Who pays the tourist tax and who collects it

The tourist tax is a municipal tax. In communes that carry out tourism promotion, the municipal council may institute it and set its rate by type of accommodation; it is owed by people who are not domiciled in the commune and own no residence there. The hosts, hoteliers and owners collect it from their guests and pass it on to the municipal treasurer: the traveller pays it to the host, on top of the price of the night, and has nothing to do with the town hall.

The current framework rests on articles L. 233-29 to L. 233-45 of the Code des communes, applicable in French Polynesia since the law of 29 December 1977, and on order no. 66/MAC of 29 January 1997, which sets the rate brackets. This framework remains in force for stays up to 31 December 2026; it is repealed on 1 January 2027 in favour of country law no. 2025-38 of 9 December 2025, which overhauls the whole system. Both regimes are described below; in each case the published deliberation of the municipal council is what counts.

Until 31 December 2026: the known communal rates

The 1997 order brackets the rate per person per night between 80 and 200 F CFP in classified hotels and on cruise ships, and between 20 and 60 F CFP in non-classified establishments; the rates have not changed since 1997. Children under 12 staying with their parents are exempt, as are travelling salespeople carrying their professional card.

The rates published by the communes themselves, read on 19 October 2026: Punaauia, 200 F CFP (€1.68) in international tourist hotels and 60 F CFP (€0.50) in guesthouses, furnished rentals, hostels and campsites; Bora Bora, 200 F CFP in classified hotels and on cruise ships and 50 F CFP (€0.42) in other accommodation, rates kept until 31 December 2026; Arue, 150 F CFP (€1.26) and 50 F CFP; Hiva Oa, 150 F CFP for the hotel and cruise ships and 60 F CFP for other accommodation, a rate stated to be the same as Nuku Hiva’s. For Papeete, Moorea, Huahine, Raiatea, Rangiroa, Fakarava or Tikehau, no rate deliberation was online: the commune publishes the rate, ask your host or the town hall before you travel.

From 1 January 2027: country law no. 2025-38

Country law no. 2025-38 of 9 December 2025 institutes a tourist tax for the benefit of the communes, owed by anyone staying for payment in tourist accommodation, collected by the hosts and passed on to the communes. The rate is set by the commune, per person and per night, for each category of accommodation, within ceilings updated every three years: 1,500 F CFP (€12.57) in five-star international tourist hotels and luxury villas; 1,000 F CFP (€8.38) in four-star hotels; 900 F CFP (€7.54) in three-star hotels; 800 F CFP (€6.70) in furnished tourist rentals; 600 F CFP (€5.03) in two-star and non-classified hotels and on cruise ships; 100 F CFP (€0.84) in family guesthouses and bed and breakfasts, as in youth hostels, campsites, holiday villages and marinas.

The communes had until 31 October 2026 to deliberate for stays from 1 January 2027; the rates already published are given in the next section.

2027 deliberations, exemptions and arrangements

Punaauia (deliberation no. 174/2026 of 18 September 2026) and Huahine (deliberation no. 50/2026 of 5 June 2026) adopted the ceilings in every category; Arue (deliberation no. 2026/79 of 22 September 2026) did too, except furnished tourist rentals at 300 F CFP (€2.51). Bora Bora announces new rates for 1 January 2027 without having published them at the time of writing. The new text no longer exempts children under 12: exempt are minors under two, people in emergency housing or temporary rehousing, seasonal workers employed in the commune, and public agents and employees on assignment. A family with two children aged 5 and 9 therefore pays four taxes in 2027 against two in 2026.

The tax is paid to the host before departure; a host who lets through a digital platform remains liable for it, so the traveller pays it on the spot if the platform has not collected it. Boats in regulated mooring zones come under a flat rate per berth and per night, 513 F CFP (€4.30) under 20 metres and 1,232 F CFP (€10.32) above, where the commune has set it up; Arue has not.

The tourism promotion levy in 2026 and its abolition

In 2026, classified international tourist hotels and international tourist residences are subject to the tourism promotion levy, which stems from deliberation no. 84-1048 AT of 28 December 1984. It applies to the price of occupied rooms, at a rate of 3.5% for the share going to the budget of French Polynesia, to which the communes may add additional centimes up to 40% of the levy; Arue, for one, voted such centimes in 2023. The levy is collected by the Direction des impôts et des contributions publiques, not by the commune, and it partly funds tourism promotion. No official page consulted says whether it is included in the displayed price or added to the bill: ask the hotel when booking.

Country law no. 2025-38 abolishes the levy and its additional centimes for stays from 1 January 2027 and repeals the 1984 deliberation. Family guesthouses, furnished rentals and the other accommodation that is not a classified international hotel were never affected.

VAT on accommodation: 2026 and 2027

French Polynesia has its own VAT, at three rates: 16% (standard rate), 13% (intermediate rate, for services not covered by the reduced rate) and 5% (reduced rate). In 2026, accommodation, full board and half board billed as a package in classified hotel establishments, on cruise ships, on licensed charter vessels and in campsites come under the reduced rate of 5%; furnished tourist rentals and luxury villas stay at the intermediate rate of 13%.

For operations whose chargeable event occurs from 1 January 2027, country law no. 2025-38 harmonises these rates: VAT on accommodation services in tourist establishments, on cruise ships and on licensed charter vessels is set at 9%, except for family guesthouses and bed and breakfasts, which stay at the reduced rate. VAT is part of the price of the service; the tourist tax, by contrast, is counted separately, per person and per night.

What it changes on a hotel bill

An example with the rates published by Punaauia: two adults and a child of 8, seven nights in a four-star international tourist hotel. In 2026 the tourist tax is 200 F CFP per adult per night and the child is exempt: 2 × 7 × 200 = 2,800 F CFP, that is €23.46. In 2027 the rate for the four-star category is 1,000 F CFP and the 8-year-old pays: 3 × 7 × 1,000 = 21,000 F CFP, that is €175.98. In a family guesthouse in the same commune, the sum gives 2 × 7 × 60 = 840 F CFP (€7.04) in 2026 and 3 × 7 × 100 = 2,100 F CFP (€17.60) in 2027.

These amounts are paid to the host, who passes them on to the commune; they come on top of the room price. The communes publish their deliberations on their website or at the town hall; the rates above are those read on official pages on 19 October 2026 and may be changed by a later deliberation.

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