Rent Restriction Act (Rent Restriction Tribunal)

The Rent Restriction Act protects tenants of dwelling houses whose standard rent is at or below a threshold set in the Act (see the figures box). The threshold has not been raised for many years, so it now covers only very low-rent homes.

What it does for covered tenants. A landlord of a covered home cannot raise the rent or evict the tenant without going through the Rent Restriction Tribunal, which can also decide the standard rent and order repairs. The Tribunal still sits, and its rulings are published on Kenya Law.

What it does not cover. Courts continue to apply the threshold strictly and strike out Tribunal cases about homes with higher rents. For most tenancies in Nairobi and other towns, the rules come from the tenancy agreement and general contract law, and disputes go to the ordinary courts, usually the magistrates' courts or the Environment and Land Court.

Business premises have a separate law: the Landlord and Tenant (Shops, Hotels and Catering Establishments) Act (Cap 301), with its own tribunal.

Reform. A Landlord and Tenant Bill would have merged these laws, but it did not become law.

• Nairobi and other cities: very few homes are now within the threshold, so most tenancies are governed by the tenancy agreement.
• Low-income areas and rural towns: some single rooms may still fall within the Act, and the Tribunal sits in different parts of the country.