Hi, Can anyone help, I'm looking to open a bank account in France, in Euros, for a U.K Ltd company, Asked at my usual bank and they are unable/not interested in helping me. Does anyone have experience of doing this? thanks in advanceMartyn

Hi Martyn. I have no personal experience, but it might help to ask a firm that specialises in Business Advice such as ExAudit here : http://paris.angloinfo.com/af/31/paris-and-ile-de-france-business-services.html They will be able to give you the correct advice and probably even suggest a bank.

Good luck.

Rosa

rosalee - wise advice; tax implications need to be thought through with a professional - esp if you aim to penetrate the French market

dave is absolutely correct. If it's an English company, is it not feasible to open a euro account in your English bank?

Hi Marty and Mary,
Forget it; it isn't going to happen!
To have any sort of bank account in France (as per Banque de France) you need to be a person "moral or physique" that is to say an individual or a French registered business! No way around that! Even with a codicille no bank will touch you without a good reason as to why you need a French bank account.
Your best (and cheapest) option is to consider opening a "Bureau de Liaison" in France, assuming that you have someone resident here to act as "The Manager". Cost is less than €100 and takes less than a week.
This will give you a SIRET, allowing you to open a bank account in the name of the company BUT if you are planning to use this account to "cash French cheques and then draw/move the money" forget it!
A BDL doesn't allow you to raise invoices in France (legally). Banking in France is much more strictly regulated than in the UK.
PM if you need any help.
regards
Andrew

Hi,
I agree with Andrew. Extremely difficult to open a French bank account for a UK company.I own a French company, and it was difficult enough, to open a bank account, and it took weeks.
Why do you need this exactly?
I have a Euro account at Citibank London and all my European business was transacted though this account, without problem, even though I lived, and still live, in France.
regards
Brian

Hi Brian,
I think you've hit the nail on the head. I too keep my UK Ltd company for larger projects as I am registered an an Auto Entrepreneur in France. For these I invoice from the UK, by the UK company to be paid to my Euro account in the UK and everything works just fine. Of course I declare my dividends from the UK company on my French tax return but I save a fortune in Social Charges.
The only reasonfor someone to want to open a French bank account for a UK Ltd company (without being registered in France) is, in my experience, simply someone wanting to cash French cheques locally for a service "possibly" not declared in France, the very reason it is not possible to do so.
Warmest regards
Andrew JAMES