Online schooling is growing, and foreign education companies increasingly ask whether they can run a fully remote school for Kenyan learners under the Competency Based Curriculum. The Kenyan statute does recognise distance and electronic learning. What it does not do, in the sources we reviewed, is offer a lighter route for a school with no physical campus. This article explains where the law helps, where it creates risk, and what to ask the regulator before you invest, as at 24 October 2026. This guide looks at whether you can run an online school in Kenya and what a regulator will test.
Online school in Kenya: the Act recognises distance and electronic learning
The Basic Education Act, 2013 defines a “school” as an institution registered under the Act that meets the basic prescribed standards, and the definition expressly includes institutions offering distance or correspondence instruction. Section 78(2) goes further. It says a person may not use any premises or facilities to provide education and training through face to face, open distant or electronic learning, or any other mode of delivery, unless the institution has undergone quality review and been approved under the Act. Section 78(1) says no one may promote, manage or teach basic education unless accredited and registered, and section 78(3) makes a breach an offence punishable by a fine of up to KES 20 million, imprisonment of up to three years, or both.
The practical reading is that an online school is not outside the Act. It must be registered and quality reviewed like any other, and the delivery mode does not remove the licensing requirement.
Where a fully online model runs into the registration criteria
The difficulty is that the registration tests were written around a physical institution. Under section 82(2), the County Education Board licenses and registers an institution only if it has sufficient registered teachers and non-teaching staff under the county staffing norms, appropriate teaching and learning facilities, suitable premises, and adequate infrastructure and equipment for the programmes applied for. Section 50(2)(c) also bars registration of a private school whose premises are unsuitable. Regulation 64 of the Basic Education Regulations, 2015 then lists facilities that every institution must provide, including playing facilities, administrative offices, sanitary facilities, a kitchen and dining room, prescribed classrooms, store rooms and a science room.
A school that has no learners on site cannot satisfy those items literally, and we have not found a published standard written for fully online schools that adapts them. The only Ministry document we found on registration standards is a legacy checklist that predates the Act and refers to District Education Boards. So the key legal risk is not that online delivery is prohibited. It is that the licensing criteria are silent on how an online operator proves compliance, which leaves the County Education Board a wide discretion. You should expect to negotiate this, ideally in writing, before you build the platform.
The points a regulator is likely to test
- A registered address. The application requires physical, postal and electronic addresses and the premises from which the school operates (section 83). Identify a Kenyan base for administration, record keeping and inspection.
- Curriculum. Regulation 54 requires the curriculum and instructional materials to be developed or approved by the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development. An overseas platform cannot simply deliver its own content and describe it as CBE. Section 75 also restricts combining curriculum development, teaching and assessment in one institution unless accredited to do so.
- Teachers. Section 50(2) bars registration where teachers are not registered with the Teachers Service Commission, so instructors teaching Kenyan learners from abroad raise a registration question that you should settle before launch.
- Financial ability. The promoters must show financial ability (section 83), and a quality review under section 78(2) happens before delivery begins.
- Learner records and assessment. Learner registration on the national education data systems and entry into national assessments are separate steps that we expect to depend on the school being registered. We could not verify a published procedure, so confirm the current process with the Ministry.
Our article on registering a private school in Kenya covers the application route, and our guide to foreign ownership of a school covers who may be a proprietor and how land is held.
Practical steps before you invest
- Write to the County Education Board and the Ministry asking how an online-only school will be assessed against section 82(2) and regulation 64, and keep the reply.
- Secure a Kenyan administrative base and a documented staffing model with Teachers Service Commission-registered teachers.
- Map every course to a KICD-approved curriculum and record the approvals.
- Do not market admissions or take fees until registration is final. Unlicensed promotion is itself an offence under section 78.
- Consider a phased model, for example a registered school with a physical presence that delivers a large share of its teaching online, which is easier to defend under the current criteria.
The Basic Education Bill, 2026
The Basic Education Bill, 2026 (National Assembly Bill No. 50 of 2026) would repeal the current Act. Parliament’s tracker showed it at First Reading on 11 August 2026, so it is not law. In our reading of the published text, the registration clauses (25 to 28) still require suitable premises and appropriate infrastructure, and we found no clause dealing expressly with distance or online delivery. The Bill would also let the Cabinet Secretary make further regulations on establishing institutions, which is where any online standard would most likely appear. Registrations issued under the current Act would continue under clause 112.
In short, an online school in Kenya must meet the same registration standards as a physical one. The plan for any online school in Kenya should be tested against those standards before launch.
How We Can Help
Clay & Associates Advocates advises education operators on licensing strategy, engagement with the County Education Board and the Ministry, and the contracts that sit behind an online school. Our Regulatory & Compliance team can prepare a written query to the regulator on your model, and our Corporate & Commercial team structures the operating company and its service agreements. Contact us before you commit to a platform build. We advise operators planning an online school in Kenya.
Sources: Basic Education Act, 2013, sections 2, 50, 75, 78, 82 and 83; Basic Education Regulations, 2015, regulations 54 and 64; Basic Education Bill, 2026, clauses 25 to 28 and 112; Mzalendo bill tracker; Ministry of Education, Basic Standard Requirements for Registration (legacy guidance).
Frequently asked questions
Is a fully online school legal in Kenya?
The Act recognises distance and electronic learning, but any school offering basic education must be accredited, registered and quality reviewed. We found no published, online-specific registration standard.
Can an overseas platform teach Kenyan learners without registering?
Not safely. Section 78 makes promoting, managing or teaching basic education without accreditation and registration an offence.
Do online teachers need to be registered?
The Act bars registration of a private school whose teachers are not registered with the Teachers Service Commission, so plan for registered teachers.
Will the Bill create a clear online route?
Not on its current text, in our reading. It is still at First Reading, and any online standard may come later through regulations.
Need advice on your own matter?
Tell us what you are dealing with. You will know what it involves and what it costs before you commit.
This article is general information on Kenyan law as at its publication date, not legal advice. Reading it does not create an advocate and client relationship.
