Kenya’s Traffic Act (CAP 403) establishes a legal framework regarding motor vehicle possession and ownership. Section 9 explicitly prohibits the retention of a motor vehicle for more than fourteen days without effecting a vehicle transfer of ownership. This statutory requirement is also reiterated on the reverse side of the logbook.

Essentially, upon selling a vehicle or motorbike, it is imperative to promptly initiate a transfer of ownership. This involves the seller applying for the transfer and the buyer accepting ownership within the stipulated fourteen days.

So, how does one navigate the logbook transfer process in Kenya?

Step One: Log in to the seller’s eCitizen account

The first step is to log in to the seller’s NTSA account on the ecitizen platform. You can do this by visiting ecitizen.go.ke and entering your credentials. Once you are logged in, select NTSA (new) from the list of available services.

This will take you to the NTSA dashboard, where you can see the vehicles registered under your account.

Choose the vehicle that you want to transfer and click on it to view its details.

Make sure that the details match the ones on the logbook. Then, click on the “Motor Vehicle Services” button on the top right corner.

This will open a page of all the available services for the vehicle as shown on the image below

On this page, select Vehicle transfer. This will open a form that shows the details of the current owner.

On this page, you will need to upload a scanned copy of the logbook (PDF) and indicate whether the vehicle is written off or not.

Step Two: Enter the buyer’s details

After uploading the logbook and proceeding, you will need to specify whether the vehicle is being transferred to a single account or a joint account.

The difference between a Single account Vehicle Transfer & a joint Vehicle Transfer

Single Account referes to when the vehicle is being transferred to a single account (Owner)
Joint account refers to when the vehicle is being transferred to two or more accounts (Owners)

Then, on the next page,

enter the KRA PIN of the buyer and click on the “Search” button. This will display the buyer’s details, such as name, ID number, and phone number. If the transfer is to a joint account, you will need to add the KRA PINs of all the joint owners and search for their details as well.

Step Three: Preview and pay

When you have entered all the buyer’s details, you will be able to preview your input and check if they are correct.

If everything is in order, you can proceed to the payment page, where you can choose your preferred payment method. You can pay via M-Pesa, debit card, credit card, or eCitizen agent.

After making the payment, you will be redirected to the service page, where you can download the payment receipt.

Accepting Vehicle on Ecitizen

Step Four: Log in to the buyer’s ecitizen account

The final step is for the buyer to log in to their ecitizen account and accept the transfer. On the NTSA dashboard, there will be a notification on the top right corner informing you of the vehicle transfer.

You can either accept or decline the transfer. To accept, click on the “Accept” button. This will take you to the vehicle acceptance page, where you will need to fill in the required details, such as ID number, first name, phone number, and place of logbook collection. After submitting, you will receive a confirmation message.

Congratulations! You have completed a vehicle transfer in ecitizen.