Le régime juridique des étrangers au Cameroun

A) General regulations

They relate to the procedures of obtaining the visa. The table hereafter clearly expresses the provisions of articles 10 to 16 of the law of 1997 relating to it.

TABLE RECAPITULAIF OF THE PROCEDURES OF OBTAINING VISA

Categories	Recipients	Validity	Entries and left	Contents of the file
Transit visa.	Foreigner in transit.	Not more than five days.	Several.	- A travel passport or any other document (validity 6 months minimum), - a valid plane ticket, - a visa, - international certificates of vaccination.
Tourism aimed at.	Temporary visitor moving for a tourist reason.	Not more than thirty days.	Several.	- A travel passport or any other document (6 months of validity minimum), - a plane ticket or transport document return ticket, - certificates international of vaccination, certificates of lodging, justifying object of the visit.
Temporary visa.	Foreigner of which the duration of stay does not exceed three months.	Not more than three months.	Several.	- Same conditions as for the file of request of the tourist visa, - an order of mission (for the official missions).
Long Stay aimed.	Foreigner of which the duration of stay exceeds three months.	Not more than six months.	Several.	- Same conditions as for the file of request of the temporary visa, - a guarantee of repatriation, - a contract of employment aimed by the Cameronian Minister for work for the paid hard-working foreigners, - an authorization to exert a liberal profession for lawyers and the ushers in particular, An act justifying the marital bond (for the spouse), or parental (for the minors), - a certificate of inscription or re-registration (for the students), - an act of setting in training course (for the trainees).

The visas are granted by the diplomatic mission or the qualified consular station within 48 maximum hour as from the date of filing of the request. The foreigners coming from the countries where Cameroun is not represented by a diplomatic or consular station, like the Benign one and of Togo, can in exceptional circumstances, to obtain a visa near or the frontier immigration police station of their place of unloading^76(*). The cost of the visa generally varies according to the duration or from the reason for the stay. For example, a tourist visa is 18.000 francs CFA.

Certain categories from abroad, in addition to having to satisfy these general rules, can profit from a special mode.

B) Special rules

They aim in particular the members of the family of the expatriates having to remain more than three months in Cameroun. The law enables them, indeed, to profit from measurements of family accompaniment and regrouping. They will be able to thus join their parents installed with the country for a long duration. It is a privilege which the law grants to them with a view to protection of the family and safeguarding of her unit preached by the constitution. However, the expatriates must prove that they on the spot have a housing and stable and sufficient resources.

The compliance with these preliminary rules makes it possible to consider that immigration is legal. It is necessary, thereafter, that the interested parties regularize their stay.

* ⁷⁶ They can also go in diplomatic or consular representations of Cameroun which extend their field of geographical competence. For example, the Embassy of Cameroun in Nigeria (located in the town of Lagos) as well as the consulate (located in the town of Abuja) extend their jurisdictions in the States of Benign and Togo. In the same way, the Embassy of Cameroun in Ivory Coast (located in Abidjan) has a jurisdiction ratione loci including Ghana.