I was puzzled by a message received back from Wise when I tried to make a transfer on Christmas Eve from the UK to France. As you know, it normally takes only seconds. Instead the message advised that CA (Britline) had returned the transfer, and it would not be implemented until Monday 29th. I briefly cursed CA, until I read that this is due to the ECB’S settlement systems, including the SEPA inter-banking machinery, shutting down from Christmas Eve, as Christmas Day is followed by Boxing day (a bank holiday in many European countries, even if not in France)., followed by the weekend.Hence normal service is only resumed on Monday 29th. I didn’t know that the system basically closes down, thinking it was all automatised etc..Transfers within your bank are unaffected, as are instant transfers.
Warning about this is given by the European Central Bank (in September?) the year before…. and subsequently repeated in French Press as applicable. (Sud Ouest printed Noel/1st Jan reminder on 2nd December 2025…)
Reminder: 1st January is also affected….
It’s worth looking down the linked Sud Ouest article to note the affected days in 2026. 
Not very helpful in our brave new world of everything online …. I wonder whether it’s to do with the need for human intervention on large amount transfers being checked for money laundering etc, but then you would expect an upper limit to stop people getting stuck ‘mid transfer’ during the period.
Both articles linked above state that banks advise business customers, but there is no mention of advising individuals. I’ve certainly not been notified by CA, or NatWest. I also read the French press, including the business sections, every day and hadn’t seen any mention of it..I also made my pension transfer on Christmas Eve during the day, and yet it still got caught up in the (Christmas Day onwards) suspension of SEPA arrangements. I will certainly note the scenario for next year!
It was also on the national news here a few days before xmas eve warning people. Pays to watch the French news regularly you learn what is going on before it hits the press and social media.
Thanks for the heads up George. Have you noticed whether SO and DD have continued to be taken from your a/c? Or is everything paused?
I’ve had a Leclerc bill taken out of my account today. I’ve got another bill pending which is about the same as the amount I’ve got left in my account - this feels uncomfortable!
I heard it in French media. But Boursobank had an announcement on their app last time I logged into my account.
I don’t “listen” to anything, but I do check the headlines in Sud Ouest and Ouest France.
Both these daily papers (online and paper) give me a decent idea of the important stuff. and if I want purely “local”… other journals are readily available too.
It also helps me when chatting with my neighbours/friends and I can chime in with a suitable comment about blah blah blah.. or occasionally ask a pertinent question about a “hot” news item.. like “what is going on with blah blah blah ‘cos I can’t fathom it ?? ” and sometimes they reply “neither can I” and we all laugh. 
I’d recommend the French Daily Press to any foreigner. Taken at one’s own pace, it helps with the language and the understanding of French Life.
My Credit Agricole has a banner at the top of the page…
**
INFORMATION**
Nous vous informons que les échanges interbancaires seront fermés du 25 décembre au 28 décembre. Seuls les virements instantanés fonctionneront si la banque bénéficiaire est atteignable.
@George1 have you checked the “messages” section when you log-in? I’m presuming that Britline are just like my Regional CA ??
I’ve just done a transfer from my uk bank (Barclays) to Revolut and it worked as normal
Based on your experience Mark I thought it was worth trying. I too, have transferred money, via Wise, from my HSBC a/c in the UK to C/A here in France - no problem and very fast. (I breathe a sigh of relief.)
Maybe @George1 you were just unlucky - worth trying again? After all, it’s not a bank holiday here in France.
That is plain daft. Yes it’s a holiday period but people still need access to money.
People do have access to their money.
This BH Bank thingy is nothing new, simply that some of us (newcomers) are not sufficiently au fait with it all.
Everyone is informed through media/press etc etc.. of possible hiccups and Firms/employers reorganise payrolls etc etc… as might be necessary… individuals access their funds and all is well… 
Which is why it seems not to be true. As @Mark and I have found this morning. Transfers worked just fine.
The question is why is it a SEPA transfer - the “Instant” SEPA transfers aren’t affected and they’re the norm for individuals these days.
Wise usually defaults to Instant transfers (it says on the confirmation page Instant or not).
SEPA payments take 24 hours + anyway - but it’s odd they used the SEPA system rather than instant SEPA. (The SEPA system collects the days “transfers” and does a move at close of business - recieving bank does the same) - I think the actual money moves into holding accounts with SEPA - whereas instant just go direct
This has been on the Banque Pop home page for the last two weeks
important
Nous vous informons que du 25 au 28 décembre, les virements SEPA classiques ne seront traités que le 29 décembre pour cause de fermeture du système de règlement européen. Les virements instantanés ainsi que les virements internes entre vos comptes resteront disponibles pendant cette période.
Well, we’ve thrashed this about a bit and it’s clear that Banking stuff in France is something to watch out for
Well done @George1 for highlighting this for those who had missed the official blurb. Hopefully no-one had a real problem
and, here’s to a super 2026 with everyone prepared to do banking battle and win
I now understand. Yesterday tried to book a flight from Bordeaux to Gatwick using my C/A debit card (having forgotten this thread). Needless to say, it didn’t work, which was annoying as I’d gone through all the laborious stuff of choosing dates, times, seats, etc etc.
Pleased to say my HSBC UK bank account debit card DID work.