How Cameroonians Avoid/Evade New 33 Percent Phone Tax

 The New 33 percent phone tax imposed by the Cameroon government has caused an uproar on social media, with Cameronians protesting under the hashtag #EndPhoneTax. 

Cameroon Adds The New 33 Percent Phone Tax To The Tax Bill

Despite the numerous complaints, the Minister of communications Libom Likeng has not changed her stance on the phone and tablet tax issue. Libom says nothing changes. All that she says happens is the shift of the tax from the hands of custom individuals to a more digital means.

Cameroonians think it is not a reality, but as of October 15, 2020, the government has implemented the change. In fact, a guy shows us below how he is being asked to pay 90000 XAF for an old or refurbished Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge.

 

This raises serious questions concerning the government's methods to assess the state of the phone aside from the IMEI number and the user's IP address. Also, how people with dual SIM will get through this new tax remains to be seen.

How Cameroonians Evade The New 33 Percent Phone Tax

The Covid-19 crisis still leaves a substantial economic impact on the population of Cameroon and the world. This crisis makes it difficult for Cameroonians to cope with the recent increment in phone tax by up to 33 percent.

Based on info gotten from social media, this is how Cameroonians do to avoid or evade the new 33 percent phone tax imposed by the government:

1. Download a compatible IMEI flashing tool online
2. Use the IMEI flashing tool to change the IMEI of the more expensive phone to an IMEI of a feature phone or 'Choronko' that costs 10000 XAF.
3. Connect the device with the flashed IMEI to the internet.
4. The government then deducts 33 percent of the new phone tax corresponding to 3300 FCFA.
5. Hence, a phone whose phone tax is supposed to amount to about 200000 FCFA reduces to 3300 FCFA.

Another method is to use a feature phone for your phone calls and SMS. You can then use an internet modem to connect to your phone via Wi-Fi.

Disclaimer: This post is for Awareness and Educational purposes only. The post is meant to inform the people concerned about this loophole and fix it. The author is in no way responsible for any of your actions.

Wrapping It Up

The new 33 percent phone tax remains a pain in the ass of most Cameroonians. Perhaps the government will look to see how they can close the loophole above to reduce tax evasion. Also, the government could backtrack its previous tax increase decision.