Company registration in Cameroon

Company establishment in Cameroon is a commercial locale in a strategically crucial nation in Central Africa, with ingress to pivotal markets, both regional and global. The nation’s economy is showcasing consistent advancement, with its principal sectors, such as agronomy, mineral extraction, energy, and logistics, vigorously flourishing. The Republic of Cameroon entices financiers with its advantageous topographical positioning, simplicity of the fiscal framework, propitious circumstances for organizing and cultivating commercial undertakings, inclusive of well-organized juridical safeguarding of commerce. Initiating a venture in Cameroon, its proprietor may rely on the comprehensive assistance of indigenous authorities; a myriad of governmental measures proffer advantages and privileges for overseas investors.

Subsequently, we shall delve more profoundly into the fiscal milieu within the commonwealth, the benefits of situating an enterprise within the nation, and the extant structural and juridical configurations of juridical persons. The composition additionally furnishes a meticulous procedure for the establishment of a corporation in Cameroon, delineating the peculiarities of corporate levies and financial intermediation. 

Political profile, economy and business climate in Cameroon

The Commonwealth holds a pivotal locus in Central Africa and possesses a commerce centered on resource consignments. The principal domains of economic exertion encompass husbandry, extractive industries, and manufactural output. The mercantile milieu is distinguished by a multitude of merits, such as fiscal inducements for state-owned enterprises in Cameroon, prospects for substantial pacts at the provincial and global scale – owing to affiliation in commercial accords and enhanced infrastructural frameworks.

The jurisdiction is abode to a plethora of institutions across disparate fiscal domains, from telecommunication to puissance. Among the most substantial corporations inscribed in Cameroon, partake Société Nationale des Hydrocarbures (SNH), Dangote Cement Cameroon SA, MTN Cameroon, and ENEO Cameroon SA.

Political structure

It is a monistic realm, governed by a chief magistrate chosen for a septennial duration. The legislature is structured upon a dual-chamber tenet, statutory measures are enacted by the National Assembly and the Senate. The central administration supervises pivotal economic matters, encompassing capital ventures and transnational collaboration. The Fundamental Law, ratified in 1996, not solely delineates the foundation for the operation of the polity but also affirms the entitlements of private enterprises.

Participation in international political, economic and public structures

The Commonwealth is a dynamic contributor to global politico-economic mechanisms, which facilitates entities incorporated in Cameroon, engagement with external counterparts. The nation is a constituent of numerous paramount establishments, including:

• World Commerce Confederation – fosters commercial affiliations between territories.
• Assembly for the Standardization of Mercantile Jurisprudence in Africa (OHADA) – assures juridical certainty for capitalists and enterprises at the level of constituent states;
• Central African Economic and Monetary Confederacy (CEMAC) – guarantees the operation of a unified currency (Central African franc, CFA), cultivates initiatives directed at refining commerce within the locale.
• The Global Assembly (UN), alongside its specialized branches.
• Pan-African Alliance (AU) – nurtures collaboration in manifold sectors across the African expanse.

Admittance to these associations confers upon the nation ingress to vast commerce arenas, while entrenched enterprises in Cameroon are afforded the prospect to engage in monumental structural undertakings and garner fiscal backing for their realization.

Main economic indicators 

Pursuant to evaluative data from the World Bank, GDP in 2023 totaled 47.95 billion USD, in contrast to the antecedent interval, this datum augmented by 4.31 billion USD. As per specialists, the escalation rate in 2025 will be 3.5%, thereby further substantiating the outlooks for initiating an enterprise in Cameroon. The principal domains that constitute the gross domestic product are agronomy, manufacturing, edification, and amenities. Inflation in 2024 was at 4.4%, attributable to global economic disarray. However, in 2025, this numeral is anticipated to diminish to 2.7%.

Resource extraction, export and import

It possesses abundant natural assets, encompassing petroleum, gas, timberlands, and ores. Numerous capitalists initiate ventures in Cameroonian auriferous and diamondiferous extraction, a domain flourishing due to external capital infusion. Approximately 40% of the nation's revenue originates from petroleum consignments. The silvicultural sector is similarly advancing, provisioning lumber for the global marketplace. 

The aggregate quantum of state consignments in 2023 equaled 4.4 billion USD. Corporations enrolled in Cameroon vend petroleum, cacao legumes, lumber, and java beyond borders. The jurisdiction's principal commercial counterparts are the Celestial Empire, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the Italian Republic, and the Republic of India. Incoming shipments in 2023 ascended to 9 billion USD. The predominant imported commodities include mineral combustibles and lubricants (30%), apparatus and instruments (20%), electric contrivances (15%), conveyances (10%), and medicaments (8%). Imports chiefly emanate from the Celestial Empire, the French Republic, the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the United States of America, the Kingdom of Belgium, the Federal Republic of Germany, and the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

Why choose Cameroon to do business

Cameroon, termed "microcosm of Africa," resides in the central expanse of the continent and enjoys passage to the Atlantic Sea through Douala. Its nearness to Nigeria, Chad, the Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and Congo fortifies its function as a passageway and commercial juncture. The CFA zone's financial flux simplifies juridical institutions in Cameroon's fiscal transactions.

Economic prospects

The economy of the dominion is exceedingly heterogeneous and encompasses auspicious sectors, such as the agrarian domain, conveyance and logistics sphere, mining, and informatics. It stands as a forerunner in the cultivation of cacao, coffee, cotton, and plantains. The refinement of agrarian commodities for exportation has been fostered.

The polity is augmenting quay and thoroughfare infrastructure, with Douala quay functioning as the principal dock for commodities to Chad and the Central African Republic. The copious petroleum, methane, gold, bauxite, and hematite assets bestow governmental patronage upon external investors. The realm has also witnessed expansion in informatics, notably in service digitalization and electronic remittance mechanisms.

Government support

The jurisdictional authorities endeavor to foster the advent of enterprises and capital infusion through measures to simplify registration, alleviate fiscal encumbrance, and enhance the mercantile milieu. The Investment Codex affords guarantees for foreign investors, fiscal concessions during nascent operational years, and supplementary prerogatives in agronomy, resource exploitation, and refinement.

Exempted economic enclaves, such as the Kribi Industrial Enclave, have been instituted within the dominion, with streamlined bureaucratic governance and fiscal inducements. The sovereign, in collaboration with the mercantile sphere, is advancing a plethora of monumental undertakings, such as the erection of thoroughfares, rail networks, and power-generating infrastructures.

Relatively low costs of doing business

Non-residents, incorporated entities in Cameroon, present enticing terms to diminish operational expenditures. The nation boasts a proficient workforce, while remuneration is notably modest – as of the conclusion of 2024, the mean monthly stipend is 255 USD. Realty designated for mercantile objectives is procurable at comparatively modest rates, with locales commencing at 200,000 CFA, equivalent to 320 USD based on the December 2024 exchange. Hydroelectric ventures are being cultivated within the nation, thereby lessening the expenditure of electricity utilization. Enterprises established in Cameroon, particularly those in the extractive or agrarian sectors, gain access to unrefined materials domestically, thereby appreciably curtailing transport outlays.

Legislative regulation company registration in Cameroon and business operations

Regulation of mercantile endeavors within the dominion transpires pursuant to domestic enactments and global statutes. The jurisprudential framework endeavors to streamline commercial enrollment in Cameroon, safeguarding the prerogatives of stakeholders and fostering an unclouded entrepreneurial milieu.

OHADA, a federative consortium encompassing 17 African dominions, secures fiscal and trade regulations concordance. It administers commercial enterprises through uniform edicts, encompassing global mercantile jurisprudence and adjudication. These enactments coordinate inscription procedures in Cameroon and other affiliated territories, instituting corporate governance. 

The Cameroon Investment Code affords juridical guarantees and inducements for financiers, seeking to allure indigenous and global capital influx. It bestows enterprises with substantial pecuniary and administrative prerogatives, encompassing repatriation of profits and dividends, establishment of economic zones, diminished levies, and supplementary inducements.

Types of companies that can be registered 

It affords pecuniary provisions through the establishment of corporations, proffering an extensive array of mercantile configurations for adapting undertakings to particular aims. Each constitution possesses distinct founding, associate duties, and managerial arrangements. Foreign nationals may either partake in singular proprietorship or institute a juridical entity, regulated by the OHADA decree.

Procedure company registration in Cameroon

Processing company registration in Cameroon is not convoluted, but encompasses multiple ensuing stages:

Explication of OPF and appellation selection

The selection of corporate constitution is contingent upon the establishment's magnitude and ambit, taking into account determinants such as capital, participant liability, and hierarchical arrangement. The entity must comply with OHADA's legislative compendium and be unique, with denomination accessibility corroborated through the Registry of Commercial and Personal Property Liens.

Positioning of sanctioned equity in the financial institution

The initiators must inaugurate a banking repository in Cameroon — provisional consignment in one of the nation's fiduciary establishments. Subsequently, it is requisite to consign the quantum of the sanctioned equity into the bank — stipulated by statute or delineated by accord.

Preparation of records

The proprietor must formulate the administrative and juridical writings requisite for registering an enterprise in Cameroon. The statutes must be authenticated by an authorized scrivener in the district.

Presentment of papers and scrutiny terminologies to TPPCR

The proprietor or legate must ready manuscripts for the provincial bureau of the Index of Commercial and Personal Property Funding via the Procedural Link initiating commerce (CFCE), encompassing a petition scroll and managerial toll. The request processing interval generally endures 3-5 days, with postponements if requisite.

Necessary documents for company registration 

To establish a commercial entity in Cameroon, the proprietor is mandated to submit the following credentials:

• charter, which denotes the appellation of the corporation, its juridical domicile, delineates the objectives and trajectories of operation, the Penal Code and the method for its constitution, the entitlements and responsibilities of joint proprietors, the apportionment of gains and expenditures;
• the resolution of the co-originators to establish an establishment;
• replicas of passports or commensurate authentication credentials of originators-individuals, when pertaining to the establishment of an enterprise by a non-domiciled entity in Cameroon, a certified translation of these records into French or English could be requisite;
• if the originator is a juridical person, the foundational instruments, particulars regarding the designation of the administrator and their identification credentials are furnished.;

• proof of domicile - for instance, a rent contract or certification of proprietorship of a commercial edifice, a utility invoice;

• To procure remuneration for a state-sponsored service - monetary sums may be remitted at the municipal revenue office or via a financial institution, the quantum fluctuates contingent upon the category of corporation and locality.

The registration of juridical persons in Cameroon may likewise solicit a ruling on the establishment of a corporation (protocol of the plenary assembly of co-creators), a decree, or a missive designating a steward.

Obtaining a tax code and registering with the social security system

Subsequent to corporate enlistment in Cameroon, its proprietor must procure a Fiscal Identification Numeral (FIN), the existence of which is obligatory for every mercantile interchange. The entreaty is tendered to the Bureaucratic Overarching of Fiscal Levies. Corporations employing hired workforce are compelled to inscribe their personnel in the National Social Welfare Consortium (NSWC). This is requisite to afford operatives with medical indemnity, retirement remittances, and sundry communal advantages.

Opening a bank account in Cameroon

For inaugurating a monetary repository in Cameroon Charter, a registration credential, Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN), identification card of the administrator, and other individuals endowed with access to fiscal administration are requisite. The most prevalent jurisdictional monetary establishments amidst external capitalists are Afriland First Bank, Ecobank, Standard Chartered Bank (global fiscal consortium), and UBA. The petition is tendered to the proximate division of the chosen fiscal establishment. Should the bank’s service facilitate such a provision, one may tender a request via the digital platform.

A fiscal establishment scrutinizes presented attestations for conformity with its stipulations. If requisite, an inspection may be executed to ascertain adherence to anti-laundering statutes. Upon the petition's endorsement, the initiation accord is executed by a banking repository in Cameroon.

Obtaining permits for specific types of business

Entities registered in Cameroon and those operating in regulated domains (e.g., mining, telecommunications) are mandated to procure authorizations to engage in these undertakings. Licenses are granted by pertinent ministries and agencies. For instance, mineral extraction necessitates a concession from the Ministry of Mining. In the future, competent authorities may perform conformity assessments of established entities in alignment with Cameroonian statutory stipulations.

Corporate taxation in Cameroon

The corporation excise (CIT) in the domain is imposed at 33% of assessable earnings. For enterprises constituted in Cameroon, in specific sectors, such as mineral resources, elevated tariffs may pertain. The regular VAT proportion is 19.25%. For specific commodities and services, the calculation of this compulsory tribute may be executed on preferential conditions. The levy on dividends/interest/royalties is stipulated at 16.5 / 16.5 / 0% for inhabitants and 16.5 / 16.5 / 15% for non-residents. Compulsory tribute capital accretions (CGT) is 15% for equities and securities, 30% for immovable property.

The jurisdiction confers an array of fiscal advantages to invigorate the inception of a commercial venture in Cameroon and the advancement of pivotal sectors of the economy. The Fundamental Timetable stipulates corporate levy abatement, VAT diminution, and other privileges for an octet of years. To engage in the scheme, a firm must export no less than 25% of its commodities and utilize indigenous resources in a quantity no less than 25% of the expense of all substances employed in its operations.

In accordance with the SME Timetable initiative, diminutive and intermediate enterprises inscribed in Cameroon are absolved from CIT for the inaugural five years of operation, and for the ensuing five years, they remit half of the standard levy and are not liable for GGT. Computation of VAT and tariffs is effectuated on preferential conditions. An establishment may partake in the initiative if the capital infusion does not surpass 1.5 billion CFA, and furthermore, possesses co-proprietors who are indigenous nationals, with their stake in the equity being no less than 35%.

Under the Tactical Timetable scheme, you are liberated from Corporate Income Tax (CIT) for 15 years and entirely from Goods and Services Tax (GGT) entities founded in Cameroon’s cardinal industries. To obtain these and supplementary advantages under this ordinance, they must dispatch no less than 50% of their revenue exclusive of levies and employ indigenous assets in a proportion of no less than half of the expenditure of the raw materials utilized. An auxiliary stipulation is the establishment of enduring employment in the nation at a ratio of no fewer than one for every 20 million CFA investments.

Free economic zones of the Republic of Cameroon

The dominion possesses numerous liberated mercantile enclaves (LMEs) established to galvanize economic expansion, allure external capital, and foster exportation. The majority of business founders embarking on an enterprise in Cameroon opt for the Douala Liberated Enclave, Kribi Liberated Enclave, and Limbe Liberated Enclave.

FEZ Douala (Douala Free Zone)

The metropolis of Douala is the most expansive harbor and economic nucleus. A sophisticated transit infrastructure links the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) with the remainder of the nation. Manufacturing output, fabrication of technological apparatus, refinement of agrarian goods, logistics, and storage are flourishing within the city. Lodging registered commercial enterprises in Cameroon, the Douala Free Zone permits exemption from Corporate Income Tax (CIT) for a defined duration, as well as from tariff duties on the importation of raw commodities and apparatus. Profit repatriation protocols have been streamlined for corporations functioning within this Free Economic Zone (FEZ). Camlait, one of the preeminent producers of lacteal commodities in the realm, has positioned its production establishments within the Douala Free Zone.

FEZ Kribi (Kribi Free Zone)

The gratuitous economic enclave is situated within the precincts of the municipality of Kribi, proximate to the profound maritime harbor of the identical appellation on the Atlantic littoral. The harbor infrastructure is engineered to harbor colossal vessels and is interconnected with the national thoroughfare nexus and the projected rail trajectory. The Kribi Free Zone harbors establishments inaugurated in Cameroon, engaged in petrochemical manufacturing, mineral refinement, naval construction, and piscatorial activities. 

Capitalists are bestowed with protracted fiscal respites, VAT immunity on foreign goods and services, and assured safeguarding of capital and proprietary entitlements. An expansive naval construction enterprise, Cameroon Shipyard and Industrial Engineering Ltd., thrives adeptly in Kribi. (CNIC), which, owing to its situs in the SEZ, amplified output magnitudes and enticed transnational clientele.

FEZ Limbe (Limbe Free Zone)

The metropolis of Limbe is situated in the southwestern section of the nation, with ingress to the Gulf of Guinea. A vast petrochemical refinery functions within its bounds. Supplementary assets of the city include ingress to principal transit routes and vicinity to petroleum reserves. This Special Economic Zone (SEZ) is selected for establishments inscribed in Cameroon, concentrating on petroleum distillation and the fabrication of construction substances, alongside those engaged in the agrarian-industrial domain, leisure, and hospitality industries. 

Stakeholders may anticipate an abatement in corporate income taxation, dispensation from levies on imports and exports, and streamlined facilitation of certifications and authorizations. Among the most illustrious enterprises situated within the Limbe Special Economic Zone is an endeavor instituted in Cameroon—Limbe Leaf Tobacco Company. Leveraging the enclave's amenities, the establishment orchestrated tobacco refinement installations, which engendered amplified outbound trade and occupational proliferation in the vicinity.

Popular destinations for starting a business in Cameroon

The dominion extends a plethora of prospects for the cultivation of mercantile ventures owing to its propitious topography, asset repository, and gubernatorial undertakings. The paramount locales for inaugurating an enterprise in Cameroon encompass agrocommerce, energetics, excavation, informatics & technics, peregrination.

AIC (agriculture and agro-industry)

The agrarian economic stratum contributes over 22% to the nation's gross domestic product. Cameroon boasts fecund soils, a propitious climate, and a multifarious array of horticultural species. The most coveted indigenously produced commodities include cacao, coffee, plantains, palm oil, caoutchouc, maize, and paddy.

The government perennially extends pecuniary succor to husbandmen for procuring superlative seeds, manures, and phytosanitary agents. For instance, cacao cultivators are granted emoluments for acquiring validated seeds. Enterprises officially domiciled in Cameroon are endowed with agricultural custodial bodies offering stipends for procuring tractors, irrigation apparatuses, and other agrarian machinery. Through the Agropole initiative, farmers are eligible for concessional credit to facilitate the refinement of their estates.

Entities inaugurated in Cameroon purveyors of agrarian commodities—enjoy fiscal privileges, encompassing partial abatement of VAT and import tariffs. The administration is channeling resources into the enhancement of the harbors of Douala and Kribi, which serve as pivotal maritime conduits for agricultural consignments. The state engages proactively with the European Union and sundry international counterparts under the auspices of Economic Partnership Accords (EPA), which extend preferential modalities for exports to the EU.

Enterprises domiciled in Cameroon that have elected the agronomic domain exhibit noteworthy operational outcomes. For instance, Telcar Cocoa Ltd, the preeminent cocoa purveyor, collaborates with renowned multinational conglomerates such as Cargill. The firm has embraced ecologically tenable methodologies for cultivating the crop and extends support to petite cultivators via capacity-building initiatives and fiscal assistance.

Energy and renewable energy sources

Cameroon harbors substantial prospects for electrical generation, encompassing hydrokinetic power (capacity surpassing 55 gigawatts) and heliacal energy. Deficiencies in provision within bucolic locales engender a proclivity for diminutive-scale photovoltaic and aeolian apparatuses. Juridical entities instituted in Cameroon partake in ventures for the erection of power stations and the advancement of sustainable energy modalities. An exemplar of prosperous enterprise in this domain is the Nachtigal Hydrokinetic Facility. This constitutes a 420-megawatt hydrodynamic endeavor executed by a consortium comprising Électricité de France (EDF) and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development. The initiative aspires to satiate the burgeoning exigency for electrical power within the nation.

Mining industry

The dominion procures a gamut of terrestrial assets, encompassing petroleum, aurum, bauxite, ferruginous ore, adamantine, and niccolite. In the annum 2023, the extraction of petroleum yielded the realm upwards of 1.4 billion USD in pecuniary gain. There exists substantial aptitude for the reconnaissance and procurement of rare-earth minerals, which are coveted within the technologic enterprise. For financiers who instituted commerce in Cameroon within the extractive industry, fiscal inducements are extended for paramount undertakings. Among the most illustrious establishments in this domain is the Société Nationale des Hydrocarbures (SNH), a sovereign petroleum consortium engrossed in the elaboration of hydrocarbon deposits in alliance with transnational collaborators such as Perenco and TotalEnergies.

Information technology and telecommunications (IT & Tech)

Flank constitutes a briskly burgeoning mart for informatic enterprises, attributable to the proliferating ingress to the Net, whose permeation rate presently approximates 35%. Firms inscribed within Cameroon emergent ventures in the sphere of informatics garner exhaustive sustenance via gubernatorial undertakings and clandestine exertions. 

In alignment with the administration's stratagem for digital augmentation, pecuniary endowments are apportioned to infrastructural undertakings, including the establishment of datum repositories and the enhancement of electronic mercantile platforms. Instruction and elevated instruction are rendered for informatics savants, thereby fostering a proficient labor cadre for enterprises entrenched in Cameroon within this purview.

The Information Technology Development Fund (IT Fund) constitutes a governmental initiative oriented toward bolstering nascent enterprises. The philanthropic entity furnishes pecuniary aid to undertakings concentrated on implementing pioneering methodologies, crafting bespoke software, and engineering avant-garde platforms. The administration is vigorously fostering hatcheries and propellers (ActivSpaces, The Coworking Space, and sundry others), which extend succor to fledgling enterprises domiciled in Cameroon via guidance, edification, and monetary backing. 

There is considerable exigency in the nation and vicinity for advancements in the realm of fintech, electronic commerce, mobile software, and telecommunication infrastructure. The government assiduously solicits international collaborators for synergistic ventures in the domain of information technology. For instance, the Chinese conglomerate Huawei is engaging with Cameroon to ameliorate mobile telephony and Internet frameworks.

A case of a flourishing nascent enterprise in the sphere of IT & Tech is the BeeTech platform. The initiative is devoted to proffering mobile remittance and microcredit solutions. The firm engages in alliance with prominent banking institutions and mobile carriers in Cameroon.

Tourism and hospitality

Cameroon is renowned for its variegated topographies, comprising Atlantic littoral shorelines, highlands, sylvan expanses, and steppe regions. The protected areas of Vasa, Lobeke, and Dja allure eco-tourism aficionados. The polity is allocating resources towards infrastructural augmentation, fostering corporate bodies and subsidized endeavors such as hostel refurbishing, shore embellishment, and eco-tourism within the sanctuaries and preserves of Mount Cameroon. 

The sovereign allocates funding for as much as half of initiatives for domestic and foreign enterprises in Cameroon, encompassing tourism and galleries. Grants are likewise apportioned for civic occasions and environmentally sustainable undertakings such as eco-residences and fauna observation zones. Illustrations include the Festival of Arts and Culture of Cameroon.

The government, together with banks, offers low-interest loans for the construction of hotels, restaurants and other tourism infrastructure. The program is aimed at both local entrepreneurs and international ones companies registered in Cameroon. The Ministry of Tourism and Leisure (MINTOUR) provides advisory services for new investors, including assistance in obtaining documents and licenses. Educational programs and training are organized for personnel working in this area. An example of a successful business in the tourism industry is the Kribi Hotel Resort, which has become popular due to its location on the ocean coast. The project attracted foreign investors and contributed to job creation in the region.

Conclusion

Cameroon proffers a plethora of governmental aid initiatives, fiscal concessions, and capital for enterprises, rendering it alluring to foreign investors. The nation's pivotal positioning affords ingress to marketplaces in the western and central regions of Africa, and the burgeoning appetite for commodities and amenities in domains such as agronomy, extraction, and travel fosters a magnetism for entrepreneurs.

The corporate registration procedure in Cameroon entails a meticulously outlined process, comprising the designation of a moniker, computing the OPF, assembling documentation, placing funds in a provisional escrow, enrolling with the Social Security framework, acquiring a tax identification number, establishing a banking relationship, and securing licenses. Inaccuracies or omitted dates may impede or nullify the registration.

To comply with all requirements and minimize risks, you should seek professional legal assistance. Our company’s specialists will advise you on the specifics of starting a business in Cameroon. If necessary, we are ready to offer support during the turnkey registration process - from the development of constituent documents to obtaining a certificate, opening an account and issuing licenses.