You are a business manager in France and you have bank accounts abroad, such as with N26, Wise or Revolut?
Did you know that you have an obligation to declare these accounts to the French tax authorities if you are established in France?
We'll explain it to you.
The obligation to declare bank accounts abroad
Since 2019, all French taxpayers are required to declare the bank accounts that they hold abroad , i.e. outside France.
This obligation applies to all types of bank accounts, whether personal or professional. Also affected are life insurance contracts and digital asset accounts .
When to report
Thus, accounts held in foreign banks, such as N26, Wise or Revolut, must be declared.
The declaration must be made every year.
It must be done no later than May 31 of the year following that for which the declaration must be filed.
What are the risks in the event of a breach?
If you do not respect this obligation, you first expose yourself to a fine of 1,500 euros per undeclared bank account.
But, if the French tax authorities discover that you failed to declare foreign bank accounts, you risk an additional fine of 10,000 euros.
Please note for individuals, an income tax reminder can be made over a period of 10 years for bank accounts that generate interest, dividends or capital gains, with an increase of up to 80%. .
The PayPal exception
On the other hand, PayPal users in France are not subject to this obligation. This is provided that their PayPal account is backed by another bank account opened in France.
This must only be used to make online payments or collections for an amount less than 10,000 euros.
The procedure to follow to declare bank accounts abroad
The declaration of foreign bank accounts is done online, on the impots.gouv.fr website.
If you are a professional , you must declare your foreign bank accounts in your annual income tax return.
If you are an individual , you must complete a specific declaration, declaration no. 3916. This declaration must be completed for each bank account held abroad .
Declaration No. 3916
To make this declaration, you must check box 8UU in the online income tax declaration and complete form no. 3916/3916 bis, or download and print this form in the case of a paper declaration.
The information to be provided is:
The first and last name of the account holder;
The address of the account holder;
The country in which the account is held;
The name and address of the bank;
The bank account number.
On the other hand, declaration no. 3916 does not allow the income generated by these bank accounts held abroad to be declared. To also declare this income, you must complete your traditional income tax return.
Get help!
So, yes, being up to date with your tax obligations is not always easy. So if you still have any questions or have any doubt, contact us !
Blendy , your 100% digital accounting firm supports companies and their managers with all their tax obligations, but also for the management of their remuneration, their assets, their cash flow.. . and more !
Contact us now to find out how we can help you sustain your business.
With Blendy , French digital accountant take advantage of digital accounting to accelerate your finance process and develop your business.
Pennylane , Dext , QuickBooks and Stripe experts, we support digital and IT service companies, e-Commerce, SaaS, SMBs, in France and internationally.