Everything you need to know about French bank charges, you can’t avoid them completely but you can be aware of and manage them.
By law French banks must make customers aware of the charges that are applied to their accounts at least once a year. Most banks will have details of charges on their websites or will supply them on demand. Charges vary from bank to bank, and even within the same banking group from region to region so it is worth checking this detail before you open a bank account in France.
Some banks issue very clear tariffs – others less so, and if their charges are not as clear as you would like it is worth pursuing the matter to make sure you are given distinct details of charges. The average bank account will incur charges of around €70 per annum.
Items for which there may be French bank charges include:
Supply of Cheque Book plus Cheque Book by post
Unpaid cheques (read more about French Cheques here)
Credit/Debit Card
Cash Withdrawals from ATMs (Read more about ATM machines in France here)
Internet Transactions
Stopping a Cheque/Card/Direct Debit
Foreign Currency Transactions – both paying and receiving
Standing Orders
Direct Debits
Overdrafts (read more about French overdrafts here to avoid hefty charges)
Re-setting a pin number
And more! It may pay you to find out the bank charges are from the French bank you are applying to or banking with to make sure that you don’t get a raft of charges you didn’t expect.
French banks are obliged to give you three months’ notice in writing of any increase in their tariffs.
