Cameroon officially adopts the electronic visa

Announced since July 2022, the launch of the dematerialized procedure for obtaining the travel document has been delayed. Its implementation seems to be taking shape.

Like several African countries, Cameroon has officially adopted the issuance of the online visa. The President of the Republic of Cameroon, Paul Biya, signed to this effect on Thursday, (March 2, 2023), the decree that updates the conditions of entry, stay and exit of foreigners staying in Cameroon.

According to that decree, obtaining an electronic visa requires the submission of a visa application made on the dedicated website that will be launched soon for this purpose. The application is made regardless of the geographical area of the applicant, according to the established administrative and financial procedures.

An online visa authorization will then be issued to the applicant who can then go either to a diplomatic mission or to a border post, to actually obtain the visa. This final phase will be completed by enrolment of the applicant consisting of fingerprinting, facial photography and others. According to the decree, the visa is issued within three days from the date of the online application.

The e-visa project is part of the Digital Cameroon strategic plan. In June 2022, the government had received the IT equipment dedicated to this project entrusted to the company Impact Palmarès R&D SAS based in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. The bill updating the legal framework was tabled in the National Assembly on 2 July.

The implementation of the electronic visa will allow the centralization and protection of the data recorded on the digital platform; the control of the flow of entries and exits on the territory, the control of State revenues through payment which will now be made electronically.

The e-visa will also allow “the reduction of distances to travel and queues in embassies. These problems are part of the grievances denounced in particular by the diaspora and foreigners wishing to stay in Cameroon, “said in July the Cameroonian Minister of External Relations Lejeune Mbella Mbella.