Running a Kenyan Family Trust From Abroad: A Guide for Diaspora Families

Many Kenyan families now live across several countries. Parents may be in Nairobi while children work in London, Dubai or Toronto, or the settlor may have moved abroad years ago while the family land and business remain at home. A Kenyan family trust can hold those assets and keep them managed, but running it from abroad raises practical and legal questions. This guide explains what diaspora families need to know under the Trust Administration Act, 2026.

You need at least one trustee in Kenya

Where the trustees of a trust are individuals, at least one must be a Kenyan citizen or resident, as prescribed in the Regulations (section 11(3)). A family trust needs only one trustee in total (section 11(2)), so a family can appoint a trusted relative or professional in Kenya alongside trustees who live abroad. Because the test is citizen or resident, a Kenyan citizen living overseas appears to satisfy it, but the Regulations may refine this, so it is sensible to have at least one trustee physically based in Kenya who can sign documents and deal with banks and registries.

A corporate trustee is an alternative. It must be licensed (section 2) and have a local contact person who is a natural person resident in Kenya (section 36(4)); section 36(3) also refers to a company whose main object is providing trustee services and to licensing under other relevant written law.

Land: the citizenship rule

Article 65 of the Constitution limits non-citizens to leasehold interests of up to 99 years. For this purpose, property held in trust counts as held by a citizen only if all of the beneficial interest is held by citizens (Article 65(3)(b)).

This matters for diaspora families. A Kenyan citizen by birth who takes up another citizenship does not lose Kenyan citizenship (Article 16), so such dual citizens remain citizens for Article 65 purposes. But a grandchild born abroad who has never held Kenyan citizenship is a non-citizen. If such a person is a beneficiary of a trust holding freehold land, the trust may fall foul of Article 65. Families should check the citizenship of every beneficiary, and consider holding land in a separate trust for citizen beneficiaries only, or converting to leasehold. Our article on family land, succession, trusts and land-holding companies covers the land options in more detail.

Managing the trust from a distance

The Act gives trustees abroad several tools:

• Delegation. Where permitted by the Act or the deed, trustees may appoint a competent manager to manage trust property and an investment manager to invest it (section 52).
• Power of attorney. A trustee may delegate the performance of trust functions by power of attorney for up to three years, renewable for a further three years under the deed (section 58). This is useful for a trustee who is abroad for a long period.
• A trust agent. An advocate, certified secretary or certified accountant can act as trust agent, lodging documents with the Registrar and providing a registered address for a family trust (section 76).

Delegation does not remove responsibility. Trustees still owe the duty of care, skill and diligence (section 43) and remain liable for breaches of trust (section 61).

An enforcer for family members who are far away

When most beneficiaries live abroad, they cannot easily watch how the trust is being run day to day. An enforcer fills that gap. The settlor, or the beneficiaries if there is no settlor, may appoint an enforcer, who can inquire into how the trust is being implemented, require trustees to remedy breaches, report breaches to the settlor or beneficiaries and take legal action against the trustees (sections 14 and 15). The enforcer has access to any document, deed or account needed for that work (section 16). A professional enforcer based in Kenya gives relatives abroad an independent pair of eyes on the ground, and the appointment must be notified to the Registrar within 21 days.

Beneficial ownership filings with family abroad

Every trust must keep a register of its beneficial owners and lodge a copy with the Registrar (sections 65 and 66), lodge changes within 21 days (section 67) and keep records for seven years (section 68). For families spread across countries, collecting identity and residence details from settlors, trustees, beneficiaries and enforcers takes longer than expected. Build the collection process into the trust’s routine, particularly for events such as a beneficiary’s marriage, relocation or change of citizenship, which may need to be reflected in the register.

Why a Kenyan trust can suit diaspora families

Assets placed in a trust during the settlor’s lifetime do not pass through probate on the settlor’s death. For diaspora families, that avoids beneficiaries abroad having to take part in Kenyan succession proceedings, which can be slow and contested, as our article on succession disputes involving diaspora beneficiaries explains. Where litigation is unavoidable, our guide to pursuing Kenyan court cases from abroad sets out how it can be managed remotely.