Still have Britline I guess. If their product was a bit better I’d probably consider it.
I tried Boursobank before but didn’t get beyond the French residency/nationality requirement.
(Though I do have a RIB for my Britline account!)
France is correct with their requirement for French nationals to be able to get a bank account regardless of residence.
UK could do with stealing this law.
France also has ‘Livret A’ which is available to nationals of everywhere globally and is essentially lending to the government (and entirely government backed) and I think the UK should work something out like this with our ISAs (and maybe a GovISA to fund national infrastructure project).
You can contribute even not as a tax resident, they just tell you to tell wherever you are tax resident about the interest.
Wish we could do that for ISAs.
Yes I have a Livret A. Something like 1.85% interest but better than nothing.
What is the point?
I don’t know why I’d have euros savings to benefit the French public when there are no extra tax benefits to UK/Chinese residents…
I get Airbnb income in Euros. Converting it into pounds just to save it (then converting it back to pay annual expenses) would certainly wipe out any interest gains in doing so.
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Yes but there are other places to park it that are probably better money wise, no? Can’t imagine the French government are paying top euro.
Wise is an option…otherwise I can imagine running into the same restrictions that mean we can’t open any French accounts other than CA.
Wise is technically not an interest product, right?
I do think it makes sense for Wise to open up a Jersey branch and just get into the proper banking aspect for expats tbh
Realistically there is a large market of nomads and people in awkward situations like mine and having a very sturdy footing in Jersey where everything is properly recorded would be great
They could even get in partnerships with more specialised banks for financing prospects (business loans, mortgages on homes etc)
Would EU law mean that this has to read EU National, not simply French National?
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I think it’s not that loosely interpreted, probably because no one in the EU without a valid reason would have much of an incentive to open a French bank account unless actually meeting residence tests (so it has never been challenged).
I don’t have another EU citizenship anyways (until Turkiye joins?) to test this theory.
I think some banks on the mainland play pretty fast and loose with EU law and bar non-citizens for a variety of reasons.
I know. The French refused to issue the OH with an EU residence permit every time we applied over the five years we were living there. Strangely though, despite this meaning that she had no residence documents, they never even attempted to report her.
My OH had the experience here where they wouldn’t issue her with a bank account because she didn’t have a UK passport. I asked where this was outlined in the application process and they said it was part of the AML guidance, which I was not allowed to see.
Eventually I threated to divest my not inconsiderable savings at the time, and miraculously, opening an account was suddenly possible. I remember a sign at a bank branch in Brixton saying opening of any account was possible only with UK ID, and I complained. The result of which was the sign was removed, but people were still told they couldn’t open an account without a UK passport or UK driving licence. I believe this is in part what drove the founder of Monese to open his establishment, before he sold out to the glorified pay day lender they belong to now.
I believe you can open an İşbank current account in the UK, but the fees are eyewateringly high
If you’re Turkish or immediate family are, maybe?
The OH is Australian but the problem was that she had no proof of address. Turns out that there is a fallback option: the Woolwich manager popped round to confirm that she was living where she said she was living.
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Now you’re showing your age! I can still smell their little blue passport-style paying in books with the blue dot matrix print.
I can’t remember who they sold to now. Barclays I think. And what a shambles of a bank that is.
Nearly - either you or a member of your family have to already have a İşbank account (doesn’t say you need to be Turkish) - you also need to pay £200 to apply and bear an annual fee of £40. Oh, and you need to pay in €150000 for 31 days.
How would you get that without being Turkish or a resident of Türkiye?