All imported finished products that will be placed in the Kenyan market are required to be labelled with the Import Standardization Mark (ISM) sticker effective from 1st September 2015.
In accordance with the revised Import Standardization Mark (ISM) procedures issued by the Kenyan Bureau of Standards(KEBS), all imported finished products that will be placed in the Kenyan market are required to be labelled with the ISM sticker effective from 1st September 2015.
KEBS has made ISM mandatory for all imported products that comply with the requirement of the relevant Kenya Standard or approved specification. The objective of this new regulation is to assure Kenyan consumers of the product’s safety and conformity to the Kenyan standard requirements.
Exporters can present products appearing in this PVoC-regulated product list to the KEBS-appointed inspection agents such as Intertek for conformity verification and on successful verification obtain a Certificate of Conformity (CoC) in the country of supply. Importers of finished goods irrespective of their regulatory status within the PVoC are encouraged to obtain CoCs for faster issuance of ISM.
Importers of such commodities must obtain the ISM stickers directly from KEBS by submitting the following documents:
- ISM application form,
- Certificate of Conformity (CoC) issued by an approved PVoC service provider such as Intertek
- Import Declaration Form (IDF)
- Packing list.
Application for ISM stickers MUST be submitted before KEBS final clearance of the goods from the Port of Entry.
Products already certified by KEBS under the Diamond Mark of Quality Scheme are exempted from the mandatory application of ISM (A detailed list is provided in the guidelines). More information on the new ISM such as detailed guidelines, FAQs, Application Form etc., is available on the KEBS website.
