From President Banner, Mission President of the Tahiti Papeete Mission
All visa categories are now available for those needing visas to come to Tahiti. People coming to Tahiti must have a negative covid test within 72 hours of arriving AND have been vaccinated. The vaccination has to have been completed at least 14 days prior to arriving for all vaccines except Janssen. That one must be completed at least 28 days prior to arrival.
That means missionaries need to get vaccinated if they have not already done so and apply for their visa. We have not yet discussed with the Missionary Department of how and when the process will begin. Do not apply for visas until instructed to do so. We cannot receive 100+ missionaries at the same time. The visas received to enter Tahiti are only temporary visas and only good for three months. That means if you apply too soon, you will have to apply again. Once here, we apply for a longer term visa.
The travel department will give specific instructions on what type of visa to apply for. Coordination of applying for a visa and traveling to an office for an in person interview is a must. I imagine it will take at least 1-2 months before we begin to see the first missionaries arrive.
We will keep you posted as we learn more details of how things will unfold.
Président Banner
After sending a personal message to President Banner, it is possible that French missionaries (and dual citizens like Samuel) would be able to go sooner. We are waiting for more instructions from the Missionary Department. But this is great news for all the missionaries assigned to Tahiti!!
Rosario Hansen
UPDATE from President Banner:
Just a little follow up from my earlier post. This morning there were meetings on getting things rolling for our mission. I was told there are a limited number of people working on visas which creates a bottleneck in the processing. I was told to expect two months. I was also told that generally, the church wants missionaries to be in their new assignment at least six months, especially for those going internationally. I have asked if it would be possible to try to expedite those that are on the bubble of that time frame. I hope we can to get as may as possible here. We will have to be patient and see. The Lords timing is perfect. Have faith that things will work out the way they are supposed to.
Président Banner
ANOTHER UPDATE from President Banner:
Let me clarify one thing and add another. It will take about two months to process visas plus around six months to be in the field. That means there needs to be about eight months left to start the process. I know there are a few who have just under eight months left and I am asking if it is possible to expedite them and get them started right away to get them here. I wanted to add that I do not believe it will be mandatory to come. If a missionary is happy to stay where they are, then I believe that will be accommodated.
Président Banner