Just done a quick search : Google 1000 Euros en liquide.

Yes, there does seem to be something going on, but you should've been able to withdraw such amount against your account with either your card and/or your cheque book. Maybe, they couldn't satisfy your ask because of "local" rules, ie not holding that much cash to hand over to a single individual.

But worth keeping an eye on what's going on there ....

hils

 

I followed up on Hils' suggestion and yes, what is going on is that they are lowering the amount that can be paid in cash. Used to be that any payment over 3000€ had to be by some "traceable" method of payment (i.e. cheque, credit card, wire transfer - something that leaves a record of who paid what to who and why). This limit is now being lowered to 1000€.

If you take money out of your account using your carte bleue (or bank card) you're normally limited to 350€ a day, or in a single withdrawal. And if you check with your bank, there may also be a limit on a single transaction payment made with your CB. I ran into this one time when buying something online. The limit at the time was 3000€ unless you had made prior arrangements with your bank for a higher amount.

I would suspect that the new, lower limit might actually apply to single CB transactions, too.

It's all part of the worldwide anti-money laundering provisions.
Cheers,
Bev

 

I followed up on Hils' suggestion and yes, what is going on is that they are lowering the amount that can be paid in cash. Used to be that any payment over 3000€ had to be by some "traceable" method of payment (i.e. cheque, credit card, wire transfer - something that leaves a record of who paid what to who and why). This limit is now being lowered to 1000€.

If you take money out of your account using your carte bleue (or bank card) you're normally limited to 350€ a day, or in a single withdrawal. And if you check with your bank, there may also be a limit on a single transaction payment made with your CB. I ran into this one time when buying something online. The limit at the time was 3000€ unless you had made prior arrangements with your bank for a higher amount.

I would suspect that the new, lower limit might actually apply to single CB transactions, too.

It's all part of the worldwide anti-money laundering provisions.
Cheers,
Bev

Is this per account or per account holder? If it is a joint account, can two people do a total of 700€ per day? By the way, are there any laws that govern how much cash you can keep at home? Warm regards!

 

Re bank withdrawals, my CB is good for 550E/week. If I need more, I can ask for a "carte retrait immediat" (up to 900E a time), in several multiples if necessary.

When I withdrew 80K in cash to pay for the chalets, it wasn't a problem, but I had to alert the bank in advance to ensure they had the cash available, and when I went to collect it, it was in banded notes in a bank hessian pouch.

No questions ...

hils

 

Blimey

 

Hi,
The regulation that they have made is that any goods or services over 1000€ have to be paid by cheque or card. This is obviously aimed at the "black" economy. The bank refusing a withdrawal of over 1000€ seems to me to be an example of "jobsworthism". If this is indeed the governments intention, then it is one more indication of France's degeneration into a soviet style authoritarianism.

 

I dunno, Parsnips, maybe it's just that we live in an area where the bank branches are all "small" branches, but asking for a withdrawal of 1000€ would require some advanced notice and it could be that the branch manager just doesn't want to bother.

My bank has set up an area of several sorts of bank machines in the lobby, which is available to the public pretty much all hours. Inside the bank itself, there are signs up declaring that the bank staff have no access to cash (intended to ward off potential robberies, I guess). Withdrawals, deposits, making change, all that cash stuff you have to do at one of the machines in the lobby. The bank itself is only for meeting with your conseiller or doing other non-cash type stuff.
Cheers,
Bev

 

They used to have those all-singing, all-dancing bank machines here, too. But after a series of really "interesting" robberies of the Brinks trucks that serviced the machines (putting new money in, and taking deposited money and checks out), they "dumbed down" the machines.

The regular bank machines only give out cash, or charge up your mobile phone card. To make a deposit now, you use your preprinted deposit slips (if you have them) or fill out a slip and stick it with the deposit in an envelope that goes into a special box. You're not supposed to deposit cash, I don't think. (And with the "crossed checks" used here, robbers don't really have much interest in stealing checks.)

The plan seems to have worked, though. You don't get nearly as many attempts on the bank machines as you used to get. Now, they have to concentrate on the Brinks trucks directly. (Um, I guess that's "progress"??)
Cheers,
Bev

 

Where I go to shop I get cash from a BNP Paribas machine. I love it. A little man bobs up and "speaks" to me in English if a UK card, or French if French card. He happily bobs along, is extremely polite, apologies for the delay and even asks me If I would like small value notes. I know I need to get a life...

 

This does make buying & selling second hand things very difficult, as cheques over €1k make people nervous and transfers to unknown particuliers would be daft.
Oh well, these sorts of restriction are bound to help the economy enormously and have the money launderers pooping in their pants. Bolly all round at the palais.

 

Actually, cheques for anything make people nervous. It's incredibly easy to "oppose" a cheque (up to at least a year after you wrote it) and recover the money (as long as you lie about it having being nicked or lost in the post), and then it's up to the vendor to commence legal proceedings to get it back.

A "virement" can't be recovered in this way, and neither can "prelevements".

With all this electronic stuff going on, I find it increasingly attractive to pay in, and accept only cash. Don't care if it's over a Grand; if it's cash, it works for me. 10 or more years ago I used to pay everything by card/cheque/direct debit. I don't do it now. If even there's a dispute on a Utilities bill, you can't do anything about not paying it if it's going out on a RIB or "prelevement"; you have to get engaged in some kind of undoubtedly long-winded exchange of correspondence (all sent LRAR, which of course costs money as well, so you might just as well pay up and grit your teeth ).

hils

 

The one thing that I noticed when I arrived in France, that really surprised me was how many people paid with their debit cards and checks while back in the States, most folks paid with cash or cards...very few places accept checks. Warm regards!

 

I'm not really a credit card person because I tend to buy small stuff and cash is easier - also, bric-a-brac and places that are volunteer. I took cash into one association this week and was told I would have to bring in a cheque. It's the first time it's happened. The silly thing is the original inscription was 45 euros and then changed to 50 - so they had everybody coming in with 5 euro cheques. Ain't life grand!

 

It's standard practice in most associations (run by volunteers) to only accept payment by cheque. Saves the hassle for the volunteers of having to protect and tally up a cash box, and provides a trail for the treasurer to properly record all monies received by the association.

It is kind of a hassle for the members of the association, I realize, because for something like the AVF, where new arrivals have yet to open a checking account.
Cheers,
Bev

 

I was thinking about the whole cheque/carte bleu/cash thing only just this morning. It's a bit of a weird 'system' here in France, you never can tell what will be acceptable in a given establishment. My regular doc will only take carte bleu and refuses cash, the same in other places I've been to, while others will take cash but not card. When it comes to a cheque I'm amazed at where and when people use these. I've seen people in supermarkets holding up queues while paying by cheque for something costing a few euro, seems absurd. I'm not anti-cheque, in fact I find them useful in certain circumstances. As a nouvelle arrivant I was a bit worried when I discovered the RIB, for personal security reasons something like this isn't used in UK or Ireland and people have tighter control over direct debits. The sceptic in me opted for cheques to pay my rent, rather than the more usual methods of payment. Works great, until you run out of stamps to post them and the staff at the post office can't decide which stamp is the correct one.....

 

Firefly, you're lucky your doctor takes CB at all. Most of the doctors around here accept only cash or cheques (due to the administrative fees for taking CB).

France has lost zillions in tax money (mostly VAT) due to the French use of cash, and it's no big surprise that the government is doing everything it can to move folks to "traceable" forms of payment for everything possible.
Cheers,
Bev

 

Interesting. In this case, it was through the Mairie which changed the rules but forgot to tell anyone. C'est la France!

 

As an aside, I found out the most ridiculous thing at the tabac this week regarding payment by carte bleu. If it's under 20 euros you don't need to enter your code, it's all done by 'wifi' so if your card's got the wifi sign on it - which the new ones do ie ))))) the amount just gets deducted automatically if the shop has the compatible machine. Scary stuff. So if you lose your card anyone can go into as many shops as possible, buy stuff up to the value of 20 euros (if you've got the latest card and the shop's into the system) and you can do nothing about it. Likewise, if anyone 'dodgy' is hanging around your house they can take your card and do the same thing.

How ridiculous and bloody stupid is that for the latest brainwave? I just hope this doesn't hit facebook or many people are going to be hiding their cards, that's for sure. "Hey guess what guys, you can nick your parents' cards to get your **** or booze and if it's under 20 euros you don't need their code". Marvellous.

 

I don't know if the French banks will do this but it was possible with the UK (Barclays) to request a card without the 'wifi'. I'm also surprised by how popular cheques are in France - and I'm sure Bev is right in that it save small enterprises from using cash (change etc). The nurse who comes to take blood samples will only accept a cheque and it is only €8.00. Last time I was in the UK I noticed how many places had signs saying "No cheques".

All very confusing

 

I wasn't given the choice Just my card was cancelled (wrong number 3 x in an enterprise) and when the new one arrived it had the wifi sign on it. I've used it at the local shop under 20 euros and still need to enter my code - the first time this happened to me was at the tabac who have clearly updated their machine. I think it's REALLY scary ...

Oh, and I've been using the same tabac for 8 years and get on well with the proprietors but when I showed my amazement at this they just said 'it's the new thing and if your card gets taken we are obliged to accept it without any ID.'

 

It is scary - I recall when this idea was first mooted there was much consternation about hackers being able to read the cards using simple equipment. And it is possible to extract the PIN by doing that - there are three bands on the mag stripe and one contains your PIN. I suppose it would be possible to zap the wifi bit but I wouldn't know where to start.

The conspiracy theorists also think this is a bad idea because it would be relatively easy to track your every movement with suitable RFD equipment

 

You're right, Garonne - this is really scary. And, thanks for the heads up. Such a thing would just not occur to me.

 

This actually sounds like it's just an offshoot of the old "Monéo" cards that were combined with the CB several years ago. France was about the last European country to go with the "electronic wallet" thing, and (as usual?) the fees related to the system put most people off it altogether. For a while, though, you HAD to have the Monéo feature activated on your card if you wanted to use certain parking meters in Paris.

Monéo was that deal where you charged up your card with a fixed amount - usually no more than about 50€ - and then ran it off like cash, without having to sign for anything or use your PIN. I have never seen a merchant who takes them, but apparently they are still in existence and you can opt to have the Monéo feature on your CB. Moneo ? | Moneo

In the States, you apparently no longer need to sign or give a PIN for purchases under some amount - and if you pay for your gasoline/petrol with a credit card, there's no PIN or other verification required. Has been that way at the gas pumps for several years now - and it always throws me.

I should add that my current US credit card has some sort of wifi or other thing where I'm supposed to be able to just wave the card at "suitably equipped merchants" and it registers my purchases. I suppose I'll test that out on my next visit over there somehow.
Cheers,
Bev

 

In the States, you apparently no longer need to sign or give a PIN for purchases under some amount - and if you pay for your gasoline/petrol with a credit card, there's no PIN or other verification required. Has been that way at the gas pumps for several years now - and it always throws me.

Cheers,
Bev

Hi Bev,

I never saw that and I only left California 2 years ago - always had to enter a PIN or a Zip code to verify the card. Very few US credit cards have chip & pin technology - hence the zip code verification - at least when I left - but Citigroup was talking about adding chip & pin. One of the big issues trying to us a US credit card in France was the lack of chip & pin.

Cheers

 

I think Barclaycard has been promoting the WiFi cards in the UK for a year or so, which I thought a good idea. I hadn't thought of the ramifications Garonne brought up; will be wary about where my cards are.

hils

 

I still have a Barclays bank account in the UK so have checked my debit card. It states on it Contactless enabled. Just checked the website and here is the spiel:

"Imagine being able to buy those little things like a cup of coffee, sandwich or newspaper without carrying cash.

Contactless technology lets you do just that. It sets you free to make fast and secure payments for items of £20 or less. All you need to do is hold your card near the reader and you're ready to go."

I must say I do like the rechargeable smart card idea. When we lived in Hong Kong, we had Octopus cards and never had any problems. It was easy to use especially for the tunnel charges and small items - you also built up loyalty points. If I remember it was linked also to my credit card and so my then teenage son had his own and I could easily track what he was up to!

 

The chipped cards in N. Am. have an option of a 4 - 7 digit pin. So if you have any friends or family planning to visit, tell them to be sure to choose a 4 digit pin because anything longer will not work here.

 

I'm not even sure about that, because I've heard some reports that say that the chip in the North American cards isn't in the "right" position on the card to work in French bank machines. (Don't know about that for sure, but it does sound rather "typical" for this kind of cross-pond compatibility.)
Cheers,
Bev

 

I don't know about US ones, Bev, but my Can. one works like a charm. (and it was indeed a sad day for the Can. banking industry when I discovered that!)

 

The news has carried many stories about some of the terrible things that airport security in the US has done to its own American citizens flying on internal continental flights. ...and the US hasn't been the only one guilty of this. It has made alot of people cautious about flying at all - so maybe there's some pressure being put on by the airlines to change the standards a bit. Perhaps?

 

The decision was made by the TSA. Most of the airlines do not agree with this decision. Honestly, I am sad to say that even though the media reports these terrible issues, the staff of TSA continue to use very poor judgement.

My sister travels during certain months 50% of the time. She applied and was accepted into the Safe Traveler Program. She had a formal interview, paid a fee, had her fingerprints scanned and was issued a card. The lady who did the interview told her she needed to get another card from TSA directly, which was over and above what she was getting under this program. My sister contacted the TSA and was told she didn't need to do anything further and at any time, TSA could and would subject her to the same inspection as anyone not enrolled in this program. So it only proves that the government still doesn't have their act together. One other thought...a person can do huge damages setting a plane on fire with a Zippo lighter compared to a knife. Both are now accepted. Just a thought. "Warm regards"!

 

It was just an idle thought.

I travelled alot on business too, all across the US and Canada, so I can understand your sister being absolutely flabbergasted at the situation. It does seem as if there are still some left hand doesn't know...situations out there.

I remember about 10 years ago, someone had the bright idea to ask all travellers if they had been fingerprinted in the past. On one trip, I hit 2 Cdn airports and 6 US ones and I was asked at every stop. Since I had been fingerprinted 3 times, all quite legitimate situations to do with both American and Canadian security clearances for work, it had to be explained over and over. And since alot of large corporations routinely fingerprint people, I assume that it was a no win because they stopped that after about 3 months.

My point is that there's alot of scrambling out there to come up with a solution to the problem, hence alot of ideas are tried out to see what works. I don't have any problem with the concept but I do have some problems with the practical application - and the kind of people who are put in charge of the practical application.

 

No problem with Australian cards.