Working in the Solomon Islands as a French Citizen: Visa, Tax, Contributions and Economy

The 90-day visitor permit issued on arrival to French nationals does not allow you to work. Access to employment requires a specific visa from the Immigration Division of the Ministry of Commerce, Industry, Labour and Immigration. This division’s website distinguishes several families of visas (visit, investment, work, residence, special reasons, study) and two options for active resident employment.

• Long-term employment: US$450, two years, unlimited entries, extendable. The file states the name, type and address of the host company.
• Short-term employment: US$300, six months, single entry, extendable after the first six months; the support of the Labour Department is required.
• Emergency employment (“special reasons” category): US$150, 30 days, up to four entries a year, with the support of the Labour Department.
• Short-term business visa: US$450 for 180 days, multiple entries, not extendable, for meetings, conferences, negotiations or brief consultancies.
• Volunteer or humanitarian: US$100, one year, multiple entries, extendable.

The family members of a resident come under dependant categories (US$300 for two years at most for a dependant of a short- or long-term resident), with no automatic right to work. The ministry also mentions a work permit facilitation service. For the documents required and timescales, the division can be reached on (+677) 45650, 45681 or 45792, Monday to Friday, and answers at immigration.visas@immigration.gov.sb.

The Labour Division, attached to the same ministry, states that its mission is to set national labour standards in line with the principles of the International Labour Organization. Minimum wage rates come under labour legislation and are set by ministerial order. The amount in force could not be read from an official source at the date of consultation: the ministry page does not publish it. It should be checked with the ministry (+677 22856) before signing a contract.

No official data read puts figures on salary levels by sector or qualification. A French candidate therefore compares the offer with their real cost of living: housing, water, air tickets, schooling, and above all health insurance with repatriation, which France Diplomatie (the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs travel advice service) judges essential. Pay is often accompanied by benefits negotiated with the employer (housing, annual tickets, insurance); see local contract and secondee or expatriate for the possible set-ups.

The tax division (Inland Revenue Division) publishes a progressive scale of personal income tax: 11% from 1 to 15,000 Solomon Islands dollars; 1,650 dollars plus 23% of the excess between 15,001 and 30,000; 5,100 dollars plus 35% of the excess between 30,001 and 60,000; 15,600 dollars plus 40% above 60,000. The same page states that the first 30,080 dollars are exempt. The page does not specify how the start of the bands (1 dollar) and the exemption fit together: the exact calculation should be confirmed with the division (IRDContact@mof.gov.sb; +677 21493).

A person is a tax resident if they live, or intend to live, in the Solomon Islands for more than six months. They are then taxed on worldwide income; a non-resident is taxed only on Solomon Islands-source income. The employer withholds tax at source (PAYE) and pays it every month before the 15th. The annual return is due by 31 March, provisional instalments are due on 20 March, 20 June, 20 September and 20 December, and the balance of tax is payable on 30 September. The country has no tax treaty with France according to the list of the French tax administration: there is therefore no text to divide taxation between the two states (see the retirement page).

Consumption taxes (goods tax and sales tax) are declared monthly before the 30th; their rate could not be read from the official source. The division mentions a consultation on a reform towards a value added tax. The rental of land and buildings is subject to a 10% withholding tax.

The Solomon Islands National Provident Fund (SINPF), operating since 1 October 1976, is a compulsory savings fund and not a health insurance scheme. The employee contributes at least 5% of their salary and the employer 7.5%, or 12.5% in total paid into an individual account. The employer is liable as soon as an employee has worked six days or more in the month and earned at least 20 dollars.

Withdrawals are possible from age 50 (partial withdrawal of up to 20% of the balance), in the event of medical disability, dismissal or cessation of activity before age 50 (with waiting periods not specified), permanent departure from the country with permanent residence or nationality elsewhere, or death in favour of the named beneficiaries. The conditions applying to a foreign employee are not described on the pages read: to be confirmed with the fund. A voluntary programme, youSave, is aimed at workers in the informal economy, including the self-employed.

No social security agreement links France to the Solomon Islands: the country appears neither among the agreements in force nor among those signed in the CLEISS (the French centre for international social security links) list. A posted employee sent by their French employer can remain affiliated to the French scheme under domestic legislation (articles L. 761-2 and R. 761-1 to R. 761-6 of the Social Security Code): three years renewable only once, a two-year gap before a new secondment to the same country for the same company, and double affiliation possible if the local scheme is compulsory. Care is then reimbursed up to what France would cover; the employer may add private insurance to cover the gap. See the posted worker glossary entry.

An expatriate employee on a local contract leaves the French scheme and comes under the local system. They can take out voluntary insurance with the Caisse des Français de l’Étranger (CFE, the voluntary health insurance body for French people abroad) (sickness, maternity, disability, work accidents, basic retirement), with a voluntary supplementary pension body for supplementary retirement and with France Travail (the French employment agency) for unemployment, according to the CLEISS. A self-employed worker can join the CFE for sickness and maternity; locally, they register with the tax division (form TAA 1 for an individual) and the framework of their activity should be confirmed with immigration, which describes no self-employed visa.

The Immigration Division presents no digital nomad visa in the categories read. A French citizen who works remotely for a foreign employer from the archipelago remains subject to the ordinary residence categories: 90-day visitor permit, then extension free of charge for up to three months and a monthly tax of 30 Solomon Islands dollars beyond that. Tax status depends on length of presence: beyond six months, local tax residence applies. International health cover remains essential (see digital nomad insurance).

France Diplomatie classes the Solomon Islands among the least developed countries. It cites forestry, agriculture and fishing as important sectors, and points to subsoil resources (gold, lead, nickel, zinc) whose prices influence the economy. The country joined the economic partnership agreement between the Pacific and the European Union on 17 May 2020. New Zealand is presented as the main donor; Australia, Japan and China, the leading infrastructure partner, complete the picture.

The central bank publishes growth and foreign exchange reserve indicators; the statistics office publishes estimates of gross domestic product and monitors prices, with moderate inflation. The outlook depends on revenue from natural resources, external aid and exposure to natural disasters, to be read with the indicators above. For a professional project, the best starting point remains an employer or local partner identified before departure.