Using a UK bank account for SARL

[osie]

Hi All

I have seen quite a few accomodation web sites offering a payment option to be made via a UK bank. 

The advantage being that a UK client could pay the money without the need of banking costs.

Is it possible to set up a UK bank for a French company.

Is this allowed as our accountant has suggested it is not.

Thanks

osie

[AnOther]

You don't say if you are French resident or not but I'm guessing you are.

As such you will find it difficult enough opening a personal UK bank A/C and I can imagine opening a company one being next to impossible, certainly so with any of the UK High St banks anyway.

You may stand a better chance through the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands.

I have no idea about the legalities of it.

The ones you have seen could well be holiday homes belonging to non French residents.

 

[Danny]

If one has a French registered business, one has to issue invoices for payment in Euros because it is the currency of France. How can one declare an income in any other currency? Can you imagine a UK company charging in Euros or dinars or whatever currency they might happen to find useful?

Imagine what the various tax departments would make of it.

Those who offer payment via a UK bank for services in France are (most likely) not doing things legally.

Danny

 

[Albert the InfoGipsy]

It's perfectly legal to invoice in the customer's currency, whatever it may be, but all the financial reporting to the tax man etc. has to be converted to your local currency and you have to be able to justify the exchange rate used for each transaction.

My last commercial client issued invoices in at least four different currencies, but they had an accounts department to handle the complications. They did happen to be a multinational aerospace company with a turnover measured in billions.

[Danny]

Ok - it is lot more complicated than I suggested earlier...

If  your accountant says it is not allowed, there must be a reason.

Why not go to the tax office and ask?

Danny 

[The Ps]

We have a business account with HSBC UK in sterling and euros so our customers can pay in either.   The bank gave us business credit and debit cards through the sterling account.  Our invoices state the amount in sterling and euros so our customers can pay in either, as they wish.   We are tax resident in France with a SIRET no' and are registered for TVA.   All our tax affairs are handled by our French accountancy firm and this has been the case for 3 years now.

We also have UK and French personal bank accounts with UK credit cards and our UK bank and cards are registered at our French address. 

Nothing illegal about any of it and easy to set up whilst living in France and we are not a huge multinational corporation.

John

[Sola]

Each year the French government publish the "yearly" exchange rate from pounds/euros, this is what you use on your tax return.  So it is perfectly acceptable to use both currencies. We are often paid in sterling for work carried out which is paid directly to a sterling account in the Uk with the bamk accounts address being our french one....there was no problem getting the account set up in  person in the UK with all the relevant ID etc....we were honest to the UK bank and said that sometimes we get paid in sterling and sometimes in euros...by the way some French banks will let you have a sterling as well as a euro account.....but often without a card so you can only transfer it to your euro account.....

We spoke with our accountant who said it was no problem as he would just use the governments currency exchange rate .....

I suppose the only factor is that your customers may be getting a better deal than you in the current market.....who knows what the government will decide for 2008.....

Hope this reasures you that it is not "ilegal" to accept payment in sterling as long as it is declared properly.....

[osie]

Well that sounds great news... I have a meeting with a new French bank next week and will be armed with lots of questions to put to them.

Being now a French resident I will probably use a French bank although I have found all banks other that the French ones much more useable/accommodating.

Thanks

osie

[Sola]

Just had another thought....to compare with the UK. Many UKshops/companies will accept euros now....so it can also work the other way around....but the exchange ratethey give generally leaves a lot to be desired!!....all part of being in Europe I suppose even though the UK does not  use euros as a first currency.......I suppose receiving payment in this way ensures a "sale" and also how many firms import from Europe and therefore need euros?

[Wendy]

My guess is that the easiest option would be HSBC in that they also operate in France.

We've had an HSBC UK business account for years and quote our prices in both sterling and euro but in practice nobody has actually paid us in sterling. I suspect that's partly down to people assuming that we would be applying some kind of rip-off exchange rate such as you get in the likes of Auchan who let you select your payment currency when you use a non-French card.

By far the simplest route is to accept credit card payments and to ask your bank to update your machine so that you can bill in both sterling and euro. This would eliminate any complications from your accountant in that you would always be receiving euro.

However, you should note that if you do this then you will be charging your customers the rate that your French bank use for currency exchange which is unlikely to be good. Also, some UK credit cards now apply a foreign currency conversion charge when you pay in sterling outside the UK so it's not free as many people would assume.

[Chancer]

[quote user="Jura"]

I suspect that's partly down to people assuming that we would be applying some kind of rip-off exchange rate such as you get in the likes of Auchan who let you select your payment currency when you use a non-French card.

[/quote]

 

Yes I got caught out by that one as well! I only accepted the option to see what (I thought) was the equivalent price in sterling, the interesting thing is the ticket (which is only printed out at the end of the transaction) said "I agree to pay a commission of 3% on the interbank exchange rate" - I agreed to nothing of the sort[:@]

[Albert the InfoGipsy]

[quote user="Jura"]

My guess is that the easiest option would be HSBC in that they also operate in France.

[/quote]

Yebbut

http://www.financemarkets.co.uk/2008/02/12/hsbc-puts-french-retail-branches-up-for-sale/

[Wendy]

HSBC are selling the regional branches that came with it's purchase of CCF some years ago.

It's keeping the branches that are currently branded HSBC France (ie those with a big HSBC sign over the branch) but selling the various regional branches which are only marked by a small sign on the door.

I suspect that it will probably end up doing what it has done elsewhere which will be to open new HSBC branches in the various regions after it's gotten rid of the regional banks (although it probably won't be telling potential purchasers that!). This is basically because the computer systems and product offerings by the various regional banks just aren't compatible with the systems and product lines that HSBC France offer.

[lmc]

hi

just to say that credit agricole also offer the sterling account option and also offer interest rates in sterling.

lisa