How do people in Cameroon pay online?
Mobile money leads electronic payments. The BEAC, the central bank of the six CEMAC countries, counted 30.99 million mobile money accounts in Cameroon at the end of 2024, about six in ten of the 51.28 million in the region. They carried 2.73 billion transactions worth XAF 26,773 billion that year. Across all payment instruments, Cameroon accounted for 65.10% of CEMAC payment volume and 56.95% of its value.
Payments are small and usually start on USSD. The BEAC notes that USSD codes remain the main channel for starting a transaction, and that the average electronic money payment in the region fell to XAF 2,049 in 2024. Since 2020, GIMAC, the regional interbank card and payment group, has made payment accounts and instant transfers interoperable; in 2024 it processed 11.21 million mobile money transactions worth XAF 419.21 billion across the region.
MTN MoMo and Orange Money both support online payments. Orange offers Orange Money Web Payment to merchants in Cameroon: the customer dials the Orange Money USSD menu, generates a one-time code and enters it on the payment page. MTN’s payments subsidiary, Mobile Money Corporation, launched a virtual MoMo prepaid Mastercard with Access Bank Cameroon on 19 December 2025. It is funded from the MoMo wallet and can be used on local and international sites.
Cards play a small part. Cameroon had 1.42 million active bank cards and 1,739 card terminals in 2024, and card payments at merchants numbered 1.61 million, worth XAF 147.9 billion. Across the CEMAC, Visa (1.47 million cards) and GIMAC (1.0 million) are the largest card networks, ahead of UnionPay and Mastercard.
What rules shape online payments in Cameroon?
VAT applies to online sales. The total VAT rate is 19.25%. The 2020 Finance Law made e-commerce platform operators responsible for calculating, declaring and paying VAT on digital transactions by Cameroonian consumers, and on commissions earned on those sales, with simplified online procedures for registration and payment.
Foreign digital businesses also face an income tax. The Finance Act for 2026, in force since 1 January 2026, introduced a significant economic presence test for non-resident digital service providers. According to KPMG, it applies above XAF 50 million of gross receipts from customers in Cameroon, or more than 1,000 users or customers, in a tax year. The tax is 3% of gross Cameroon-sourced income, or the company can elect to pay corporate income tax at 30% on actual profit, with monthly returns due by the 15th.
Wallet transfers carry a tax. Since January 2022, a 0.2% tax applies to the value of money transfers through traceable platforms and to cash withdrawals of electronic money. Tax and customs payments, bank transactions and cash deposits into wallets are outside its scope. Business in Cameroon reported that from 2025 a flat XAF 4 per transaction was added and the tax was extended to banks and microfinance institutions.
Central bank rules cover payment instruments. BEAC Instruction No. 001/GR/2024 of 22 January 2024 sets technical standards for electronic payment instruments, including how payment transactions are authenticated and how complaints and notifications are handled. CEMAC Regulation No. 03/16/CEMAC/UMAC/CM requires a non-cash means of payment for any transaction above XAF 500,000.
Online shoppers have 15 days to withdraw. Law No. 2010/021 of 21 December 2010 on electronic commerce requires the seller to show the price, delivery cost, taxes, payment terms, withdrawal right and refund method electronically at every stage of the sale (Article 15), and to let the customer review and confirm the order (Article 17). Under Article 20, the consumer can withdraw within 15 days, counted from the day after receipt for goods and from the contract for services. The seller must refund within 15 days of the return, and the consumer pays the return costs. Goods that do not match the order or arrive late can be returned within 15 days of delivery (Article 21).
Customer data needs authorisation. Law No. 2024/017 of 23 December 2024 on personal data protection makes processing subject to prior authorisation by a new Personal Data Protection Authority, and transfers abroad also need its prior authorisation. DLA Piper notes that the implementing decree had not yet been adopted.
How would Omno route payments in Cameroon?
A merchant would connect once and set routing rules per method, currency and customer group. In Cameroon:
- MTN MoMo pay-ins would go to a provider that holds an MTN MoMo connection in XAF, with the order pending until the customer approves the payment on their phone.
- Orange Money pay-ins can be offered in the hosted checkout next to MoMo, routed to a provider that holds an Orange Money Web Payment connection.
- Card pay-ins can be routed by BIN, with cascading: if a provider is unavailable or rejects the request, the payment moves to the next provider in the rule until one accepts.
- Amount and customer group rules can send large orders, new customers or customers at a given verification level to the methods and providers the merchant chooses.
Webhooks would carry the final status of each payment, the record a back office should trust before shipping an order, and the routing-decision log would show which provider handled each payment and why.
What should merchants plan for?
Plan for two wallets. MTN MoMo and Orange Money each need their own connection, and card payments are a small share of the market.
Plan for USSD-based approvals. Customers approve on their phone or generate a code in a USSD menu, so orders need a pending state and a final status from the provider.
Plan for tax at several points. VAT at 19.25% on online sales, the 3% significant economic presence tax for foreign digital businesses, and the transfer tax on wallet flows all need a clean record of every payment and fee.
Plan for the 15-day withdrawal rule and data authorisation. Show the required information at checkout, refund within 15 days of a return, and watch for the implementing decree of the data protection law.