Short answer: Freelancers carrying on business should assess eTIMS separately from VAT registration. KRA provides eTIMS Lite for eligible non-VAT taxpayers. Choose a channel that fits your work, capture the correct client and service details, confirm the invoice was accepted, and keep the invoice, payment and any withholding certificate together.
Do Freelancers Need eTIMS If They Are Not VAT Registered?
KRA's eTIMS guidance covers persons engaged in business, including non-VAT businesses. Being a sole trader, working from home or receiving payments into a personal account does not by itself answer the invoicing question. Check your business activity and the applicable exclusions against KRA's current guidance.
Keep three decisions separate: whether the transaction needs an electronic invoice, whether you are registered for VAT, and which income-tax rules apply to your earnings. A zero VAT amount on an invoice does not mean the income is tax-free.
Choose eTIMS Lite, an Invoicing App or an API
KRA lists eTIMS Lite Web through eCitizen, USSD through *222#, and the eTIMS Non VAT mobile app. OSCU and VSCU are separate system-to-system integration models. They are not alternative names for the Lite channels.
Choose using the actual workflow and total cost. There is no invoice-count cutoff in this guide that makes a free channel unsuitable. Try the client records, corrections, receipt access and support you expect to use.
| Your situation | Route to assess | Test before choosing |
|---|---|---|
| You need an official channel for a straightforward non-VAT service business | KRA eTIMS Lite, subject to eligibility | Complete a sample client invoice and find its accepted record again. |
| You repeatedly invoice clients and want a phone-based record and sharing workflow | Risiti App | Reuse a service and client, check submission status, then download and share the accepted receipt. |
| Your own software already creates invoices | An API integration | Confirm taxpayer setup, invoice identity, status handling and who resolves failed submissions. |
Prepare These Details Before You Invoice a Client
Your taxpayer details
Confirm the supplier identity, KRA PIN, branch and tax registration used by your invoicing channel. Use the identity under which the work is supplied.
The actual buyer
Ask who contracted for the work and which legal name and buyer PIN belong on the invoice. The employee paying you may not be the buyer.
A specific service description
Use a description such as 'Website maintenance — September 2026' with the agreed quantity, fee and discount. Keep the contract or purchase-order reference in your records.
Tax and payment details
Confirm the service's tax treatment and whether the agreed fee includes applicable VAT. Record the payment method, payment reference and any documented withholding separately.
An Invoice Workflow for Retainers, Projects and Milestones
These are record-keeping examples, not rules for when tax becomes due. Confirm the correct invoicing timing for deposits, advance payments and staged work before setting up an automatic billing routine.
Review the invoice once, submit it and follow its status. A saved draft, a payment notification or a PDF generated before acceptance is not evidence that KRA has accepted the invoice. Resolve pending or failed records before telling a client the completed receipt is ready.
| Work pattern | Make the invoice identifiable | Keep alongside the invoice |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly retainer | Client, service and the exact service period | Retainer agreement, approval and payment reference |
| A project paid in milestones | Project reference and the milestone being billed | Agreed scope, milestone acceptance and the prior billing record |
| A one-off assignment | Deliverable, quantity and agreed fee | Client instructions, delivery evidence and payment |
| A corrected or reduced fee | Reference to the original accepted invoice and the adjustment | Original invoice, appropriate credit note and any replacement |
VAT, Turnover Tax and Withholding Tax Are Different
- ✓VAT treatment follows your actual registration and the service supplied. Do not infer your registration only from a turnover estimate, and do not choose zero-rated merely to make the invoice tax amount zero.
- ✓Turnover Tax is an income-tax regime. KRA excludes management, professional and training fees from it. Freelancing alone is not a reason to apply a Turnover Tax rate to your invoices or income.
- ✓Where a client deducts withholding tax, obtain the withholding certificate and reconcile it with the payment. KRA says withholding is generally a tax credit rather than a final tax for resident payees, subject to the category of income.
What Changes When the Client Is Outside Kenya?
A foreign client does not automatically make a service VAT zero-rated. Confirm the place and nature of the supply, your VAT status and the applicable law before selecting its tax treatment. Keep the client agreement and evidence of what was delivered and where it was used.
Agree the commercial currency, then confirm the currency and conversion requirements of the applicable invoicing channel. Retain the original amount, the conversion basis used and the payment record. Do not invent a Kenyan buyer PIN to make a foreign-client invoice pass validation.
KRA's April 2026 notice says exports of taxable services are prefilled in iTax from transmitted TIMS/eTIMS invoices for the period. That makes a consistent invoice trail useful, but it does not make every payment from overseas an export of a taxable service.
A Monthly Close You Can Repeat
- ✓List the invoices for the period and identify any still pending, retrying or failed. Assign a next action to each unresolved record.
- ✓Match each accepted invoice to its client, contract or service period, and receipt reference.
- ✓Match bank or M-Pesa payments and any withholding certificates. Separate unpaid balances from unexplained differences.
- ✓Keep credit notes linked to the original invoice so a correction does not appear to be extra revenue or a missing payment.
- ✓Keep an accessible copy of your invoice and payment evidence for your bookkeeping and tax-return work.
Where Risiti Fits in a Freelancer's Workflow
Risiti App helps you prepare invoices, reuse item and client details, track KRA submission status, and obtain accepted receipt PDFs for sharing. Complete taxpayer onboarding and verify an accepted production invoice before relying on the workflow for client billing.
Compare the current App pricing with KRA's free channels. A paid invoicing workflow does not decide your VAT status, establish export treatment or replace tax-return preparation. If you already bill through your own software, review the Direct API or Platform API product that fits that integration.
Official sources
Official guidance and legislation used to prepare this guide.
Frequently asked questions
Open a question to read the answer.
Can a non-VAT freelancer use eTIMS?
Yes. KRA provides eTIMS Lite for eligible non-VAT taxpayers. Assess your business and transactions against the current eTIMS scope and exclusions, then choose an appropriate channel.
Do all freelancers pay Turnover Tax?
No. KRA excludes management, professional and training fees from Turnover Tax. Your income-tax treatment depends on the activity and applicable rules, not the label freelancer.
Does a foreign client mean I should select zero-rated VAT?
No. Client location alone does not establish the VAT treatment. Confirm the nature and place of the supply, your registration and the applicable export rules.
Does withholding tax replace an eTIMS invoice?
A withholding certificate and an invoice document different things. Retain the invoice, payment and applicable withholding certificate together and reconcile their amounts.
How should I choose between eTIMS Lite and paid invoicing software?
Compare current channel eligibility and the workflow you need, including client details, accepted records, corrections and cost. Test a representative client invoice before choosing.
Can I correct a client's details by editing the PDF?
Editing a PDF does not correct the submitted eTIMS record. Check the status and use the appropriate correction or credit-note workflow in the originating solution.
Updated: 14 Sept 2026. Source-check scope and limitations, where recorded, appear below. This guide is not tax or legal advice. Confirm unusual cases with KRA or a qualified tax professional.