Long-stay route for a foreign employee in the private, public or parastatal sector, including technical-assistance personnel.
Middle Africa · Immigration
Cameroon
Cameroon sits in Middle Africa. Its immigration system runs 27 distinct routes — led by family, short stay & visit and work, each set out in official law. 23 of them cite an official government source, shown on the route with the date we last read it. Who actually qualifies depends on your full profile.
- Immigration routes
- 27across 12 route categories, each set out in official law
- Source-cited routes
- 23 of 27cite an official government source, with the date we last read it
- Largest category
- Family9 of the 27 routes — see them under Family below
- Region
- Middle Africa
- Capital
- Yaoundé
- Population
- 29,879,337
- Official language
- English, French
- Currency
- XAF
- Time zone
- UTC+01:00
Source-cited pathways
Immigration routes
All 27 routes, grouped by purpose — 23 of 27 cite an official government source directly. Any route below without one says so on the route.
Work
2 routes
Short official professional mission in Cameroon without local employment.
Investment
1 route
Short exploratory or promotional visit connected with the provision of services or capital for an investment.
Business & self-employment
2 routes
Long-stay route for an individual practising a liberal, commercial, industrial, agricultural, pastoral, cultural or craft activity.
Short visit for a business person carrying out a personal for-profit professional activity without taking local employment.
Study
2 routes
Long-stay route for a foreign national admitted to a training placement lasting more than three months.
Long-stay route for study at a university or vocational-training institution in Cameroon.
Family
9 routes
Short family-accompaniment route for the adult child who is still studying of a foreign national admitted to stay or reside in Cameroon.
Can bring: children
Short family-accompaniment route for the first-degree ascendant relationship of a foreign national admitted to stay or reside in Cameroon.
Can bring: parents
Short family-accompaniment route for the minor child relationship of a foreign national admitted to stay or reside in Cameroon.
Can bring: children
Short family-accompaniment route for the spousal relationship of a foreign national admitted to stay or reside in Cameroon.
Can bring: spouse
Longer family-reunification route for the adult child who is still studying of a foreign national admitted to stay or reside in Cameroon.
Can bring: children
Longer family-reunification route for the first-degree ascendant relationship of a foreign national admitted to stay or reside in Cameroon.
Can bring: parents
Longer family-reunification route for the minor child relationship of a foreign national admitted to stay or reside in Cameroon.
Can bring: children
Longer family-reunification route for the spousal relationship of a foreign national admitted to stay or reside in Cameroon.
Can bring: spouse
Resident-card route for a foreign spouse married to a Cameroonian citizen for at least eighteen months and regularly residing in Cameroon.
Can bring: spouse
Independent means
2 routes
Short visit by a foreign national receiving a pension from an official Cameroonian body.
Periodic short visit by a foreign person who owns an income stream or real property in Cameroon and comes to manage it.
Residence-based status
1 route
Ten-year resident card for a foreign national who has completed at least six consecutive years of regular stay in Cameroon.
Cultural, religious & volunteer
1 route
Resident-card route for a member of a religious congregation duly recognized in Cameroon.
Short stay & visit
3 routes
— No eligibility summary published for this route yet
Short visit while hosted by a family member or friend in Cameroon.
Individual, organized or package tourism visit to Cameroon.
Humanitarian protection
2 routes
Protection procedure for a person seeking recognition as a refugee in Cameroon.
Two-year identity card for a foreign national already recognized as benefiting from asylum in Cameroon.
Official government source: prc.cm · checked 2026-07-26
Medical treatment
1 route
Short admission to receive medical treatment in Cameroon.
Transit
1 route
Multiple-entry transit visa for a traveller continuing through Cameroon to a final destination.
Official sources
- e-Visa CameroonGovernment
- MINREX External RelationsGovernment
- AccueilGovernment
- Cameroon Trade HubGovernment
- [NSO] Institut Nationalde la StatistiqueGovernment
See which Cameroon routes you actually qualify for.
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