Many Société Générale customers to be charged additional fees from April

French bank Société Générale (SG) has unveiled more than 10 new fee increases for its banking services that are set to come into force from April 1.

In the newly-published tariff brochure, the retail banking branch of the company has announced increases ranging from 1.47% to 60%, for account fees, card fees, and other common banking costs.

Specific fee rises include:

• Account maintenance: 6.25% (from €28.80 to €30.60 per year)

• Bank card fees: Increase of €2 and €5, depending on the card, being a fee rise of 5.56% for the Visa card, 4.17% for a Visa Classic, 2.82% for Visa Premier or Gold Mastercard, and 1.47% for Visa Infinite.

• Bank fee to have a bank agent reissue a card’s PIN: 60% (from €5 to €8). It remains free for those who do it themselves via the website or banking app

• Rejection fee for cheques: From €12.50 to €15 (increase of €20%)

Read more: French banks criticised for excessive fees for bounced payments 

Preferential international transaction rates extended

There is some good news for those making international transactions, however. 

Preferential rates for foreign transactions were previously reserved for holders of the JAZZ / Sobrio package. They are now accessible to all customers aged 16 and over, with the exact rates dependent on their package.

• Initial: €11 per month (€10 for Sobrio or JAZZ holders), offers exemption from commissions on six payments and two withdrawals outside the eurozone each month

• Intense: €18.50 (€17.50 for Sobrio or JAZZ), extends this exemption to all payments and withdrawals outside the eurozone. 

• Unlimited: €26 (€25 for Sobrio or JAZZ), also includes occasional and permanent non-SEPA transfers (outside the eurozone).

In addition: 

• Students under the age of 30: €3 per month (or €2 with Sobrio), with benefits equivalent to the Unlimited level

• People aged 18-24, not students: 50% discount 

• People aged 25-29, not students: 20% discount with Sobrio or JAZZ. 

One reduction 

The only reduction in fees announced by SG is for instant transfers made on the app or website. These are now free (they were previously €0.80). 

This change was imposed on SG as credit institutions are now required to align the price of all transfers, instant or not.

Banking criticism

The fee increases come less than a year after SG was found - in a study by consumer group 60 Millions de Consommateurs - to be “one of the three worst banks in France” for factors including excess bank charges, gender pay gaps, transparency, and the funding of environmentally-dubious projects.

BNP Paribas and Crédit Agricole were also included.

SG rated particularly badly for the pay gap between managers and employees. For example, at the time, CEO Slawomir Krupa was found to be earning 45 times the average annual pay of the company’s staff.

The study found that “smaller banks such as Crédit Coopératif and Crédit Mutuel Arkéa had a better score” in almost all areas reviewed.

Read also: Updated: more of your feedback on French banks 

Not all the major banks scored badly. Crédit Mutuel, for example, notably received average scores (as opposed to low ones) in almost all areas.

SG also received criticism last year for introducing new admin fees of up to €300 a year on second-home owners and other non-resident account holders.

New ATMs

In better news, SG is one of four banks (with the others being BNP Paribas, CIC, and Crédit Mutuel) involved in helping to roll out shared cash machines in rural areas to better serve places that may not have any other ATM options.

The project, dubbed ‘Cash Services’, is set to see the installation of ‘brand free’ ATMs (distributeurs automatiques de billets, DAB, in French) in neighbourhoods and rural communities that may not have had any previous cash machine provision.

The ATMs are expected to begin operating over the course of 2025, after two years of testing and development