CRA Gazettes Standards and Guidelines for County Own-source Revenue Automation
The Commission on Revenue Allocation (CRA) has gazetted the Commission on Revenue Allocation Standards and Guidelines on the Automation of County Own Source Revenue, 2026.
Published on 27 July 2026 under Gazette Notice No. 11488, the Standards and Guidelines took effect immediately. They establish binding functional, technical, governance and accountability requirements for County Revenue Management Systems (CRMS).
AT A GLANCE
Gazette Notice: No. 11488
Effective date: 27 July 2026
Coverage: County governments, the National Government, service providers and development partners supporting digital revenue reforms.
WHY THIS MATTERS
Traceable collections: Audit trails make transactions and system changes easier to verify.
Reliable reporting: Standard ledgers and account coding improve reconciliation and financial information.
County control: Data ownership, portability and contractual safeguards reduce dependence on individual vendors.
Resilient services: Security, backups and recovery arrangements help collections continue during disruptions.
Better public value: More dependable revenue information can improve decisions on county services and development.
The requirements cover the full lifecycle of a revenue management system. This includes planning and budgeting, procurement, system development or acquisition, deployment, data migration, integration, operation, maintenance, audit, reporting and continuous improvement. They apply to county governments, the National Government, private-sector vendors and service providers, and development partners involved in digital revenue reforms.
CRA issued the Standards and Guidelines under Article 216(1)(c) and (2) of the Constitution. These provisions mandate the Commission to make recommendations concerning the financing of and financial management by county governments, define and enhance revenue sources, and encourage fiscal responsibility.
Their development involved consultations with the National Treasury, Council of Governors, Office of the Auditor-General, Office of the Controller of Budget, Information and Communication Technology Authority and county governments.
Addressing weaknesses in county revenue administration
County governments are constitutionally empowered to raise own-source revenue through property rates, entertainment taxes and charges for services they provide. However, weaknesses in revenue administration have limited the ability of some counties to realise their revenue potential.
The Gazette identifies fragmented and manual processes, limited automation, poor system integration, inadequate audit trails, weak data security, vendor lock-in and insufficient technical capacity among the challenges affecting county revenue management. In some cases, counties have also faced difficulties accessing or migrating their data when changing service providers.
The Standards and Guidelines provide a common basis for addressing these weaknesses. They go beyond digitising collections by setting minimum requirements for how county revenue systems should be designed, procured, secured, managed and evaluated.
Common functional and technical requirements
Every CRMS must meet the minimum functional and technical requirements contained in the Gazette. The annexes containing these requirements are binding and form an integral part of the Standards and Guidelines.
The required functions cover taxpayer and revenue-source registration, tariff configuration, assessment, billing, payment processing, receipting, debt management, enforcement, reporting, audit trails and taxpayer notifications.
County revenue items and transactions must be mapped to the Standard Chart of Accounts. Systems must maintain customer and transaction ledgers and generate standard financial, management, audit and compliance reports.
The technical requirements address system architecture, hosting, cybersecurity, data protection, integration, performance, business continuity and disaster recovery. County revenue systems must support secure interoperability with designated government platforms, including the Integrated Financial Management Information System, Business Registration Service and Integrated Population Registration System, together with other applicable national systems.
The Standards and Guidelines also require CRMS platforms to provide accessible service channels, including web, mobile and Unstructured Supplementary Service Data services. These channels should accommodate different users, including persons with disabilities.
County ownership and protection against vendor lock-in
The Standards and Guidelines affirm that each county government retains ownership of its CRMS platform, core infrastructure and revenue data. Counties also retain operational and administrative control over user management, system configuration, data access and revenue reporting.
Contracts with system vendors must contain safeguards on data protection, source-code escrow, knowledge transfer and system sustainability. They should also provide clear arrangements for data portability, system handover and exit management when a contract ends or a supplier changes.
The use of open standards is intended to reduce dependence on individual suppliers. It should also enable counties to retain access to their data and continue operating their revenue systems during contractual or administrative transitions.
What county governments are required to do
Each county government is required to establish governance and implementation structures for its revenue system. These include a County CRMS Committee chaired by the County Executive Committee Member for Finance, a Joint Technical Committee chaired by the County Treasury and a Project Implementation Unit.
The County CRMS Committee will oversee local deployment, coordinate county departments, approve permitted system customisations and escalate policy matters where necessary. The Project Implementation Unit will coordinate infrastructure, user training, change management and day-to-day liaison during rollout and support.
The County Treasury is the lead implementing agency. The County ICT Directorate is responsible for defined technical functions, including third-party components, hosting services, software licensing, technical support and integration with relevant government systems.
County governments should assess their existing revenue systems, procurement plans, contracts, data-governance arrangements and institutional capacity against the gazetted requirements. Identified gaps will need to be addressed through properly planned system improvements, contractual changes, training and change management.
WHAT COUNTIES SHOULD DO NOW
- Assess existing CRMS functions and controls against the gazetted requirements.
- Review planned procurements, current contracts, data rights and vendor exit arrangements.
- Establish the required governance and implementation structures.
- Plan system improvements, integration, training, change management and compliance reporting.
Monitoring, audit and compliance
Compliance continues throughout the operation of a revenue management system. Counties are required to conduct routine checks covering system integrity, data accuracy, uptime and incident management.
They must also submit quarterly compliance reports to CRA, the National Treasury and other oversight agencies. The Office of the Auditor-General, working with county internal audit departments, is required to conduct an annual audit covering system controls, financial accuracy, legal compliance and data governance.
CRA will periodically assess the effectiveness and efficiency of CRMS deployment and use across counties.
Where material non-compliance is identified, CRA and the Council of Governors may issue a formal compliance notice specifying the breach and providing a mandatory 90-day remediation period. The affected institution must prepare a written remedial plan. Persistent or repeated non-compliance may be escalated to the Intergovernmental Budget and Economic Council.
Supporting accountable revenue mobilisation
Revenue automation alone cannot guarantee improved collection. Its benefits depend on sound governance, reliable data, secure systems, capable staff, public awareness and consistent implementation across county revenue functions.
When properly implemented, the Standards and Guidelines are expected to improve the traceability of transactions, strengthen reconciliation and reporting, protect revenue data and reduce opportunities for leakage or system manipulation. More dependable revenue information should also enable county leaders to make better-informed decisions.
Improved own-source revenue administration can give counties a more reliable basis for financing public services and development priorities. The ultimate measure of success will therefore be whether the new requirements translate into accountable revenue collection, better taxpayer experiences and visible improvements in county service delivery.
The full Commission on Revenue Allocation Standards and Guidelines on the Automation of County Own Source Revenue, 2026 are contained in Kenya Gazette Notice No. 11488 of 27 July 2026.
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