New laws and changes in France: June 2020
From contactless payment limits to driving school contracts, here are the new laws and changes to note this month.
1. Contactless payment limit increases
The maximum amount accepted for contactless card payments in France has risen from €30 to €50. The increase came into effect on May 11, as part of the government’s health measures to ease deconfinement after the Covid-19 lockdown. Individual banks may also set a maximum amount of cumulative contactless purchases for a given period (per day, week or month) as well as a maximum number of consecutive transactions allowed. Once the bank-set threshold has been reached, you must carry out a transaction using your PIN to reset your limits.
2. Driving school contract
New learner drivers in France will be required to sign a contract with their instructors from June 1. The contract details the financial conditions and training services and requires greater clarity between driving schools and pupils. It should make it easier to compare the services offered by the different driving schools and is intended to reduce the cost of the driving licence.
Read more: drivers using phones in France now risk losing licence
3. Coronavirus CT truce set to end in June
Drivers whose vehicles are due for a contrôle technique (MOT) are reminded to book their appointments quickly, as the coronavirus truce is due to end shortly. Tests are taking longer than usual due to health measures caused by the pandemic. The truce ends on June 23 – but one national CT firm has already called for it to be extended by another month to allow inspectors to cope with the backlog. Any driver whose car was due for its test after March 12 - the day after confinement began – will face no sanction if they are stopped by police on or before June 23. They are advised to get their vehicle booked in as soon as possible. The situation is expected to be exacerbated by stricter CT rules which came into force in May 2018. At the time, motorists rushed to get their cars tested to avoid the stricter rules – and their vehicles are now due to be tested again. The average wait for a test at an SGS centre is now 15 days, compared to just two before the coronavirus epidemic.
Read more: trained French dogs successfully sniff out coronavirus
