The French Polynesian government says anyone entering the territory from mainland France will have to be tested for Covid-19 before departure and go into quarantine for two weeks on arrival.
The president Edouard Fritch restated the entry conditions amid a sustained clamour by residents for weeks to be allowed to return.
Mr Fritch said the repatriation would have to be phased because of limited capacity to accommodate arrivals.
He said more than 340 rooms have been reserved in various locations with about 1,000 French Polynesian residents registered in Paris wishing to return.
French Polynesia President Edouard Fritch updating response to Covid-19 outbreak Photo: Supplied
Amid calls to charter a plane for repatriation flights, the president said every ten days the French government-sponsored flight from Paris to Papeete would carry some people to Tahiti.
He said the crisis management team had drawn up a list determining who would be entitled to be flown first.
Mr Fritch noted that more than 1500 French public service employees would need to be transported to Tahiti between May and July.
He said he hoped that by July scheduled airline services would have resumed.
A health state of emergency declared in France in March was this weekend extended to 10 July.
France recorded almost 140000 Covid-19 cases while French Polynesia had 60, one of which involved a member of the French military exempted from the rules.