and efficiency.

EDICOM addresses this need through a global electronic invoicing platform designed to manage tax processes in over 80 countries in a unified way. Thanks to its scalable architecture and cloud-based approach, the solution enables the issuance, validation, signing, and archiving of electronic invoices from a single environment, adapted to the regulatory specifications of each tax authority. This significantly simplifies business operations by eliminating the need to maintain separate systems for each region.

Moreover, EDICOM’s solution is continuously updated to ensure full legal compliance with any regulatory changes, providing peace of mind and legal security for organizations. This adaptability, combined with a high level of automation, helps reduce errors, accelerate invoicing cycles, and optimize resources allocated to tax management.