Martinique: goods movements with Guadeloupe

Scope

Guadeloupe and Martinique form the single Antilles territory for octroi under article 1(II) of Law 2004-639. This does not extend the same treatment to every Caribbean or overseas territory. Law.

The July 2025 customs circular, chapter IX, covers goods produced locally or already imported and released for consumption in one island, then sent to the other. These movements do not require fresh customs clearance. Goods remaining under a customs or fiscal suspensive regime are excluded from this treatment. Paragraph 110 nevertheless requires an accompanying document and a periodic declaration. Circular paragraphs 108–110, printed page 47.

Accompanying evidence

Under paragraph 112, the document establishes local manufacture or regular importation and is deposited with the competent customs office on arrival in the destination DROM. For a sale, use the prescribed invoice. Without a sale, the circular permits the specified import declaration/invoice copies, the supplier invoice, applicable excise movement document, or another customs-approved document. Circular paragraph 112, pages 47–48.

Practical workflow: link each dispatch to its goods list, origin evidence, invoice or own-stock document, transport record and arrival record. A commercial invoice alone does not prove that goods still in a warehouse suspension have been released for consumption.

Monthly dispatch declaration

Paragraph 113 requires the declaration at the departure island's competent customs office by the tenth working day after the movement month. The responsible economic operator, qualifying public entity or authorized representative dates and signs it. It records operator and representative identity, period, commodity code, origin, net mass and supplementary units where relevant, transport mode, recipient SIRET, value and signatory details. Circular paragraph 113, page 48.

Reconcile imported goods subsequently dispatched separately from locally produced goods as the paragraph requires. The circular's narrative calls the model annex VI, while its contents list calls the periodic declaration annex V. Locate the form by its title and confirm the current version with customs; do not rely on the inconsistent annex number. Circular contents and paragraph 113.

Decision examples

Sale from Martinique to Guadeloupe: establish that goods qualify for the ordinary single-territory route, retain the sale invoice as accompanying evidence and include the movement in Martinique's dispatch reporting. No fresh clearance does not mean no declaration.

Transfer of stock without a sale: use the permitted no-sale evidence and include the dispatch. The circular distinguishes shipment from delivery according to whether ownership transfers before entry into the destination island. Paragraphs 109, 112–113.

Temporary movement and return: the circular requires the temporary-shipment designation on departure and return for qualifying simple round trips not treated as deliveries; the value field is optional in that case. Do not apply this exception to an actual sale. Paragraph 113 continuation, printed page 49.

Goods still under suspension: do not use the ordinary cleared-goods route; determine the governing customs/fiscal regime separately. Paragraph 109.

Self-checks and limits

Reconcile movement month, departure office, arrival evidence, sale versus own-stock status, origin and recipient SIRET. Compute the actual deadline using the applicable working-day calendar; the tenth calendar day is not an adequate substitute. This Guide does not prescribe a particular calendar date without checking that calendar.

Source-cited draft awaiting independent review. Current submission channels, any amendments after the 2025 circular, penalties, excise-specific requirements, product rates and VAT returns remain separate checks. For producer-threshold obligations, see the Guadeloupe producer Guide. This is not comprehensive Martinique tax coverage.

Contributed by Ryan Duguid.