French Polynesia · Relocation guide
Moving to French Polynesia: a practical relocation guide
French Polynesia is outside the Schengen Area and has territory-specific immigration and labour rules. A Schengen visa, metropolitan French residence card or EU nationality should not be assumed to authorise residence or work without checking the local rule.
Content updated 12 September 2026. Individual source-check dates are listed below.
Use French Polynesia rules, not a Schengen shortcut
France-Visas must be set to French Polynesia because territorial validity differs from metropolitan France and Schengen. For a stay beyond the short-stay allowance, use the long-stay route appropriate to work, family or other purpose.
The territory says a non-French national, including an EU national, needs local work authorisation plus authority to stay. Salaried and self-employed activity use different local processes.
| Plan | VisaAtlas route | Boundary |
|---|---|---|
| Salaried work | Work-Authorised Long-Stay Visa | Local work authorisation and stay permission both matter. |
| Long stay without assumed work | Long-Stay Overseas Visa | Territorial visa must name the correct purpose. |
| Family or private life | Family / Private-Life Long-Stay Visa | Check work rights on the resulting document. |
| Short visit | Short-Stay Overseas Visa | A short stay is not open employment. |
Make SEFI and the State process meet
For salaried work, the employer submits the local authorisation request and the decision is tied to employer, job and duration. The residence or visa application is a separate State function; neither approval should be assumed to replace the other.
A non-EU self-employed trader may need the foreign trader card and legal residence. Obtain the business and foreign-investment approvals that apply before providing local services.
Choose the archipelago before the lease
Tahiti and Moorea have the broadest services; remote archipelagos change flights, freight, internet, schooling and care. Confirm the actual work island and inter-island travel before committing.
Inspect cyclone or storm resilience, water, cooling, power, mould and access. Keep the French lease and address proof for the stay and banking files.
Check CPS access and evacuation beyond the island
Determine whether employment creates registration with the local social-protection system and what waiting or documentation steps apply to dependants. Private cover should bridge any gap.
Ask where complex care is delivered and whether inter-island or overseas evacuation is covered. Carry prescriptions and French translations of essential clinical information.
Give family members territorial documents
A family visa or residence issued for another part of France may not automatically have the required territorial effect. Run each passport through France-Visas and preserve marriage, birth and custody records.
Confirm work authorisation separately for the accompanying adult and school placement by island and commune. Pet import and biosecurity are separate from the visa.
Use Polynesian tax, banking and payroll records
The currency and local tax and social systems are not a reason to reuse a metropolitan France checklist blindly. Ask payroll and a local bank for the work, stay, address and tax documents they accept.
Retain travel days, French and overseas income, foreign transfers and business records. Remote work for an overseas entity is not automatically outside local immigration, labour or tax scope.
Renew both work and stay permission
A work authorisation is tied to the named employment. Clear employer, occupation or self-employed activity changes with the local labour service and renew the State residence document separately.
Plan renewal and international travel around limited flights, passport validity and territorial visa wording. Settle CPS, tax, housing and utility records on departure.
Your moving checklist
Tick off the tasks that apply to you. The timing is a planning order, not a substitute for the deadlines on your permission or an official instruction.
0 of 13 tasks completed
Sources and checks
The linked authorities set the rules. VisaAtlas explains how the steps fit together; planning suggestions are not a decision on your immigration status, tax residence or entitlement to services.
- France-Visas: official visa wizard for French overseas territoriesSource checked 12 September 2026
- French Polynesia government: foreign-worker rights and authorisationSource checked 12 September 2026
- French Polynesia Development Agency: foreign investor residence and workSource checked 12 September 2026