The last possibility of blocking the effect of applying the holiday home tax to holiday homes of non-residents in Kenya has also disappeared.
The famous "tourist license" issued by the Tourism Regulatory Authority (T. R. A.) at the request of the Ministry of Tourism and the associations of hotels along the coast, has moved private individuals, multi-proprietors and their lawyers who have assessed the alleged unconstitutionality.
As we had announced and as suggested by the Italian Honorary Consulate in Malindi, the only way to try to postpone its application, through a complaint to the Malindi Court, would have been to prepare a "class action", that is to put together and hire a lawyer to defend their common cause.
But "getting together" seems to be something impossible, if referring to Italians stationed on the coast of Kenya.
So the good intentions of some property owners in recent months have not been met and even the e-mails we have received and to which we have responded by reporting the procedure for adding their own name (and their willingness to pay their share of legal costs) have not followed any subsequent operation.
So now all you have to do is settle down, paying Kshs. 27,000 for each house or apartment that you own, by December 31,2017.
This is the way forward for those who own the property in Kilifi County:
1. Present yourself at T. R. A. R. A. of Malindi (Malindi Complex, 1st floor) or in the Kilifi office, and collect the payment form, presenting a photocopy of the passport of the owner of the property and a complete copy of the deed.
2. Go to the branch of KCB (Kenya Commercial Bank) in Malindi, Watamu or Kilifi and make the transfer to the account provided by the T. R. A. R. A.
3. Return to the T. R. A. with a copy of the payment made and have the licence stamped.
All this can also be done by third parties, with a self-certified proxy.