Inside the Government’s new green passport initiative for state officers

The Government of Kenya is rolling out a new green-colored service passport designed specifically for public servants and state officers traveling abroad on official government assignments who do not qualify for diplomatic passports.

The announcement was made by Principal Secretary for Immigration and Citizen Services Belio Kipsang while appearing before the National Assembly Departmental Committee on Administration and Internal Security.

Kipsang disclosed the development to Members of Parliament, confirming that the new travel document has already been printed and will be officially rolled out once the necessary administrative regulations are finalized.

The introduction of the green passport creates an additional, distinct category of official travel documents in Kenya, joining the country’s existing ordinary and diplomatic passports.

Historically, service passports were primarily issued to members of the disciplined services, including police officers and military personnel traveling overseas on official duties.

Under the newly expanded framework, the document will bridge the gap for thousands of public servants who travel for official government business but fall outside the strict legal thresholds required to hold a diplomatic passport.

Kipsang explained the rationale behind the move as Parliament began probing existing regulations governing diplomatic passports.

Lawmakers raised concerns that several constitutional officeholders and independent commissions had previously been excluded from the eligibility list, sparking debates over fairness and equity in state travel documentation.

The committee session centered on a petition filed by the Commission on Administrative Justice (CAJ), which highlighted what it termed unequal treatment of officials serving in various constitutional offices.

In response, PS Kipsang assured lawmakers that the government is fully willing to review the current regulations which were introduced in 2012 under the Kenya Citizenship and Immigration Act to bring them into alignment with the governance changes introduced by the 2010 Constitution.

Under current legal guidelines, diplomatic passports are heavily restricted and reserved for designated senior state officials. Eligible individuals include:

The President and Deputy President

Cabinet Secretaries and Principal Secretaries

Governors and senior judicial officers

Security chiefs

Certain spouses and dependents of the listed officials

Retired public figures, including former Deputy Presidents and their spouses, also qualify under separate legislation that recognizes their continued involvement in international engagements such as state mediation, peace missions, and international election observation.

Furthermore, Kipsang pointed out that Regulation 13 grants the Interior Cabinet Secretary discretionary power to approve diplomatic passports for individuals outside the specified statutory categories when strictly necessary for critical government assignments.

Emphasizing the need to safeguard the prestige and verification standards of the country’s highest-level travel documents, Kipsang maintained that diplomatic passports are strictly intended for official duties and diplomatic functions, adding:

"The government must protect the document’s integrity and international recognition."

The introduction of the service passport is part of a broader, ongoing government initiative to overhaul and decentralize passport administration across the country.

These administrative reforms also feature recent directives announced by Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen, who revealed plans to upgrade regional immigration offices specifically targeting Nyeri and Malindi to provide full passport registration, processing, and biometric capture services.

These upgrades aim to ease congestion at major centers like Nairobi's Nyayo House and decentralize essential citizen services closer to local populations.

As the National Assembly committee concludes its review of the petition, the finalization of the green passport regulations is expected to streamline official travel for public servants, resolve long-standing administrative complaints from independent bodies, and ensure a clear demarcation between diplomatic duties and routine public service missions abroad.