Tax in Cameroon

Who is the tax authority?

The Direction Générale des Impôts (DGI), under the Ministère des Finances, administers Cameroon's national tax system. The DGI issues rulings, conducts audits, and enforces the Code Général des Impôts (CGI).

Cameroon's tax framework rests on three legal layers. The CGI supplies domestic rules. CEMAC directives harmonize TVA and corporate rates across the six-nation monetary union. OHADA rules govern commercial-law questions affecting corporate classification throughout 17 francophone African states.

Cameroon is a CEMAC member, an ECCAS member, and an AfCFTA signatory. The BEAC central bank, headquartered in Yaoundé, issues the XAF franc for all six CEMAC nations.

What is the tax year and when are returns due?

Cameroon uses the calendar year (1 January to 31 December) as the fiscal year. IRPP is withheld monthly from employee wages under the withholding regime.

Who counts as a Cameroonian tax resident?

Under CGI Article 7, an individual is a Cameroonian tax resident if any one of three tests applies: (a) habitual residence in Cameroon, (b) physical presence of 183 days or more in the tax year, or (c) Cameroonian-source professional activity as the main occupation.

Residents pay IRPP on worldwide income. Non-residents pay tax only on Cameroonian-source income. The three tests apply independently — meeting any single one establishes residence for the full tax year.

What are the personal income tax rates?

Cameroon uses four IRPP brackets under the Code Général des Impôts. The base rates shown below have a 10% centimes additionnels (additional council tax) surcharge applied, resulting in the combined rates used in practice:

Salary income benefits from a 30% flat abatement before the bracket applies. Self-employed persons and sole traders declare under a separate professional-income schedule within the IRPP framework.

How does corporate tax work?

Cameroon's Impôt sur les Sociétés (IS) has a headline combined rate of 33% — composed of a 30% base IS rate plus the 10% centimes additionnels surcharge. This is one of the higher CIT rates on the African continent.

Withholding tax on dividends paid to non-residents is 16.5% (combined). Treaty residents receive reduced rates under applicable DTAs. Cameroon has not adopted the OECD Pillar Two global minimum tax. Tax losses carry forward for four years under the CGI. Quarterly acomptes (advance payments) are required for provisional IS.

What are TVA and other indirect taxes?

Cameroon's TVA (taxe sur la valeur ajoutée) is 19.25% — composed of the CEMAC-harmonized 17.5% base rate plus the 10% centimes additionnels surcharge. This is notably higher than several CEMAC peers (CF: 19%, CG: 18.9%).

TVA returns are filed monthly. Customs duties apply separately under the CEMAC common external tariff. Excise duties apply to alcohol, tobacco, and fuel.

Currency framework — XAF and the BEAC

Cameroon uses the Central African CFA Franc (XAF), distinct from the West African CFA Franc (XOF) used by Burkina Faso and seven other UEMOA states. The BEAC central bank, headquartered in Yaoundé, Cameroon, issues the XAF for all six CEMAC members.

The XAF peg removes exchange-rate risk against the euro for cross-border trade within the zone. Cameroon's diversified economy — oil, cocoa, coffee, cotton, timber, and bananas — makes it the monetary anchor of the CEMAC bloc.

Cameroon's bilingual dual legal system

Cameroon is the only country in Africa with a constitutionally entrenched dual legal system operating within a single national jurisdiction. This is the most distinctive feature of the Cameroonian legal and tax environment for foreign operators.

Anglophone Crisis — operational risk in Northwest and Southwest

Since 2016, an armed separatist conflict — the Anglophone Crisis — has affected the Northwest and Southwest regions of Cameroon. The conflict arose from long-standing Anglophone grievances over perceived marginalization within the bilingual state.

How are cryptoassets taxed?

Cameroon operates under a BEAC-wide restriction on cryptoassets across the entire CEMAC bloc. No dedicated crypto-asset tax law exists. Where gains are declared, they fall under existing IRPP income-tax categories.

What is the treaty network?

Cameroon has approximately 13 active bilateral tax agreements — the widest treaty network among CEMAC members. Key partners include France, Canada, Tunisia, South Africa, Mauritius, Morocco, and the UAE. The US does not have a DTA with Cameroon.

Cameroon has signed but not yet ratified the OECD Multilateral Instrument (MLI). The CEMAC Multilateral Tax Convention provides limited regional coverage among the six CEMAC members. There is no US-Cameroon DTA — US persons and green-card holders working in Cameroon face full double-tax exposure on Cameroonian-source income.

Where does Cameroon sit in the Central African cohort?

Cameroon is the anchor economy of the CEMAC bloc — the largest of the six nations sharing the XAF franc, accounting for roughly 40% of CEMAC's combined GDP. It sits in the sub-region alongside CAR, Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and Chad.

Cameroon as CEMAC anchor — economic weight

Cameroon's economy is the most diversified in the CEMAC bloc. Unlike the oil-dependent Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, and Gabon, Cameroon's GDP rests on multiple sectors: oil and gas, cocoa, coffee, cotton, timber, bananas, and financial services.

Common pitfalls for foreign operators

Foreign companies and individuals encounter a specific set of recurring traps in Cameroon:

When should you talk to a Cameroonian tax pro?

Some filings are routine. Others carry compounding risk in Cameroon's bilingual, dual-legal-system environment:

• Your income enters the 25% or 35% IRPP bracket
• Your company operates in petroleum, mining, or timber — special-code frameworks apply
• You are a US or UK person with no DTA protection in Cameroon
• Your operations are in or near the Anglophone Northwest or Southwest regions
• You received a DGI audit notice, back-assessment, or transfer-pricing query
• You need to understand CEMAC exchange-control rules for repatriating profits
• You are establishing a subsidiary or branch under the OHADA commercial framework

This page is general information. It is not personal guidance for your specific situation. Tax rules change. Always check current figures with the DGI or a licensed Cameroonian practitioner before filing.