Immigration
When you arrive in French Polynesia by boat, you must arrive at a point of entry to register with the GENDARMERIE.
VISA application (Compulsory for people who do not have French or European nationality)
For British citizens, the entry conditions remain the same as before Brexit until 31/12/2020. After that, they will have to obtain visas. More information on the website of the Haut Commissariat
- You are allowed to stay 90 days over a period of 180 days. If you leave Polynesia on an air flight, the countdown stops and restarts when you return if it is within 180 days. (It is best to leave a day or two before your visa expires in case of a delay), or to return after 180 days.
- For a stay of more than 90 days, you must apply for a long-stay visa before your arrival in French Polynesia, by contacting the French consular authorities in your home country, or at the French consulates of your stopovers before Polynesia.
Applications can be filed at the French Embassy in Panama no earlier than 3 months and no later than 1 month before the scheduled departure date from Panama. With exceptions, personal appearance at the embassy is mandatory. The rate is 99 euros payable in US dollars.
If you come on a normal 90-day visa, you will not be allowed to apply for a long-stay visa in the country unless your spouse is from the European Union and you can apply for a marriage license.
You will need to apply for a long-stay visa from a French consulate outside French Polynesia.
Health care: You will need to have health coverage.
Border Police / PAF
Formalities to be carried out at the PAF office in Faa'a (Tahiti Faa'a Airport) if you enter through Tahiti or Moorea. Otherwise to be carried out with the gendarmerie of your port of entry. Please note that if you make a crew change during your stay, you will need to go to declare it at the PAF in Faa'a.
Each crew member must present a valid passport and provide health coverage. French nationals can stay and work without a visa (provided they do not engage in a lucrative activity on Polynesian territory in which case the importation of the ship will be mandatory, see article PAPEETISATION). Those from EC countries (excluding France) can stay without a visa under certain conditions and nationals of other countries are subject to visas. This visa must be marked "valid for French Polynesia."
If you or your crew are non-EU and are not on the restricted list, you have three options:
- Purchase of a one-way ticket refundable in French Polynesia. You can do this on arrival, but make sure it is refundable and how long it will take you to cash it in. You must show the gendarmerie proof of a ticket, or if you do not justify a deposit equivalent to the price of that ticket from an on-site bank. This repatriation guarantee is individual and returned at the outset. (Inquire with the gendarmerie who will send you to the local bank to pay the equivalent amount of a plane ticket out of the country. They will give you a receipt and report it to the gendarmerie. You will get this refund in the local currency when you order). Health coverage is mandatory.
- Prepay a marine agent to vouch for you and your crew. This is arranged and the agent's fees are paid before you leave for FP. They will tell you where the partner agents are (Hiva Oa, Nuka Hiva). The partner officers will meet with you, take you to the gendarmerie and help you register. But you are NOT limited to these 2 ports of entry. The senior agent must be informed by e-mail shortly before arrival.
Pets on board
You are a derogatic for a PIP application given the mode of transportation. Also, an official pass allowing disembarkation for your dog or cat can only be issued to you in view of the following documents, originals or photocopies certified as compliant and following the visit on board the animal by an official veterinarian of the QAAV department on the island of Tahiti.
Here are the expected pieces:
- Official document attesting to the date of your departure from the last rabies-infested country you visited (all of continental America, including the USA, is infected)
- Official document attesting to the date of your arrival in French Polynesia
- ISO11784 microchip tattoo or identification card
- Rabies vaccination certificate with the animal identification number attesting that the animal has been vaccinated for more than 6 months prior to the scheduled landing date and that the vaccination is valid according to the manufacturer's recommendations
- The result of a dose of rabies antibodies performed in an officially approved laboratory more than 3 months and less than 12 months before the expected landing date and greater than 0.5 IU/mlFor dogs who stayed in the six months prior to their arrival in French Polynesia in a country infected with leishmaniasis, an "eLISA" (Enzyme-Linked ImmunoSorbent Assay) blood test to detect the presence of anti-leishmanian antibodies with a negative result. For animals that have stayed in areas at risk, it is advisable to carry out a pre-departure test for French Polynesia.
- Certificates from a veterinarian certifying that the animal underwent a first treatment for internal parasites in the 4 days prior to boarding the last country of call with an effective product against nematodes and cestodes in particular against Echinococcus sp. (this parasite is absent from the territory and is the cause of human contamination) and treatment against external parasites (ticks and fleas).
- A veterinarian's certificate certifying that the animal has undergone a second treatment for internal and external parasites at least 14 days apart from the first and within 4 days of the scheduled landing date
It is advisable that your pet must be up to date with its other CHPL vaccinations in order to have a certificate of good health established by a veterinarian. - Of course fill out Form 211 before you leave and send them... for on-site contact Mr GIRAUD: christophe.giraud@rural.gov.pf Directorate of Biosecurity (DBS)
Animal Health Cell (ZOO)
BP 9575 - 98715 Papeete CMP - Tahiti, French Polynesia
Phone : (689) 40423518 ; Fax. : (689) 40423552 ; Email: secretariat@biosecurite.gov.pf
Customs
There are no customs officers on remote islands, but the local police (gendarmerie) perform these functions. However, you can meet the star of the MARITIME GENDARMERIE who carries DOUANIERS on board who can carry out checks at any time on all archipelagos.
Customs formalities must be carried out as soon as you arrive at your port of entry, usually at the GENDARMERIE.
The various ports of entry are:
- To the Marquesas:
Nuku Hiva, Ua Pou, Hiva Oa - In the Austral
Tubuai, Rurutu, Raivavae - To the Tuamotu:
Rangiroa - In Gambiers
Mangareva - To the Leeward Islands:
Raiatea, Bora Bora, Huahine - To the Windward Islands:
Tahiti, Moorea
Special provisions on Tahiti and Moorea:
On Tahiti or Moorea, an exit clearance must be made at the Captaincy of the Autonomous Port in Papeete or by email (trafficmaritime@portppt.pf) as long as you make a navigation more than 50 miles from these islands.