Fiji Country Commercial Guide
Learn about the market conditions, opportunities, regulations, and business conditions in fiji, prepared by at U.S. Embassies worldwide by Commerce Department, State Department and other U.S. agencies’ professionals
Select Country Guide
eCommerce
Last published date:

General Overview

Many public and private entities in Fiji are transitioning to digital systems and phasing out manual or paper-based processing.  Fiji, like other Pacific Islands countries, can now more easily access international markets using eCommerce platforms.  With stringent social distancing measures and lockdowns during the pandemic, many businesses were forced to strengthen their online approach to sales and marketing.  Many businesses in Fiji are now thriving through online sales.  The total FinTech transactions value is forecast to grow by 19.5 percent from 2020 to 2025.

Legal & Regulatory Environment toward eCommerce

All online businesses operating in Fiji need to be registered with the Fiji Revenue and Customs Service for tax purposes.  Online businesses with an annual gross turnover or sales exceeding $45,920 (FJ$100,000), are required to register for VAT.  The business becomes a collecting agent for the government and is required to charge VAT on all sales made, file VAT returns and make VAT payments.

Consumer Behavior

Cash remains the most common payment method used by individuals and businesses in Fiji.  Mobile money recently became a widely used payment method for buying and selling of goods and money transfer.  The pandemic forced many Fijian businesses to adopt cashless payment methods resulting in the tremendous increase of mobile money wallet transactions in value and volume.  Credit cards and debit cards are not commonly used for day-to-day transactions.  

Intellectual Property Rights

Fiji’s copyright laws are in conformity with World Trade Organization (WTO) Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property (TRIPS) provisions.  However, the enforcement of these laws remains weak, and capacity is a challenge.

Illegal materials and reproductions of films, sound recordings, and computer programs are widely available throughout Fiji.  In 2021, Fiji’s parliament passed new intellectual property laws including the protection of trademarks, patents, and designs.  The new law is yet to come into force.

Digital Marketing & Social Media

In Fiji, the use of social media provides a competitive advantage over traditional media.  As much as 72 percent of Fiji’s population are social media users, with most popular social media networking sites being Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and X (Twitter) (Source: Datareportal).  Barter for Better Fiji is a non-cash trading space where people trade what they have for what they need.  This barter system operates out of a Facebook group, with over 170,000 members.  The group was created to help sustain families and households through the COVID-19 pandemic. (Source: Pacific E-commerce Initiative December 2020).

×

Global Business Navigator Chatbot Beta

Welcome to the Global Business Navigator, an artificial intelligence (AI) Chatbot from the International Trade Administration (ITA). This tool, currently in beta version testing, is designed to provide general information on the exporting process and the resources available to assist new and experienced U.S. exporters. The Chatbot, developed using Microsoft’s Azure AI services, is trained on ITA’s export-related content and aims to quickly get users the information they need. The Chatbot is intended to make the benefits of exporting more accessible by understanding non-expert language, idiomatic expressions, and foreign languages.

Limitations

As a beta product, the Chatbot is currently being tested and its responses may occasionally produce inaccurate or incomplete information. The Chatbot is trained to decline out of scope or inappropriate requests. The Chatbot’s knowledge is limited to the public information on the Export Solutions web pages of Trade.gov, which covers a wide range of topics on exporting. While it cannot provide responses specific to a company’s product or a specific foreign market, its reference pages will guide you to other relevant government resources and market research. Always double-check the Chatbot’s responses using the provided references or by visiting the Export Solutions web pages on Trade.gov. Do not use its responses as legal or professional advice. Inaccurate advice from the Chatbot would not be a defense to violating any export rules or regulations.

Privacy

The Chatbot does not collect information about users and does not use the contents of users’ chat history to learn new information. All feedback is anonymous. Please do not enter personally identifiable information (PII), sensitive, or proprietary information into the Chatbot. Your conversations will not be connected to other interactions or accounts with ITA. Conversations with the Chatbot may be reviewed to help ITA improve the tool and address harmful, illegal, or otherwise inappropriate questions.

Translation

The Chatbot supports a wide range of languages. Because the Chatbot is trained in English and responses are translated, you should verify the translation. For example, the Chatbot may have difficulty with acronyms, abbreviations, and nuances in a language other than English.

Privacy Program | Information Quality Guidelines | Accessibility