Kenyan court backs cess fees on export herbs

KENYA – The High Court in Nyandarua, Kenya, has allowed the county government to continue charging cess on herbs transported for export.

The court said the levy counts as a fee for services and not a tax that breaches the Constitution. Royal Herbs, which operates inside a Special Economic Zone, takes fresh herbs to Nairobi each day for export and challenged the fee in court.

Royal Herbs asked the court to cancel Section 8 of the Nyandarua County Finance Act. The company said counties cannot impose charges on export goods and argued that the cess amounts to double taxation and slows down its export chain.

The case began after county officers stopped one of the company’s trucks in April and asked for KSh 161,000 (approx US$1,242) before they released the load of fresh herbs.

Justice Waweru Kiarie rejected the petition and said “The Constitution of Kenya provides as follows: The national and county governments may impose charges for the services they provide. The petitioner has failed to prove how payment of the cess amounts to taxation.” He also noted that the company did not show that the fee blocked free movement of goods or broke any legal limit.

County position

Nyandarua County told the court that the cess pays for user services tied to its work in agriculture and rural roads. The county said the fee helps pay for produce checks, road work and other tasks linked to moving goods from farms to buyers. It also said the Constitution allows counties to charge for such services when the service is clear and direct.

Justice Kiarie used simple legal standards to show the gap between a tax and a fee. He said that a tax supports broad public spending while a fee links to a clear service such as road use or produce checks. The judge added that any fee must match the service offered and cannot shift into general spending.

The court said Royal Herbs did not give proof that the cess copies a national tax or creates double taxation. It said the company also failed to show that the county used the cess for anything other than direct services.

The ruling gives counties more certainty when they apply user fees inside farm chains, including crops that end up in export markets. Counties may charge for services when the fee links to a task they carry out and stays within the law.

The judgment comes at a time when fresh produce exporters continue to raise concerns about charges along supply routes. Some growers say that fees at different checkpoints raise transport costs and slow down deliveries.

Others argue that counties need these fees to keep roads in good shape and ensure safe produce. The court’s ruling now offers a clear legal guide on how counties may apply such charges in future.

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