Opening a bank account + Euro,s

[Leo. H]

HI, can you tell me what I will need to open a French bank account and the best banks to go with, area 53 Mayenne, as I have have,nt a clue, also is it best to exchange money in the U.K or France, a friend told me I would get a better exchange rate in France if I had u.k pounds as the French like British pounds...I think he may have been winding me up...Leo

[Sarah Osmond]

Hi Leo,

I opened a bank account with Barclays in France and they have been great and very easy to deal with. The only main difference from my acount in the UK being that I don't get any interest on my money, but I've been told that this is the case for all bank accounts in France. www.barclays.fr is the website.

As for getting your money into that account, I'd agree that your friend is winding you up ..... I use a company called Halo Financial they convert my pounds into Euros and transfer it for me, all at very impressive exchange rates. www.halofinancial.com is their web address.   

Hope this helps.

S

[IAN_S]

It is not true that no bank accounts in France attract interest.

Even a non resident account at CA Midi gets some interest although it's not at UK levels, but then if you look at European rates in general they are pretty poor in comparison.

 

 

[BJSLIV]

Until recently (last month?) it was illegal for banks to pay interest on current accounts. Some banks have recently introduced accounts that do pay a pitifuuly small amount of interest. They are also muttering about having to introduce charges for services that were previously gratuit to compensate for interst payments!

[Tourangelle]

This is absolutely right, the poster who said they had had interest cannot have been referring to a current account, as this has only been legal since 14 April. the only bank so far to offer interest on a current account is the Caisse d'Epargne

[Leo. H]

Hi, thanks for the replies, but what do I need to take to the Bank to open up a account, ie passport, photo, etc.. I have been looking at the exchange rate on the web and it seems to be around the 1.41 Euro to the pound, must be the same in France ?...or do you know different ?..cheers again guys you have been very helpful...Leo

[nokianut]

Ive just recieved an info pack from Barclays France and I cant believe how much info and documents they require from me . They also charge a minimum of 9 euros a month and you have to keep a min of 2300 euros in the account.

Is there not a way to open a spanish euro account so that it could be used in france ?

 

Phil

[nokianut]

Q: What do I need to open an account?

A: This varies, but documents required depend largely on your circumstances. If resident in France, you will require a valid piece of identity, such as a passport or carte de séjour as well as a proof of address (such as an EDF/GDF or France Telecom bill in your name) that is no more than three months old.

If a non-resident in France, as well as the above, you will need a recent credit card statement not more than three months old, (Visa, MasterCard, American Express, etc) showing your address, or a bank statement from a reputable bank showing your address, or a recent gas, electricity or telephone bill at your home address, not more than three months old will also be required. Here at Barclays we also request that you provide an introductory or reference letter from a major UK bank confirming your home address. If you have already used a bank statement for this purpose, this letter must be issued by another bank.

In addition, if you are opening an account from overseas and are not present in the country in person, then you will need to provide copies of two pieces of identity (passport and photo driver's licence for example), and two proofs of address, all certified by your bank and the letter of recommendation.

[nokianut]

Opening a French bank account

This article assumes that you are interested in opening a French bank account because you are intending to buy or have bought a second-home or permanent home in France.

You can open either a non-resident account or resident account. Non-resident accounts (compte non-résident) may be slightly more restrictive than resident accounts in the amounts you can transfer and the fact that you cannot obtain an overdraft – check with your bank for the specific restrictions.

Although it is usually easier to open a French bank account in person while in France, for many people this is not practical.

Fortunately there are various options available to set up Euro accounts assuming you are still in the UK. As with any bank or savings account there are a number of important variables to consider which can make a noticeable difference to the cost and ease of running the account. You should take into account these factors when selecting an account provider:

* Interest – What rate can you obtain on your savings? (No interest is payable on French current accounts)
* Is it paid gross or net?
* Monthly or annual payment of interest?
* Withdrawals & Transfers – what are the rules regarding the number of withdrawals?
* What are the charges for transfers to Euro and non-Euro accounts?
* Access – does it have online or telephone banking facilities?

Current vs Deposit Accounts
You will almost certainly need to set up a cheque account for paying bills and everyday French expenses and a separate deposit account (not necessarily with the same bank) for holding larger sums on deposit.

First you will need to obtain the forms from your selected bank in order to open a new account, either during a visit or by correspondence from abroad. If you are unsure which bank to choose try to get a recommendation from other people in similar situations who have opened and run French bank accounts. If you don't speak much French you will want to choose a bank that is used to running resident expat or non-resident accounts, but bear in mind that just because you are able to talk to helpful English speaking staff in the HQ does not mean there will be any in the local branch where you intend to conduct your banking.

If you are visiting the area in which you are buying a house why not try and visit the branch for a quick meeting to see what familiarity they have with non-French speaking customers. Alternatively choose a service like Britline, operated by Credit Agricole, which provides a telephone banking service staffed by English speakers.

See our List of French Banks in the Directory.

In addition to completing the application form you will need to provide additional information as follows:

• Reference from current bank
• Copy of your passport
• Signature witnessed by a solicitor (non-residents)
• Evidence of residency status (utility bill or copy of house purchase agreement, e.g. Compromis de Vente, if your purchase has not gone through).

You will also need to deposit some funds to open the account.

Note that if you wish to open a joint bank account, you have the option of the account being held as M. et MME. SMITH or M. ou MME. SMITH. In the former case both partners must sign and in the event of one partner dying the account is frozen until the will has been proven. If you wish to have a joint account where either partner can sign and draw on the account then you must have the second option.

[Will]

The above article was taken from the http://www.frenchentree.com website.

We would be grateful if users would remember that they have agreed to the code of conduct for this forum, which says users must not post messages which infringe intellectual property rights. In order to avoid problems for Living France's publishers, when you want to refer other readers to an article such as this, please either do so by means of a link to the site concerned or acknowledge the source in your posts.

[rosiedarling<STRONG>Rosie<STRONG>]

Am in similar situation to Leo as I too do not know my way round opening account.  However I have been given advice by friends who have recently bought a property over in France and am now midway through filling out an application for.  Now I am stuck!

Is anybody able to help me solve the following: On my account checklist it asks if I am 'Free from county court judgements or bankruptcy orders' and in the 'How To Apply' sheet says 'You must not have any County Court Judgements against you'.  Now, unfortunately (in my youth ie 24 years ago) I had a county court judgement against me which was cleared in a year and (in this country) considered spent after 7 years.  Does this mean that I cannot open this account? If this is the case could someone point me in the direction of a bank that will accept me under these conditions??

Rosie