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French Polynesia (French overseas collectivity) · entrepreneur

Foreign Trader Card for Business Activity in French Polynesia

By · Last reviewed:

Guidance updated 14 November 2026. Full-review date shown above.

Local commercial, industrial or craft activity authorisation, with business viability evidence and separate lawful residence requirements.

No sponsorship requiredDoes not lead to permanent residencyThe trader card is issued for five years and is renewable, subject to its approved activities, locations and continuing conditions. This is the business-card term, not a five-year immigration residence grant or permanent residence.In flux
Processing time
SEFI publishes up to three months to examine a complete trader application. Coordinate the appropriate residence permission with the High Commission and any investment or regulated-activity approval separately. The application pack reproduces six-month deadlines after notification for presenting the appropriate non-salaried residence title and collecting the trader card, followed by a three-month post-delivery deadline for filing the commercial-register extract; confirm the notification and sequencing for the actual decision.
Government fees
Neither the current SEFI guidance nor the inspected trader application establishes a complete current card-fee assessment. Confirm the business-card charge and any registration, investment approval, visa and residence costs separately. No minimum investment price or fee-free service is established here.
Typical duration
The trader card is issued for five years and is renewable, subject to its approved activities, locations and continuing conditions. This is the business-card term, not a five-year immigration residence grant or permanent residence.
Sponsorship required
No
Leads to permanent residency
No
Reviewed Service de l emploi / Government of French Polynesia ↗

In short

Local commercial, industrial or craft activity authorisation, with business viability evidence and separate lawful residence requirements. Guidance updated 14 November 2026. Costs, application stages and eligibility conditions are set out with their sources below.

Cite this: https://visaatlas.org/visas/french-polynesia/foreign-trader-card#answer

What is the Foreign Trader Card for Business Activity in French Polynesia in French Polynesia (French overseas collectivity)?

Foreign Trader Card for Business Activity in French Polynesia is an unsponsored French Polynesia route. Indicative government fees are Neither the current SEFI guidance nor the inspected trader application establishes a complete current card-fee assessment. Confirm the business-card charge and any registration, investment approval, visa and residence costs separately. No minimum investment price or fee-free service is established here; indicative processing time is SEFI publishes up to three months to examine a complete trader application. Coordinate the appropriate residence permission with the High Commission and any investment or regulated-activity approval separately. The application pack reproduces six-month deadlines after notification for presenting the appropriate non-salaried residence title and collecting the trader card, followed by a three-month post-delivery deadline for filing the commercial-register extract; confirm the notification and sequencing for the actual decision; typical duration is The trader card is issued for five years and is renewable, subject to its approved activities, locations and continuing conditions. This is the business-card term, not a five-year immigration residence grant or permanent residence. This route does not lead to permanent residence.

Primary guidance checked with Service de l emploi / Government of French Polynesia on 14 November 2026.

Overview

SEFI guidance requires a carte de commerçant étranger for the covered non-EU foreign business operators. It includes own-account activity, relevant unlimited-liability partners and people empowered to manage or bind a company, and representatives able to bind a foreign-law branch, establishment or commercial representation locally. This is an existing business-activity approval newly covered in the catalogue, rather than a residence-by-investment programme or a generic permit for every freelance profession.

Additional sources

Eligibility

Typical criteria

  • ✓Current SEFI guidance describes foreign operators other than EU-member-state nationals within the specified commercial, industrial or craft activities and company roles. Confirm the actual nationality/status scope with SEFI rather than applying employee work-permit rules to every business operator.Service de l emploi / Government of French Polynesia ↗
  • ✓The applicant must be lawfully staying locally and have applied for or obtained the appropriate residence title authorising the controlled activity. A trader approval does not waive entry or residence requirements.Service de l emploi / Government of French Polynesia ↗
  • ✓SEFI assesses viability and durability, the financial plan, ordinary local business requirements, public safety/order and any commercial-disqualification conviction. Foreign-investment and regulated-profession approvals may also be required for the actual activity.Service de l emploi / Government of French Polynesia ↗

Common blockers

Typical evidence

  • ·Personal checklist: passport, certified residence title or application receipt, family/cohabitation records where applicable, origin-country criminal record, non-bankruptcy evidence or permitted declaration, current resources stated in Pacific francs, CV, certified qualifications/experience with French translations, local social cover, two recent photographs and addressed stamped envelopes. Include a naturalisation-application receipt only where applicable.Service de l emploi / Government of French Polynesia ↗
  • ·Business: project and funding/cash-flow information, two-year forecast accounts in the annex, current/draft articles and role evidence, register/staff information, premises ownership/lease or permitted preliminary agreements, cadastral/layout evidence and any applicable foreign-investment approval/application.Service de l emploi / Government of French Polynesia ↗
  • ·Foreign-company establishment: parent-company creation decision/project, articles and legal-existence evidence, activity/staff letter and proof of the applicant authority. Add the administrative authorisation or application for a regulated activity.Service de l emploi / Government of French Polynesia ↗

Application pathway

  1. Check the route fit

    Establish whether the activity, nationality and management role require this card; confirm the separate lawful-stay and activity-residence basis with the High Commission.

  2. Build the evidence pack

    Prepare the current bilingual application, identity/compliance evidence, viable business plan, finances, premises and company/parent-company documents.

  3. Submit through the official channel

    File the complete dossier with SEFI and obtain any separate investment or regulated-profession decisions applicable to the project.

  4. After approval

    Meet the actual residence-title presentation, collection and registration conditions in the decision. Declare activity/location/establishment changes and maintain the approved business conditions.

After approval: prepare for your next step

For Foreign Trader Card for Business Activity in French Polynesia, use the actual decision and the issuing authority’s instructions to establish what has been granted. A successful application, permission to enter, permission to work and a residence document are not interchangeable.

  1. 1. Check the decision. Confirm the name, passport, status granted, start date and any next action. Resolve an error with the authority before relying on the document for travel or employment.
  2. 2. Establish the travel step. Read any entry window, activation, collection or in-country registration instruction. For an extension or change of status, do not assume leaving the country is required or safe while a further step remains pending.
  3. 3. Confirm what you may do. Check whether employment, self-employment, remote work or study is permitted under the status granted. Do not infer unrestricted work rights from the absence of an employer sponsor.
  4. 4. Organise the household. Check each accompanying person’s permission separately, then arrange healthcare, accommodation, access to money and the relevant local registrations. A tax number or bank account does not by itself prove a right to work.
  5. 5. Keep the ongoing conditions visible. Record the actual expiry, renewal process, permitted absences and any duty to report changes. An initial grant does not automatically establish permanent residence or citizenship.
Official Foreign Trader Card for Business Activity in French Polynesia instructionsBuild my moving plan for this routeMoving to French Polynesia

Official application links

Where to actually go next

Government links only

These are the official pages to use for this route. Open them before preparing documents: the forms, fees, appointment systems, and sponsor steps can change without warning.

  1. Official guidanceApplicant
    Read the trader-card scope and conditions ↗

    Check the covered nationality, activity and company-role conditions.

    Service de l emploi / Government of French Polynesia · verified

  2. ChecklistApplicant
    Download the trader application and annexes ↗

    Prepare the personal, company and financial evidence for the actual project.

    Service de l emploi / Government of French Polynesia · verified

  3. Official guidanceApplicant
    Check the separate residence process ↗

    Confirm the exact activity-based residence title and local filing timetable.

    High Commission of the Republic in French Polynesia · verified

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Frequently asked questions

Does a five-year trader card let me live there for five years?+

No. The trader card authorises the approved business activity. SEFI expressly requires the appropriate lawful stay and residence-title process separately; its five-year duration is not an immigration residence grant.

Do I need an employer sponsor?+

This business procedure is not classified as employer sponsorship. Your management authority, project, company or parent-company evidence and appropriate personal status still need to match the actual application.

Can I change the business or stop trading without further steps?+

The pack requires declaration of geographical transfers, new activities or establishments with register updates as applicable. It also describes returning the card on definitive cessation or a declared temporary cessation exceeding three months. Confirm the current decision-specific procedure with SEFI.

Need tailored advice?

We do not provide legal advice. For an application that depends on your exact circumstances, consult a regulator-listed immigration advisor.

Find a regulated advisor in French Polynesia

How we verified this

We check every figure on this page against the primary government source, record the date it was last checked, and re-check it on a regular schedule. Rules change, so always confirm time-sensitive details with the official source before you rely on them. Visa Atlas is an information-only publication and does not give legal advice.

Primary source: Service de l emploi / Government of French Polynesia

Last checked: 14 November 2026

See the full evidence trail and methodology

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