The Pacific franc and its fixed parity with the euro

The currency of French Polynesia is the Pacific franc, code XPF, written F CFP on labels and bills; it is issued by the Institut d’émission d’outre-mer (IEOM). Its parity with the euro is fixed and written into the Code monétaire et financier (article D. 721-2): 1,000 XPF = 8.38 EUR, and this fixed exchange regime goes with free movement of capital. The sum is therefore always the same: 100 XPF make €0.84, 1,000 XPF €8.38, 10,000 XPF €83.80 and 100,000 XPF €838.

Everyday transactions are made in CFP francs, and shopkeepers are required to accept the notes and coins that are legal tender. A new range of coins has been in circulation since September 2021; since 30 November 2022 only these new coins are valid. No official page consulted says that the euro is accepted in shops: count on the Pacific franc to pay.

Exchange and cash machines

Tahiti-Faa’a airport has a bureau de change, open for the arrival and departure of international flights. In Papeete and on the main islands, Banque de Polynésie and Banque Socredo exchange currency; hotels do too, at less favourable rates according to Tahiti Tourisme. US dollars, notes and coins alike, are not accepted in shops.

Cash machines exist throughout the island of Tahiti and on the main islands, in Papeete and in the towns of the larger islands. The Haut-commissariat in fact lists a bank card for international use and cash among the proofs of means of subsistence that a traveller from outside the European Union may have to show at the border. On Tubuai, in the Australs, the island’s only bank is at Mataura, the administrative district.

On the atolls and the remote islands

For the remote islands, Tahiti Tourisme is clear: cash is often required, family guesthouses and small shops frequently work on a cash-only basis, and you should withdraw money before travelling there. The official pages consulted do not say which atolls have a cash machine or which guesthouses take cards; the sensible course is to ask the accommodation when booking and to plan, in CFP francs, for the cost of the stay, the meals and the outings that are not paid in advance.

This applies to Rangiroa, Fakarava and Tikehau in the Tuamotu, to the Marquesas and to the Australs. In the Society Islands, Tahiti, Moorea and Bora Bora are the best equipped; for Huahine, Raiatea and Taha’a the sources give no detail, and the same caution applies. Withdrawing on Tahiti before a flight to an atoll remains the simplest.

Bank cards

Visa and Mastercard are accepted in most hotels and shops on Tahiti and Bora Bora, and more broadly on the main islands, Tahiti, Moorea and Bora Bora, where card payment is widespread. Tahiti Tourisme’s currency page does not mention American Express; ask the establishment if that is the only card you carry.

Ferry and air tickets, car hire and hotels are booked online on the companies’ sites, in CFP francs; the rates published by the hire firms and carriers named on this site are all stated in that currency. For small outlays, the published rates run from a few hundred to a thousand francs: the Musée de Tahiti et des Îles charges 1,000 XPF (€8.38) for admission, the Fautaua valley 600 F CFP (€5.03) per adult, a visit to the Gauguin’s Pearl farm on Rangiroa 1,000 F per adult.

Tipping and service

A tip is not expected by hotel and restaurant staff, but it is not refused either, says Tahiti Tourisme’s FAQ. Since 2007 a service charge has been included in the price of accommodation and in restaurant bills. There is therefore no percentage to work out and no line to add to the bill; a gesture for a guide or a driver is left to each person, and no official source sets a custom for it.

As for what is added to the bill, it is the municipal tourist tax that counts: it is paid to the host, per person and per night, and its amount changes on 1 January 2027; the page on tourist taxes gives the rates.

Prices on this site and cash at the border

On this site, prices are shown in Pacific francs, as the establishments and carriers publish them, with the euro equivalent for information, worked out at the fixed parity of 1,000 XPF for 8.38 EUR. The amount to pay on the spot is the one in CFP francs; the conversion into euros does not vary from one day to the next, since the parity is set by law.

If you carry cash, customs remind travellers that any cross-border transport of an amount equal to or above 10,000 euros, that is 1,193,300 CFP francs, must be declared; the obligation covers movements between the overseas collectivities and abroad, and applies only from that threshold.

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Timetables, provider conditions, entry rules, weather-sensitive activities and commercial terms are rechecked for the actual trip. This article explains the planning logic; it is not a live availability promise.

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Polynesia Local editorial desk · sources cited on every entry · 20 October 2026