Kenya's National Assembly has given the green light to the Finance Bill 2026, setting the stage for President William Ruto to sign it into law. The vote, held on the evening of Thursday, June 18, 2026, marks the final legislative hurdle for a bill that will determine how the government raises money to fund the country's Sh4.8 trillion budget for the 2026/27 financial year.
How the Vote Played Out
What started as a voice vote turned into a full electronic roll call after a section of lawmakers pushed back and demanded a formal division, forcing every MP present to have their position recorded for the public to see.
When the votes were tallied, 122 MPs backed the Bill while 40 rejected it. Nobody abstained. National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang'ula read out the breakdown on the floor of the House: of the "ayes," 103 came through electronic voting and 19 through manual ballots, for a total of 122. The "noes" comprised 36 electronic and 4 manual votes, totaling 40.
With that, the Speaker declared that the ayes had carried the day, officially passing the Bill at its Third Reading.
Interestingly, only 162 of the National Assembly's 349 members showed up to cast a vote at all, meaning a larger number of legislators — 187 in total — were absent for one of the most consequential bills Parliament handles each year, one that touches the wallets of virtually every Kenyan taxpayer.
Political Battle Lines Drawn Before the Vote
The lead-up to Thursday's vote was anything but quiet. Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, who now leads the Democracy for Citizens Party (DCP), publicly instructed MPs allied with his party to vote against the Bill and to stay in the chamber long enough to force a recorded division, rather than letting it pass quietly by acclamation.
In a statement issued on social media ahead of the vote, Gachagua framed the moment as a litmus test for every lawmaker, arguing that the outcome would show Kenyans plainly which of their representatives stood with ordinary citizens and which ones, in his view, backed measures he described as burdensome to the public.
On the other side of the aisle, the Kenya Kwanza administration and its broad-based coalition partners pushed back hard against that narrative. National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung'wah was among the most vocal defenders of the Bill, insisting on the floor of the House that it did not contain any tax measures designed to hurt ordinary Kenyans. He maintained that the legislation was necessary to widen the country's revenue base and keep development programmes funded.
In the end, the numbers favored the government side. Lawmakers aligned with President Ruto and the broader coalition outvoted the opposition bloc, handing the administration a significant legislative win heading into the new financial year.
What Changed Before the Final Vote
The version of the Bill that passed wasn't the one originally tabled. MPs adopted a series of amendments recommended by the National Assembly's Finance and National Planning Committee, chaired by Molo MP Kimani Kuria, following weeks of public participation and stakeholder input.
Among the notable changes lawmakers signed off on:
- Digital payment taxation: New provisions targeting transaction fees, network charges, and processing costs tied to proprietary digital payment systems — a move that could raise the tax burden on international card and payment service providers operating in Kenya.
- Gambling and lottery taxes: A tightened definition of "winnings," now specifically limited to payouts from lotteries and prize competitions run by operators licensed under the Gambling Control Act, 2025.
- Other revenue measures: Adjustments touching virtual assets, scrap metal transactions, and tweaks to VAT exemptions and zero-rated supplies, all aimed at plugging revenue gaps identified during budget preparations.
Alongside the Finance Bill, the Appropriation Bill, 2026 was also passed, giving Parliament's approval for the actual spending side of the national budget.
Drama on the Floor
The session wasn't without its tense moments. Earlier in the day, Kabuchai MP Majimbo Kalasinga was ordered out of the chamber by Farah Maalim, who was presiding over the sitting, in a dust-up that unfolded before debate on the Bill even reached its climax.
There was also a legal undercurrent running through the day. The Consumer Federation of Kenya had moved to court seeking to have certain reliefs and orders pulled, adding another layer of pressure on a process that was already drawing intense political scrutiny from across the divide.
What Happens Next
With the National Assembly's approval secured, the Finance Bill 2026 now moves to President Ruto's desk. Under Kenya's legislative process, the President can assent to the Bill, sending it into law, or return it to Parliament with reservations if he has concerns about specific clauses.
Given how central the Finance Bill is to the government's revenue plans for the coming fiscal year — covering everything from debt servicing to recurrent expenditure and development projects — presidential assent is widely expected to follow in the coming days, barring any last-minute legal challenges.
For now, the passage hands the Ruto administration a hard-fought win, even as questions linger over the sharply divided vote, the unusually high number of absent MPs, and the political cost both sides are likely to pay once the new tax measures start showing up in Kenyans' pay slips and shopping receipts.
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