Banking in France

It can be intimidating to do anything in a new country, but even more so for anything that has to do with your money.

There are certainly differences, some of them predictable like the extra time you have to allow for your mortgage or other loan application to be processed. Also, the amount of paperwork that you will encounter is probably greater than you are used to.

In France, banks issue Visa or MasterCard debit cards, not credit cards. You can pay an extra fee to have the debit made on the last day of the month instead of immediately. This is great for discouraging over-extending yourself with credit obligations, but can be an adjustment coming from the US or the UK, especially.

In France, the debit cards all have a "puce", which is a small electronic chip. Whenever you make a purchase, you have to input your four digit PIN code. This cuts way down on fraudulent use of cards because you can't use the card without knowing the PIN in most circumstances. Exceptions to this would be the toll booths on the autoroute or purchases on the internet or on an order form.

Interestingly, my husband asked our Morgan Chase bank why American cards don't have a puce (after he was pick-pocketed in Barcelona), and they told him that any extra steps in the transaction process cuts down on impulse buying, and that cuts down on their commissions. They would lose more from the decrease in fees than they do from fraud!

In France, it is very very serious to write a bad check. Thankfully, I have not had to learn this the hard way. Just don't write a bad check. You can be banned from even having a checking account for several years if you do this.

You can find even more on banking in France on my subscription website. Click here to visit www.France-Property-and-Life.com .