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I am a naturalized American citizen of African descent. I speak and write French fluently though I am an anglophone. Would I be allowed on an Air France flight departing from New York to Cameroon, even though I don't have a visa for Cameroon?

I have made negotiations for a visa once I arrive at the airport in Douala.

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    Can you clarify who these negotiations were with? All the sources I can find state that visas on arrival are restricted to diplomatic & service passport holders: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visa_policy_of_Cameroon#Visa_on_arrival
    – lambshaanxy
    Commented Sep 9, 2019 at 6:22
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    What does being able to speak French have to do with whether you will be allowed to board a flight? According to travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/… you need a visa, unless the comment by jpatokal regarding diplomatic & service passport holders applies
    – Traveller
    Commented Sep 9, 2019 at 6:39
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    You say that you're "of African descent." Do you also have citizenship of one of the six countries bordering Cameroon (Nigeria, Chad, CAR, Congo, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea)? If so, you can enter visa-free (per Wikipedia.)
    – Michael Seifert
    Commented Sep 9, 2019 at 11:26

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According to Timatic, the system used by most airlines in determining if you meet the requirements for travel to a specific country, a US citizen CAN travel to Cameroon without a visa in their passport under the following conditions :

Passengers with a confirmation letter that a visa has been approved can obtain a visa on arrival. The letter has to be issued by the competent authorities of Cameroon.

Presuming the "negotiations" you refer to include a letter that meets these requirements, then yes, you will be allowed to travel.

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    OP can also buy a throwaway transit ticket, if they're absolutely sure a visa will be granted. Its a common tactic to skirt Timatic rules.
    – JonathanReez ♦
    Commented Sep 9, 2019 at 19:17
  • Deleted my answer, as it is wrong.
    – Anish Sheela
    Commented Sep 10, 2019 at 3:38
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The actual visa policy of a country is not always exactly the same as what is stated in the relevant airline manuals or on wikipedia. E.g. even though the manual says that you cannot get a visa on arrival, in reality this may be possible.

HOWEVER: people at the checkin counter will only trust their manual. The only exception would be that an airline representative tells them that a visa on arrival is possible. This sometimes happens when flights are flown by national carriers (e.g. Air Cameroon). Such a scenario is rather unlikely if you fly Air France and have connecting flights. It is not a risk I would be willing to take unless I were very certain that this works for my particular connections and my particular airlines.

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