Income Tax Filing: Cameroonians still reluctant to declare
By Synthia Lateu
One month before the annual personal income tax (IRPP) filing deadline for non-professional taxpayers, many Cameroonians remain hesitant to complete the process.
According to reports, the General Directorate of Taxes (DGI) of Cameroon mobilized 10.5 billion CFA francs by the end of October, 2024 under the IRPP, achieving only 42% of its target of at least 25 billion CFA francs. This means the DGI still needs to collect an additional 14.5 billion CFA francs, aiming to register 2.1 million Cameroonians.
Initially set for June 30, 2024, the IRPP deadline has been extended multiple times: first to September 1 and then to December 1, 2024. Finance Minister Louis Paul Motaze stated after the last postponement that, the decision was influenced by the high volume of recent tax declarations.
However, stakeholders involved in facilitating the online declaration process had raised concerns about the DGI’s website. Issues such as slow internet speeds and limited public awareness they said, hindered the declaration process. In response to these challenges, officials assured users that Camtel had improved internet fluidity to enhance accessibility.
This tax declaration requirement was introduced by the 2021 Finance Law, signed by President Paul Biya on December 17, 2020.
The exercise involves persons receiving income from salaries, wages from the public and private sectors, pensions, life annuities, and/or financial income, land and generally remuneration of any kind (agropastoral activities, etc.), income from movable capital.
