How do I verify a contractor's NCA registration?

Ask for the number and the category, then check it against the National Construction Authority's own register rather than taking a certificate at face value. A certificate on a wall proves someone once registered; the register tells you whether it is current.

What category do I need for a house?

Most residential work sits comfortably within NCA 6 to NCA 8. What matters is that the category permits the value of your project: a contractor registered for smaller works cannot lawfully take on a project above their limit, and an insurer may take an interest in that after an incident.

Is 'NCA registered' enough?

No, and that phrase alone is what everyone claims. Ask for the number and the category. Ask who the technical director is, because NCA requires one with relevant qualifications. Those three answers separate a registered contractor from someone who says the words.

NCA-Registered Contractor: What the Category Actually Means

Why this page exists

Every building contractor in Kenya says they are NCA registered. It is the least informative claim in the industry, because it is both easy to say and hard for a client to check.

So here is what it actually means and how to verify it, including for us.

What the NCA is

The National Construction Authority, established under Act No. 41 of 2011, registers contractors and maintains the register of who is permitted to build what. Registration requires a registered business, a technical director with relevant construction qualifications, and current tax compliance.

The categories

Contractors are graded NCA 1 to NCA 8, and the grade sets the value of work they may lawfully undertake.

NCA 8 is the entry category: small residential work, minor renovations, small civil works.
NCA 6–7 covers medium residential and light commercial projects.
NCA 4–5 covers larger commercial and institutional buildings.
NCA 2–3 covers major projects including multi-storey commercial buildings.
NCA 1 carries no upper limit and is for mega-projects.

Most residential building in Kenya sits within NCA 6 to NCA 8, and that is entirely appropriate. A high category is not a quality signal for a house: it signals capacity for large projects, which is a different thing.

What does matter is that the category permits the value of your project.

How to check anyone, including us

Ask for the registration number and the category, not the phrase.
Check it against the NCA’s own register, not a certificate on a wall. A certificate proves someone registered once; the register tells you whether it is current.
Ask who the technical director is and what their qualification is. NCA requires one.
Ask separately about insurance, public liability and workmen’s compensation, and get the insurer named.

If a contractor is uncomfortable with any of those four questions, that discomfort is your answer.

Our details

Ask us the same four questions. Our registration number, our category, the name and qualification of our technical director and our insurer all go to you in writing with the tender documents, before anything is signed, so you can run the checks above on us before you commit.

We have deliberately not printed a registration number on this page. A number on a website proves nothing, cannot be checked against the person quoting you, and is exactly the kind of thing that should never be published unless the reader can tie it to a real contract. Ask for it directly.