Troubleshooting: Branchless Bank Accounts

Article updated July 2022 for accuracy.

Some time ago I was sitting with some friends and the conversation turned to banks and bank fees.  Both of my friends shared how much they hated “establishment” banks and described with relish how they had recently “fired” them.  They had chosen to move on to the “internet only” banks.  One banked at Fortuneo, the other recommended Boursorama.  I was happy with Société Générale and had long ago written off bank fees in France as “part of the deal.”  Turns out, as an American citizen, I don’t really have a choice.

I went through the process of applying for a basic checking account at both Fortuneo and Boursorama, banks that leveraged technology and virtual offices to offer low-to-no fee banking.  At the end of both applications I was rejected, in no uncertain terms.  Not because of my credit score (because there’s no such thing in Europe), but because unlike my friends, who possessed German and Czech citizenship, respectively, I was considered a “US person” for legal purposes, and was subject to FATCA.

FATCA (Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act) became law in 2010 in the US but came into force officially in France this year.  It places an enormous regulatory reporting burden on French banks servicing US citizens.  The “budget banks” mentioned above do not have the means or the staff to comply with this reporting requirement so they rejected me.  I was told by one person in the know that it costs French banks up to 10,000€/year to service someone like me (a “US person”).  This is all because the US government is determined to get its grubby hands on every last shred of our income, even if it was not earned in the USA.

Now, even if that number of 10,000 €/year is wildly exaggerated, something like 2,500 €/year is still a lot just to comply with US reporting requirements.  When you keep that in mind, you can smile your way through the two-hour process of opening a new checking account, as I had to do a few months ago for my new French business.  It’s not enough to sign a few forms and give the bank your money, as we often do in America.  The French want to know what kind of business you are operating, how much money you think you will make, the name of your most recently deceased pet, etc.

Part of this is simply a “get to know you” policy that French banks are encouraging these days.  But part of it is both French governmental compliance and now US regulatory compliance.  My poor counselor told me that I was his first “US” account and he called in backup from his colleagues no fewer than three times as unexpected screens kept popping up during my registration.

All in all, I was happy with the process and BNP Paribas offers the same level of service and convenience that I’ve become accustomed to with French banks but is (to my knowledge) not widespread in the US.

  1. RIB (relevé d’identité bancaire) This is an upgrade over traditional “online bill pay” as there is never a paper check issued.  The money leaves your account and 48 business hours later it is in another account, whether it’s the account of a friend or that of a regular payee of your household.  When you add a new payee you must key in a pin and every time you issue a RIB payment to someone you must key in a pin.
  2. App-based verification for online purchases.  When you make a credit card purchase on the web you will receive a push notification on your phone.  You must key in a pin in order to approve the purchase.  Then, and only then, is your purchase approved.
  3. No ATM fees.  By French law, you cannot be charged fees for withdrawing your own money, even if it’s from the ATM of another bank.  So you can use any ATM anywhere, anytime. Unfortunately, this is no longer the case, as of 2021.

It’s a lot of trouble to set up a French bank account as an American these days, but once you have that account, it’s a great thing, and it makes your life here that much easier.

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13 thoughts on “Troubleshooting: Branchless Bank Accounts

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  4. My BNP adviser just asked the past 6 months of my American bank statements. She said it was to see if I was not doing money laundering!!! She said the French counterterrorism was asking BNP to look at cash deposits. Is this legal? Do I have to show my past 6 months bank statements?
    Thanks

    • I don’t know if it’s “legal” as I’m not a lawyer but it is pretty standard practice. My very first counselor at Société Générale told me she might ask for them but she never did and none of my BNP counselors have. It may just be a random search.

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  8. Hi, Because I am considered a US person, I am having trouble investing my inheritance. I am a resident of France and am fiscally resident in France. Even so, with the FACTA laws, I am having a hard time finding a bank or something I can invest in. What to do?

    • Unfortunately, I can’t be of assistance here. You might consider moving that money to another EU jurisdiction where you have more flexibility to invest, like Malta or Cyprus or Liechtenstein.

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