Cameroon launches E-visa, sets issuance deadline at 72 hours

People seeking entry visas into Cameroon will hence acquire them exclusively online begining April 30, 2023, the Ministry of External Relations has said.

The measure, said Minister Lejeune Mbella, “aims at the digital transformation of Cameroon’s diplomatic apparatus”, adding that e-visa is a step in that direction.

The visa application will be done at the Ministry’s website starting with a pre-enrolment whereby the applicant will fill a form, providing required personal information.

This will be followed by the payment of a visa fee and then an online visa issuance authorisation and a QR Code will be produced by competent diplomatic authority.

Once this is done, the applicant can then go to Cameroonian embassy in the country to get a visa sticker fixed on the passport or travel document.

The electronic visa application process will take at most 72 hours and 24 hours for cases of express visa application, MINREX stated.

“All in all, Cameroon’s E-visa system is part of an effort to turn Cameroon into a more attractive destination, while at the same time addressing some of the concerns of Cameroon’s diaspora and aligning our consular system with the highest international standards,” Minister Lejeune Mbella said.

Cameroon first introduced the E-visa system in June 2022, a measure that was applauded for reducing the time usually taken to process hardcopy visa documents.

However, people could still acquire entry visas into Cameroon by submitting hard copy applications and documents. They will not have to do that again as the process will be exclusively done online.

By Tata Mbunwe