[French Bank Account - Necessary?]

Hi. We have a "residence secondaire" in France, and have been using our BNP Paribas account to run it. This account costs us around 105 euros each year (5 euros a month plus 45 euros for the debit card). We now have a free Wise account on the internet (UK pounds and Euro accounts), to which we have transferred all the "prelevements" we have, and which we can use to transfer money (internet) to French businesses etc. and, with their debit card, withdraw cash from ATM's. (The euro account has a Belgian IBAN, so has to be accepted in France and throughout the EU.) The only thing you don't get is a cheque book.

I am tempted to close the BNP Paribas account and save the cost. Does anyone find/foresee a problem of not having cheques available, and not having a true "French" account??

[Communaute Universelle]

Hi.

We bought our holiday home in France in 2005 under the "communaute universelle" regime. We were and are resident in England, and our notaire drew up a new French marriage contract for us at the time of the purchase to allow this regime to be applied. I understand that this regime has not been available to people who are not resident in France since 2017(?), and now there is also the factor of Brexit.

Does anyone know if the communaute universelle we originally set up is still valid, or do we need to take different steps to ensure a surviving spouse inherits the whole property??

Many thanks.

 

[Importing a car to France - Non Resident]

I did this exact thing a few years ago, with no problem. (The only downside of doing it is that it has to be registered at your French address - so any speeding fines etc go there. I bit of a problem if you get one late in your stay, and don't get to pay it on time!!) The process is fairly simple, but takes effort. You have to get the necessary documents (CoC, proof of ownership etc etc - you can find details on many websites) and take them to the local prefecture with the appropriate fee. They issued me straight away with a document to allow me to get number plates made up (note that they have to be riveted to the car, not just screwed on!), and sent the Carte Gris (registration document) a little later.

[Question on registering a used car bought in France]

Hi. We are not French residents (only a residence secondaire in France), but are proposing to buy a used car in France for use there. I understand the process, but one question relating to registering the newly bought vehicle: I guess we have to pay a fee to re-register it in our name. Is the cost the same as that for re-registering a UK vehicle in France, or is there some different scale of charges or a fixed price? Many thanks.

Steve

[French insurance for a UK car]

This gets more complicated than the rules of golf!!

Just to

clarify - as a resident of UK, does that mean I cannot drive ANY

foreign registered car in the UK, or just a foreign registered car that

I own??

Thanks for all your help.

[French insurance for a UK car]

I would be grateful for informed opinions on the question below. I know the general area has been touched on many times, but I cannot find a clear answer!

I am NOT a resident of France – we live in the UK

(have a house and receive my pension there etc etc), but we do have a

"maison secondaire" in the Var, which we and the family use for

breaks and holidays, probably in total around 3-4 months each year. We have an

(old) English registered car which we use in France for around 9-10

months each year, bringing it back to the UK for 2-3 months in the winter for

MOT etc. For most of the time in France it is parked in an airport car park

between our visits. The car is taxed and MOT'd in the UK, but insured in France

(through an agency in Beaune with AXA France) – which, being a policy from an

EU country, also gives me (minimum) cover for when I bring it back to the UK.

 

The agency tells me that, from the insurance point of view,

there is no need to register the car in France, that I can continue this for as

many years as I wish, and indeed they have renewed the policy year-on-year

quite happily.

 

My question is: Is this "legal"? – or am I liable

to problems in France if either the police or other authorities stop me, or

from the insurance point of view if I have an accident there?