Thank you, will have a read
Unfortunately, we had a supposedly low-risk assurance portfolio that began haemorrhaging money when Putin invaded Ukraine. By the time we were able to close it there was a couple of thousand euros less in the account than when we’d opened it.
Yes, you can open NS&I savings bonds as a French resident. You must already have a UK current account with a bank or building society to act as a feeder account.
But of course the BoE just cut interest rates today so no doubt NS&I rates will come down too.
I personally wouldn’t bother shuffling money back and forth between France & the UK. Only send it to NS&I if you’re happy to leave it in the UK.
Have you thought of sueing him? Surely you could do better than Trump. 
There might be a very long queue…
These types of investment are expected to be long term, not short. Global events like Ukraine or Covid will always cause uncertainty in any market.
The same happened when i transferred all my UK pension pots into a QROP weeks before the Covid pandemic. I then had to watch the pot diminish by nearly 50%, it did recover and since then has returned good results.
Yes my main private pension pot (which at the time was biased towards US investments) dropped about 13% in value in March and April this year when Trumpy-boy announced his tariffs.
It’s gone back up since thankfully, either because the US has got used to the silliness or because TP’s investment managers have moved my money into penguin futures! 
I also lost some on a “low risk” investment but it has come back to just above the amount that which was invested.
My fiat currency investment has grown at a steady 2-2.5%.
May I ask, why not? You would get an exchange rate that’s pretty good at the moment (It’s not so good for those of us wanting to exchange the other way!).
You’d have to factor in exchange fees to see if it’s worth it.
Wise would charge €969 to exchange €250k to sterling.
If you get in quick before they reduce the rates, NS&I would pay 4.18% on a 1 year bond.
So £215,589 x 4.18% =£9,011.62
Less French tax & social charges. 30% if you opt for the flat tax.
£9011.62 x 30% =£2,703.49
Leaving you with 9011.62 - 2703.49 = £6,308.13 net.
Less more exchange fees if you then bring it back to France.
But then you have the risk of exchange rates moving against you if you want to bring the money back to France.
That is scandalous charge for exchange, contact an exchange broker. I moved a lot more than that from Switzerland for ~€200. The bank wanted to charge me 2.5%.
I agree wise is not great. 0.45% standard, 200 odd discount on @Helenochka 's example. 200€ on more than 250K is excellent at 0.08% (250K) , unless they were not offering spot market rates?
If they were, perhaps you might care to share your broker details - please feel free to PM them!
Edit, PS - serious enquiry - I’m in the market for a 100k odd euro
PPS if you don’t want to share, I perfectly understand and no problem!
Hi there,
Thanks for sharing, and sorry to hear about the rental experience. You are definitely not alone in facing that kind of challenge.
In terms of where to invest the €250k proceeds, it really depends on a number of key factors. What are you looking to achieve? When will you need access to the funds? Does inheritance tax planning matter to you? That could influence whether tax wrappers like assurance vie are suitable. Are you planning to stay in France for the long term? These all play an important role in finding the right approach.
That said, many French residents do look towards assurance vie as a solution. This is largely due to its favourable tax treatment, its benefits for inheritance planning, and the flexibility it offers. You can hold a wide range of investments within it, including low-risk options like cash or money market funds, which may suit you if capital protection is a priority.
If you are considering NS&I, it is worth knowing a few things. You must have a UK bank or building society account in your name to make or receive payments. They will only transact through UK accounts.
Also, it is important to remember that UK investments like premium bonds and ISAs must still be declared in France. Some expats assume these do not need to be reported, but under today’s global exchange of information rules, local tax authorities are informed about your UK holdings. So be sure to declare everything correctly on your annual French tax return.
All the best,
George
Have a look at Avenue des investisseurs. It’s in French but explains everything very clearly.
Jofang states in their opening post that it “must be risk free”.
It’s amazing how many banks / conseillers just don’t hear you when you say this and proceed to try to persuade you to invest rather than save.
Yes, there’s a risk if you stick your money in a savings account it’ll be eroded by inflation. But that’s more of a certainty than a risk.
There are times in a person’s life when for whatever reason they just want a wad of cash lying in a nice safe boring bank account. Why is it so hard to get that message across? Maybe because there’s nothing in it for the person trying to sell you an investment product? Or maybe because increasingly we seem to live in a world where people don’t listen properly, so we’re constantly on the receiving end of generic replies to questions we didn’t ask?
Mind you, I see Jofang entitled their post “Investment”. Given that they want zero risk, that should probably read “Savings”.
Here’s the link to the CIC account I mentioned. The rates are much lower than when I took mine out but still better than nothing, if your Livrets A etc are full.
https://www.cic.fr/fr/particuliers/epargne/compte-a-terme.html
Risk free is difficult in France; my partner and I both took out an LEP (ceiling 10k) and a Livret A (ceiling 22,950) in our own names, although if you have too much you’ll quickly reach the ceiling. I have life insurance, but that’s a big non event. My partner had a reasonable amount invested with an investment company in Paris, and that did okay most years, but there was an element of risk. Her own Nan lost half her considerable savings in 2008, and with the way things were going when Covid first hit, I suggested she took it out and put it in bricks and mortar. Although it has its own set of problems, for a bit more hassle it does pay more, and the value of the asset has increased over the past few years.
As long as you understand the downside, see my warning elsewhere, if one of you dies their LEP is frozen 'till the succession is worked out. Can take 10 years I am told.
Yes and at least with a little house you can always go and live in it if necessary.
Re savings accounts, I agree the rates in France are pretty crap now. But sometimes you might just want a pile of cash because you’re planning to buy a house in the next couple of years. Or send Frogmella to university. Or because you’re sick to death of everything being complicated, don’t actually care if the money gets eroded by inflation and just want to keep things simple.