Cameroon’s 2026 Finance Act introduces a comprehensive significant economic presence (SEP) regime for nonresident digital businesses alongside substantial hikes in excise duties on alcoholic beverages and imported vehicles.
Cameroon’s Parliament has adopted the 2026 Finance Act on 26 November 2025, introducing tax measures from the 2026 Budget designed to expand the country’s fiscal base and strengthen revenue mobilisation. The legislation establishes a new significant economic presence regime for nonresident digital companies, raises excise duties on alcoholic beverages, and increases taxes on older imported vehicles.
Together, these reforms reflect the government’s efforts to align tax rules with the evolving digital economy, curb the rising consumption of excisable goods, and support public finances amid growing budgetary pressures.
New SEP rules for digital services
The Finance Act establishes a significant economic presence threshold for nonresident digital businesses operating in Cameroon. Companies will be considered to have a SEP if they generate more than CFA 50 million (approx. USD 89,000) in gross receipts from digital services provided to customers or users located in Cameroon, or if they exceed 1,000 users, customers, or account holders in the country during a tax year.
The revenue threshold includes all payments made by or on behalf of Cameroonian residents, even when routed through intermediaries such as marketplaces.
Instead of a general definition, the legislation lists in-scope digital activities, including streaming and downloads, online games, subscription-based services, online advertising and monetisation of user data, marketplace intermediation and commissions, cloud services, data hosting, SaaS, and any service delivered or facilitated via an electronic network or digital app.
Customer location will be determined using technical indicators (IP address, geolocation, and SIM country code) and commercial indicators (billing address and Cameroonian bank details). For SEP taxpayers, Cameroon will deem taxable profit at 10% of gross Cameroon-sourced income and apply a final 3% tax, equivalent to a 30% corporate tax rate on the presumed profit.
Alternatively, companies may opt to pay the standard 30% corporate income tax on actual net profit.
Nonresident companies with a SEP must submit monthly returns and pay tax by the 15th of the month following the taxable event. Further regulations will specify threshold calculations, scope of activities, and sourcing rules, and the tax authority will introduce a secure online portal for registration, filing, and payments.
Increase in excise duties on alcoholic beverages
The Act significantly increases specific excise duties on wines, spirits, whiskies, and champagnes, applying differentiated rates for locally produced versus imported products.
Locally produced wines now attract CFA5 per centilitre, whiskies CFA15, and champagnes CFA35.
For lower-end imported products, the rates are CFA5 per centilitre for mixed spirits, CFA10 for wines, CFA20 for whiskies, and CFA40 for champagnes.
High-end imported items face even higher rates: CFA10 per centilitre for mixed spirits, CFA15 for wines, CFA30 for whiskies, and CFA100 for champagnes.
The increases represent substantial cost uplifts. A 75-cl locally produced wine will now incur CFA375 in excise duty, up from CFA225 (+66.6%). Imported wines will be taxed CFA750 per bottle instead of CFA300 previously (+150%), raising the likelihood of higher retail prices unless importers and distributors absorb part of the increase.
The adjustments align with government efforts to broaden the tax base amid rising consumption. Cameroon imported 11,206 tons of wines and liqueurs in 2023 at a value of CFA22.3 billion—up 14.3% from 2022—highlighting the market’s growth. The revenue measures support the government’s 2026 target of CFA5,887.0 billion, an increase of CFA452.2 billion (+8.3%). However, higher excise duties may pressure consumer prices and shift demand toward lower-taxed or informal alternatives.
Higher excise duties on older imported vehicles
The Finance Act also increases excise duties on older imported vehicles through a progressive scale aimed at widening the tax base and encouraging the importation of newer and cleaner models.
Cars aged between 12 and 20 years are now taxed at 12.5%, and those over 20 years at 25%. Previously, vehicles between 0 and 15 years were uniformly taxed at 12.5%, with models over 20 years taxed at 25%.
With the national vehicle fleet averaging 18 years of age—and more than 92% of imported used vehicles older than 15 years—the measure is intended to make very old vehicle imports less attractive. Cameroon counted between 1.6 million and 2 million used vehicles in 2023, according to the General Directorate of Customs.
The reforms complement earlier initiatives to promote newer and electric vehicles. Since 2019, Cameroon has fully reduced customs tariffs on vehicles less than 10 years old under the EU EPA framework. Since 2025, imported electric vehicles and motorcycles have benefited from excise duty exemptions and a 50% reduction on their taxable value, including batteries and charging stations.
Nonetheless, the automotive market remains dominated by older used vehicles. Imports increased 12% between 2021 and 2024 to CFA105.7 billion. Sustainable renewal of the fleet will require deeper reforms, including more competitive tax incentives, development of a local automotive industry, a skilled workforce, and improved purchasing power across the population.
