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Friday, 07 March 2008 |
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I have been having real banking problems since my arrival in
France on January 29. The following is a recent example.
I arranged to transfer €30,000 from Abbey National in the
UK to my French account with Banque Tarneaud. I provided
the bank with all of the correct information and expected a
normal two-to-three day turnaround. A week later, the funds
had still not arrived. I contacted Banque Tarneaud and they
said the delay was due to Abbey sending the funds in pounds
instead of euros. Following investigations by Abbey National,
it was confirmed that the funds (sent in euros!) were
transferred to Banque Tarneaud's international clearing
department on January 1.
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Friday, 07 March 2008 |
There are many millions of pounds slurping around in
'forgotten bank accounts' in the UK; accounts, which have not
been touched for 15 years or more. The good news is that
they can be recovered before Gordon Brown gets his hands
on them. A website has been set up to help savers find their
lost cash.
The British Bankers Association (BBA), the Building
Societies Association (BSA) and National Savings &
Investments (NS&I) came together and set up
www.mylostaccount.org.uk - the first free, ‘one-stop shop’
website to trace forgotten funds. For the first time, people are
able to trace cash in 59 building societies, 42 banks and
NS&I including Post Office savings accounts.
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Friday, 07 March 2008 |
We have a problem in Pyrénées-Orientales: the tax office at
Céret (a sub-office to Perpignan) insists that CRDS is payable
on pension.income. They say this applies even to UK
residents in France who, although tax paying in France, are
over 65 and in possession of an E121. The European Court of
Justice ruling of February 2000 says that under those
circumstances, because the UK DSS pays an annual
contribution to the French Health Service on our behalf, we
do not need to pay.
I have now been informed by the local conciliator, after
14 months of correspondence, that I should not have paid
these contributions for the last two years and that they will
now be refunded with interest.
D I Plastow
Virginie Deflassieux (French Tax Manager from PKF
Limited in Guernsey) comments on the issue:
As far as I know, the situation has not changed, and the levy
of the CSG and CRDS on foreign salaries or foreign pensions
is subject to the two following conditions:
• tax residence in France
• health cover under a French social security regime.
Individuals covered by E121 forms do not fulfil the
second condition and therefore, their foreign pensions should
be exempt from the CSG and CRDS for as long as these
continue to be treated as “social” charges and not income tax.
I must stress, however, that the CSG, CRDS and PS
(totaling 11%) still apply to foreign dividends, interest
and investment gains or increase in value on foreign bonds,
life insurance, policies etc.
Unfortunately, as is the case here, there continue to be
discrepancies depending on the region. All cases presented to
French tax specialists have been about the CRDS only, as it is
dealt with by the tax authorities.
So far, the CRDS claims have given rise to refunds and
cancellations of further charges on foreign pensions (when
the above conditions applied). However, refund claims in
respect of CSG charges wrongly levied by the URSSAF have
to be addressed to the URSSAF directly.
For more professional advice, contact Virginie Deflassieux at
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Friday, 07 March 2008 |
Dear French News,
I have just read an article in the February issue of ‘French
News’ entitled “UK pensions boost for older women”.
I rang the pensions office in England and was told to ring
the overseas office. I contacted them and was told that they
had been inundated with enquiries about this but they have no
information and have had no directive from the government.
What is Steve Webb doing? Is this political kite flying or
does he know something that no one else does? Maybe you
could contact Mr Webb and find out what he has to say.
Mrs M. Cobb
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Friday, 07 March 2008 |
Don’t let your home move make you frown: Jeanne Livingstone gives a few pointers to help keep the blood pressure down.
Moving house is said to be one of
the most stressful of life’s
activities, so try and cut down
the hassle by thinking well ahead and
planning carefully. You will presumably
have already checked out and approved
of the schools, services and activities in
your new area, otherwise you wouldn’t
be going there, would you?
Six months before
Decide on the moving date, especially if
it’s during a holiday period, make an
estimate of the volume of your goods
and chattels. It might be useful to know
that a standard moving box is 0.1m3, a
double bed 1.4m3 and a washing
machine 0.5m3. Don’t forget the attic,
basement and garage or workshop (these
last two can be a nightmare of bits and
pieces) and all those cupboards.
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