Tax clearance added in visa processing in Cameroon

By Nambu Bernadette

Visa applicants in Cameroon will now be required to present a certificate of tax compliance to the diplomatic representative who is issuing the visa.

This was made known through a circular from the Minister of Finance in the Finance Law of 2024 of section M 94c Chapter IV.

According to the government and tax officials, the tax compliance certificate provides proof that its holders are in full compliance with the tax administration.

The requirement for its presentation for import or export operations and obtaining public subsidies, requests for exit visas from embassies and consulates, payment of invoices by the State, decentralized local authorities, public establishments and companies, public capital companies, and private companies that appear on a list established by MINFI (Minister of Finance), the issuance of certificates of support.

According to the Cameroonian government, this new provision is a “measure to promote tax citizenship” in the country.

According to estimates from the Ministry of Finance, there are not only crooked economic operators, who generally resort to subterfuges to avoid fulfilling their obligations towards the tax administration, but also and above all actors in the informal sector, who represent around 45 % of the country’s GDP, for a tax contribution of only 5%.