Step-by-step procedure · 3 min read
VFS Global Cameroon: what the visa centre does
WhatsApp: +237 6 87 25 79 67Call
VFS Global is a contractor: it books appointments, takes biometrics and receives files on behalf of certain countries. In Cameroon, official sources confirm it for the United Kingdom and Canada. It decides no visa — the country’s own immigration service does.
By Talla Naoussi Arnold, translator — Master II in translation, ASTI, Buea · Updated 25 September 2026
Which country, which contractor
| Country | Contractor in Cameroon | Who decides |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | VFS Global, UKVI’s supplier since September 2024 | UK Visas and Immigration |
| Canada | The Yaoundé visa application centre, run by IOM in partnership with VFS Global | IRCC; passports go to the Canadian visa office in Dakar |
| France | TLS Contact, not VFS | The French consulate |
For any other country, check on its embassy’s website which contractor it uses, if any.
What the centre does, and what it does not
For the UK, GOV.UK says the change of supplier affects neither the decision, nor processing times, nor prices. For Canada, IOM describes a centre that collects biometrics, forwards passports to the Canadian visa office in Dakar and hands them back: an administrative service, not a decision.
Nobody at a centre can “fix” a visa.
Staff do not see the substance of your file: they check it is received and take your fingerprints. Book your appointments yourself, from the link the country itself gives.
The centre receives and forwards. It does not assess the substance of a file.
And the translations?
Translation rules are the country’s, not the contractor’s. For the United Kingdom, UKVI wants a translation carrying four details for any document not in English — so an anglophone’s English documents need nothing. For Canada, IRCC accepts English and French: most Cameroonian documents go in as they are.
Official sources
Consulted on 11 September 2026. Official instructions change: when they differ from this page, they prevail.
- GOV.UK — Cameroon: UKVI changes suppliers for overseas visa application — VFS Global as UKVI supplier, no effect on decisions, times or prices
- GOV.UK — Find a visa application centre — address and opening hours of the UK centre
- IOM Cameroon — Canada Visa Application Centre (CVAC) — run by IOM with VFS Global, biometrics, passports forwarded to Dakar
- IRCC — Find a visa application centre — current address of the Canadian centre