Human Resource professionals have until January 2017 to acquire practicing certificates or be rendered jobless.
The Institute of Human Resource Management has warned those who do not register with it by end of the year that they will not be eligible to practice either as consultants or employees.
IHRM council chairman Elijah Sitimah said those who breach the rules - including employers who engage in uncertified HR officers - will be prosecuted.
He was speaking during the launch of the upgraded IHRM website on Tuesday.
The website automates registration and other functions for HR professionals.
“All those practicing as HR professionals should take necessary steps of complying with the Act before the law catches up with them,” he said.
According to the Human Resource Management Professionals (HRMP) Act 2012, those who will be found practicing without IHRM certification will face prosecution, which would lead to a fine of Sh200,000 or a jail term of two years or both.
About 5,000 professionals have registered with IHRM out of about 25,000 human resources professionals practicing in Kenya.
“We advise Kenyans to only engage the services of the slightly over 5,000 professionals listed in the institute’s website and whoever his/her name does not appear in the website and yet purports to be offering HR services should be reported to the Institute for action,” Sitimah said.