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Promote:French Polynesia

Export from French Polynesia

A short guide for companies selling from French Polynesia: the export figures, the agreements and their limits, the main steps and who can help, each with its source.

1. What French Polynesia sells, and who buys it

Top goods exports

2024

  1. 1. Cultured pearls (HS 7101)US$63.8 million
  2. 2. Fresh or chilled fish (HS 0302)US$16.9 million
  3. 3. Vanilla (HS 0905)US$5.31 million
  4. 4. Aircraft parts (HS 8803)US$3.14 million
  5. 5. Fish fillets (HS 0304)US$1.6 million
  6. 6. Coral and shells (HS 0508)US$1.2 million
  7. 7. Live fish (HS 0301)US$802,959
  8. 8. Hand-painted art (HS 9701)US$397,464
Show 12 more products
  1. 9. Gold (HS 7108)US$322,769
  2. 10. Medical instruments (HS 9018)US$315,746
  3. 11. Fruit and vegetable juices (HS 2009)US$315,230
  4. 12. Precious metal jewelry (HS 7113)US$271,816
  5. 13. Valves and taps (HS 8481)US$177,726
  6. 14. Telephones (HS 8517)US$151,547
  7. 15. Spirits and liqueurs (HS 2208)US$149,025
  8. 16. Navigation instruments (HS 9014)US$112,899
  9. 17. Sculptures (HS 9703)US$96,051
  10. 18. Cosmetics and skin care (HS 3304)US$83,753
  11. 19. Pearl and gem articles (HS 7116)US$74,810
  12. 20. Radar and radio navigation equipment (HS 8526)US$58,191
  • Commodities not specified by kind (HS 9999) are 39.8 percent of 2024 exports; they are in the total but not ranked. Source⁠ (opens in a new tab)
  • Commodities not specified by kind (HS 9999) were 20.7 percent of 2023 exports and 39.8 percent of 2024, so a line’s change can reflect reporting. Source⁠ (opens in a new tab)
  • The 2025 report totals US$233.5 million, but commodities not specified by kind (HS 9999) are 57.8 percent of it, so this guide ranks 2024. Source⁠ (opens in a new tab)
  • The ISPF counts only exports of local products, in CFP francs, and puts them at 12,047 million in 2024, a different measure from UN Comtrade’s total. Source⁠ (opens in a new tab)
  • The ISPF calls 2023 an exceptional year for raw pearls, so the fall in 2024 mostly reflects pearls. Source⁠ (opens in a new tab)

Source: UN Comtrade, French Polynesia exports by product, 2024⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of 2024

Where the goods go

2024, share of goods exports

  • Hong Kong24.5%
  • United States15.9%
  • Japan12.5%
  • France6%
  • China0.6%
  • Vietnam0.3%
  • New Caledonia0.2%
  • Wallis and Futuna0.1%

Source: UN Comtrade, French Polynesia exports by destination, 2024⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of 2024

  • Seven product lines are at least 0.5 percent of exports and US$50,000, so the list is short; lines below them are very small. Source⁠ (opens in a new tab)

2. What to look into next

Our reading

Promote:Global’s reading of the figures above, not a source’s statement, and not advice.

3. Trade agreements

What each arrangement can mean for a seller, and its limits. A preference is conditional: check the rules of origin before you quote.

  • Décision (UE) 2021/1764 du Conseil du 5 octobre 2021 relative à l’association des pays et territoires d’outre-mer à l’Union européenne

    Products originating in French Polynesia enter the European Union free of import duty if they meet the decision’s origin rules, with origin self-declared by the exporter.

    Rules-based preference, not unconditional market access; the decision applies from January 1, 2021, and a REX number is needed above 10,000 euros a consignment.

    Source: European Union, Overseas Association Decision 2021/1764, 2021⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of October 7, 2021

4. Steps to export

The main steps, in order, each with the body responsible and its official page.

Exporting from French Polynesia

  1. Register the business with the CDFE of the CCISM, which passes your data to the commercial registry, ISPF, the tax directorate and the social fund under French Polynesia’s rules.Centre de développement et de formalités des entreprises (CDFE) of the CCISMOfficial page⁠ (opens in a new tab)

    Source: ADE, creating a company page, October 2026 (in French)⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of October 13, 2026

  2. Ask the regional customs directorate for a FENIX convention, which French Polynesia requires before you can file customs declarations online.Direction régionale des douanes de Polynésie françaiseOfficial page⁠ (opens in a new tab)

    Source: Customs directorate, FENIX declaration system page (in French)⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of July 9, 2026

  3. For pearls, present the products to the pearl-farming service for control before export, as French Polynesia’s pearl law requires, and check whether a specific export duty applies.Direction des Ressources MarinesOfficial page⁠ (opens in a new tab)

    Source: Customs directorate, pearls page (in French)⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of January 14, 2025

  4. For vanilla, have quality and export packaging checked by the vanilla public establishment, which applies French Polynesia’s vanilla law of 2021.Établissement public Vanille de TahitiOfficial page⁠ (opens in a new tab)

    Source: Government annual report sheet on the vanilla establishment (in French)⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of November 1, 2026

Show 4 more export steps
  1. For other plant and animal products, read the destination’s entry rules, then ask the biosecurity directorate of French Polynesia about inspection and certificates.Direction de la Biosécurité de la Polynésie françaiseExport fumigation is free up to 10 kilograms, and 1,000 CFP francs from 10 to 20 kilograms.Official page⁠ (opens in a new tab)

    Source: Biosecurity directorate, phytosanitary unit page, July 2026 (in French)⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of July 24, 2026

  2. For species listed under the Washington Convention, apply for a CITES permit, which the French State issues through its High Commission.Haut-commissariat de la République en Polynésie françaiseOfficial page⁠ (opens in a new tab)

    Source: Customs directorate, protected species page (in French)⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of January 14, 2025

  3. To claim the European Union preference, ask French Polynesia customs for a REX number for shipments above 10,000 euros and write the origin statement on the invoice.Direction régionale des douanes de Polynésie françaiseA REX number is free and issued for life, unless revoked.Official page⁠ (opens in a new tab)

    Source: Customs directorate, REX registered exporter page (in French)⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of December 23, 2024

  4. Declare the goods in FENIX under the simple exit regime of French Polynesia’s customs code, using the eight-digit customs code.Direction régionale des douanes de Polynésie françaiseOfficial page⁠ (opens in a new tab)

    Source: Customs directorate, clearance of goods page (in French)⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of July 9, 2026

5. Organizations that help exporters

Start with Customs and ISPF. Each card links to the organization’s own site.

Each card says what it can help with:Get adviceFind financeMeet requirementsResearch markets

Export development and market information

Show 1 more organization

Customs and tax

Standards and sector requirements

Show 1 more organization

Chambers and industry associations

Show 2 more organizations

6. Worth knowing

7. How Promote:Global helps

  • Compare potential export marketsSee which markets import what you sell, ranked on public trade data, and read each country before you commit.
  • Check duties and document requirementsCheck the duty, the origin conditions for a preferential rate and the documents a shipment needs.
  • Find advisors and service firmsAsk an advisory firm a scoped, paid question, or browse firms that list their own services, from legal work to logistics.
  • Organize your next stepsKeep each product and market in a project, with a roadmap of steps you work through.

Turn this guide into your French Polynesia project.

Use Promote:Global to explore markets, understand requirements and organize your next steps.

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Promote:French Polynesia is an independent guide by Promote:Global, not an official government portal. The organizations named here are independent public and membership bodies, not Promote:Global partners, and every link goes to their own site.

Facts read from public sources, with an editorial cut-off of November 1, 2026. Nothing here is investment, legal, tax or sanctions advice. Check current status with the organization before you rely on it.