Au Revoir, Franc! Hello, Euro!

Despite popular scepticism and rampant rumours to the contrary, the Euro is here...well, almost. We've still got a few months before it's bye bye to our old pal Franc (and his centime sidekick). Here's a rundown of all you'll need to know about the Euro, handy if you plan on coming to Europe, and of course, to sound intelligent at your next cocktail party.

The Euro is already used for cheques and other 'intangible' financial transactions. I've got a Euro cheque book and a Franc one, and for the moment I can use either. Everywhere in France the prices are posted in both Francs and Euros (be careful with this, because sometimes the Euro is in larger type, and you don't want to screw that up when you have to pay). From December 14 this year, you'll be able to get a sample of the currency at banks, the 'Euro kit', but you can't use it anywhere just yet. Come January 1, 2002, the actual Euro bills and coins will be floating around and we'll have until February 16 to use up our Francs in stores. During this transition period, if you pay in Francs you'll receive change in Euros. (Life will probably pass before your eyes as long queues form anywhere anyone has to pay for something) After that, the only place to exchange old Francs for Euros will be at the bank or post office.

Francs can be exchanged in any bank or post office for free up until June 30, 2002. If you end up finding an old crumpled 500ff note in a pair of jeans six years from now (happens to you all the time, eh?), you can still exchange it at the Banque de France until 2012 (for free until Feb. 17, 2005). After that, you've got a relic. So when you arrive in the new year, get some Euros ASAP, Traveler's Cheques are already available, but don't panic if you only have Francs. Beware of scams that always happen, especially when new money is minted. Counterfeits will be everywhere, and the fact that no one yet knows exactly what the money looks like (just a general idea), then I don't recommend doing the ol' black market currency exchange on the back roads. Get one of those cheap Euro converters that are everywhere now and keep it handy. And make sure if you buy something with your Visa card for 250 Francs, that the 'FF' symbol is on the bill before you sign it or on the machine before you enter your PIN, and not the '€' symbol (this has, alas, already been happening to unsuspecting tourists AND residents). There are bound to be honest miscalculations, so even if you're not used to the French Franc, you'll be able to compare the Euro conversion to the listed Franc price (they'll both be listed until July, officially, but probably longer than that in most shops).

Go To Page: 1 2 3

Articles in this Topic    Discussions in this Topic