How to make a Société Générale transfer: costs and deadlines

Personal finance

Société Générale international transfer: Deadline and costs

You want to make an international transfer with Société Générale ? You will find in this article everything you need to know: the procedure to be taken, the costs to be expected, the waiting time for the transfer to the beneficiary’s account as well as the possible alternatives.

• The cost of a transfer depends on several factors: the place of the transaction (online/in agency), the country to which you make the transfer (SEPA zone/excluding SEPA zone) and the possible sharing of costs (Share, Our).
• For a delivery in foreign currency, you will pay direct costs (those indicated by Société Générale), but also an indirect overload linked to the increase in the rate of exchange rate.
• The deadline for a SEPA transfer is 24 hours maximum. Excluding SEPA zone, the delay is complicated to provide.

Choose the best banking offer !

If you often go abroad consult our comparison of the best banking offers. Different criteria such as the costs applied to withdrawals from foreign currencies are included !

• You can make your transfer online (from the Société Générale site or application), or in an agency with the help of an advisor.
• To send you will provide: IBAN + BIC Swift code of the recipient, its name & first name, or even its address and the reason for the transaction.
• To lower the cost of the operation, you can go through an alternative payment system like Wise. You will take advantage of the interbank rate on conversion and a very competitive price grid.

How to make an international transfer with Société Générale ?

To transfer funds abroad to Société Générale, you have 2 choices:

Online: via your internet browser or the mobile application.
In agency: an advisor will fill out the form for you.

Make an online international transfer

In Société Générale, you can do online transfers, via your personal space or the mobile application.

Whatever the country you send, you will first have to register the beneficiary. Go to your personal space, click on the international transfer tab, then between the recipient’s contact details and confirms your request.

Finally, when Société Générale has validated the beneficiary, you can make the transaction.

Attention : To make a transfer outside SEPA zone, you must subscribe to the remote bank subscription (free). In addition, you must activate your safety pass. It is a virtual key that replaces the sending of SMS to validate risk operations.

Send money from a Société Générale agency

If you have not subscribed to the remote bank service, you have to go to the agency to make the transfer. The advisor will ask you for several information:

Recipient IBAN number + SWIFT/BIC code of its bank
Name and first name of the beneficiary
Proof of identity

Please note: to make a transfer to a country where currency flows are monitored, the recipient’s bank will ask to know the reason for the transaction. If it is not indicated on the transfer order, the funds will be blocked and then returned to your account.

What costs for an international transfer with Société Générale ?

At Société Générale, online separate transfers are free. On the other hand, you will pay a commission if you have the operation in agency by an advisor.

The outside sepa zone transfers are paid. The costs are complex and complicated to provide.

The SEPA zone is made up of the 28 countries of the European Union, to which are added Iceland, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, Norway, Monaco and Saint-Marin.

Transfers in separate zone

Two main types of SEPA transfers are offered to Société Générale:

Occasional: sending of punctual money (payment for a product/service, etc.))
Permanent: transfers made at regular intervals (rent, subscription, etc.))

The price grid applying to transfers in the SEPA zone is as follows:

In agency	By Internet
Outgoing occasional transfer	5 €	Free
Outgoing permanent transfer	1.5 €	Free
Reception of an occasional/permanent transfer	Free	Free

Source: Individuals.Societe Generale.FR, 03/21

Here are some details on the separate transfers carried out with the Société Générale:

Outgoing online transfers are limited to 4.000 €. If you want to send a larger amount, you will have to contact your advisor.

For occasional SEPA transfers made in agency, you will have 15 € additional costs if the IBAN you provide is incorrect.

Permanent transfers are only possible for French accounts. On the other hand, current 2021, they will be accessible to the entire SEPA zone.

Assesses the different costs that banks set up for international transfers !

Online banks often have more interesting pricing in terms of transfers outside France, does not hesitate to use our comparison to make the right choice.

Sea -free transfers

As soon as you transfer money outside the SEPA area, the bank’s pricing grid becomes complex. Depending on the case, the following costs will apply:

TRAGE/LAKATION COST : what the bank invoices you to send or release funds.

Exchange commission : percentage which is added to the fixed costs and the increase in the exchange rate. The exchange committee is mentioned on the Société Générale pricing grid, but its percentage is not indicated.

Currency increase : Société Générale applies its own exchange rate in the event of conversion. You will have a loss in relation to the “real exchange rate”. You will therefore pay indirect costs on the transfer.

Correspondent fees : in some cases, the money you send must pass through another bank before arriving at that of the recipient. The third -party institution will charge you to pay the transfer.

Regarding the payment of costs, you can choose between 2 types of sharing:

Share: the recipient and the sender share the costs. For a sending to a country of the European Economic Area (EEE), you have to choose this option, whether the transaction is made in euros or in foreign currency.

OUR: the costs are the responsibility of the sender. This option makes it possible to make sure that the desired sum is doing well at your destination, without being reduced by costs (which you will wear on your own).

To send out outside the SEPA zone online, here is what you will have to pay:

TRAINING NO SEPA Vire online	Share	Our
Transfer ≤ 500 €	9 €	9 € + 20 €
Transfer> € 500	13 €	13 € + 20 €

Source: Individuals.Societe Generale.FR, 03/21

For an agency transfer, the costs are higher:

Transfer program not separate in agency	Share	Our
Transfer ≤ 500 €	13 €	13 € + 20 €
Transfer> € 500	0.10% of the amount (min. 26 € / max. 70 €)	0.10% of the amount (min. 26 € / max. 70 €) + 20 €

Source: Individuals.Societe Generale.FR, 03/21

Société Générale offers various international options (accessible to sobrio holders). Most being limited to card payments and withdrawals abroad, the “unlimited” option at 25 €/month includes international transfers. The option allows an exemption from Société Générale commissions on all occasional non -separate transfers issued and received. For students under 30, this offer is € 2/month.

In reception, the price grid of a transfer outside SEPA zone is as follows:

Reception not separate transfer	Reception fees
Transfer ≤ 150 €	Free
Transfer> € 150	22 €

Source: Individuals.Societe Generale.FR, 03/21

The international transfer with Wise: an alternative to Société Générale

Wise is an operator that allows funds to be transferred abroad at very competitive prices. The commission applied by Wise is low and above all it is known upstream of the operation.

The intermediaries are eliminated, so there are no hidden or unpredictable costs. The process is considerably accelerated.

Unlike Société Générale, the platform uses the interbank rate on conversions into currencies, without any increase. You will therefore pay no indirect costs.

Take the example of a transfer of 1.000 € to the United States:

Transfer of € 1000 to the United States	Société Générale (online)	Wise
Costs	€ 13 (emission costs)	€ 1.06 + 0.41% of the sum sent
Exchange rate	Increased	Interbank exchange rate without increase
Total	13 € + Impact of exchange rate increase + possible commissions of the corresponding bank or that of the beneficiary	€ 5.14 (guaranteed without further commission or increase)

Source: Individuals.Societe Generale.fr, wise.com/fr, 03/21

To make an international transfer in currencies, while using your bank account, simply uses Wise service. You thus avoid increased exchange rates, as well as unpleasant surprises in terms of costs. In addition, you can know in advance the amount of the costs that will have taken you. No bad surprise !

• Market exchange rate without increase
• No hidden fees, they are announced to you upstream transparently
• The Peer-to-Peer system allows you to save considerable savings compared to a conventional transfer
• French -speaking customer service reachable by chat, email and telephone
• Regulated by the FCA, the English Authority for the Regulation of the Financial Markets

To make an international transfer in currencies, while using your bank account, simply uses Wise service. You thus avoid increased exchange rates, as well as unpleasant surprises in terms of costs. In addition, you can know in advance the amount of the costs that will have taken you. No bad surprise !

• Market exchange rate without increase
• No hidden fees, they are announced to you upstream transparently
• The Peer-to-Peer system allows you to save considerable savings compared to a conventional transfer
• French -speaking customer service reachable by chat, email and telephone
• Regulated by the FCA, the English Authority for the Regulation of the Financial Markets

Duration and deadlines for an international transfer with Société Générale

The delivery time of a SEPA transfer is supervised by European regulations. It is therefore predictable.

If you make the transfer during the week (before 6 p.m.) on an account domiciled at Société Générale, the funds are credited the day the operation is validated by the bank.

For an external transfer, the money is sent during the day to the beneficiary’s bank, which is required to immediately credit its account.

If you do the transaction after 6 p.m., on weekends or a holiday, it is treated the next working day.

The time limit for transfers outside the SEPA zone is very variable. They depend on several things: calendar, route of funds (especially the number of corresponding banks by which they pass), treatment time by the various institutions. They take about 5 days to arrive on the recipient account.

FAQ – Frequent questions

How to transfer funds abroad with Société Générale ?

To send money abroad with Société Générale, you can go to an agency or do the online operation from your browser or the mobile application.

What are the deadlines for an international transfer with Société Générale ?

SEPA transfers are made within 24 hours. On the other hand, if you send money outside the SEPA zone, the deadlines are longer and more complicated to plan.

What are the costs for an international transfer with Société Générale ?

Fund transfers to the SEPA zone are free if they are made online. If you want to send money to another country, the costs will depend on the increased rate and several commissions. It is therefore impossible to know in advance how much you will pay.

Are there cheaper alternatives to the Société Générale international transfer ?

Yes. Certain online payment platforms such as Wise will notably benefit from the real rate on sending in foreign currencies, as well as a lighter pricing grid. So you will save big savings on the price of the transaction.

How to make a Société Générale transfer: costs and deadlines

Several types of bank transfer are offered by Société Générale: SEPA, Instant, International, Paylib. What is the difference between these transfers ? How much do they cost ? What are the deadlines to be provided for the provision of funds ?

If you want to make transfers abroad, think of the multi-downtime account of Wise. You will benefit from the fully transparent conversion market rate and prices.

Société Générale bank transfer: What are the methods of sending ?

With Société Générale, 4 types of transfers are possible:

• Instant: Send money from one account to another in just 10 seconds (20 seconds in the event of a problem). Valid throughout the SEPA zone¹. Fees are expected.
• SEPA: transfer of funds in euros and/or to a country in the SEPA zone. It is free if you do it online. The delivery time is 24 hours maximum (variable depending on the calendar).
• International: transfer to currencies for a country outside the SEPA zone. He is paying and takes between 5 and 10 days (indicative period only).
• Paylib: transfer of funds that is made using the recipient’s telephone number. It does not require RIB. Service valid only for mainland France and Monaco.

These transfers can be done online, but require the remote bank subscription (free). For some operations, activation of the safety pass is necessary.

How to make a Société Générale bank transfer ?

Here is how to make an instantaneous/separate transfer/no separate and paylib online from the Société Générale application.

Please note: to be able to carry out these different operations, you must have subscribed to the remote bank package (free) and activate your safety pass.

Instant transfer

To make an instant transfer, go to the Société Générale application. Choose the issuer and beneficiary account, as if you were making a conventional shipment.

Then click on “Instant transfer” and enter the characteristics of the transfer (amount to be sent and transaction reason).

Finally, validate the operation via the safety pass. The transfer will be made within 10 seconds.

SEPA transfer

To make a transfer between 2 bank accounts located in the SEPA zone, it’s very simple:

1. Open the Société Générale application.
2. Choose the account from which you will send.
3. Select the recipient account
4. Enter the amount of the transfer.
5. Validate the operation using your secret code.

Note: SEPA transfers require remote bank subscription, but not activation of the safety pass.

International transfer

To make a transfer outside SEPA zone, the bank must validate the beneficiary’s account, but also that you activate the safety pass. When these two conditions are met, you can proceed to the transfer.

Activate the safety pass

The safety pass is an authentication procedure used for certain sensitive operations. Before you can activate it, a security phone must be appointed.

Send an SMS to 51002 containing your customer code (8 -digit), month/year/Department of birth, then the mobile number². Add a ” +” to separate the different elements. We will send you a code by SMS. Enter it in the safety settings.

Finally, go to the tab reserved for the pass, rename your safety phone and ask for your SMS code. You will only have to copy it to activate the securing of transactions.

Add a beneficiary

Connect to the app and go to the “Adding beneficiary” menu. Then enter the IBAN of the beneficiary, as well as her name and surname. To save time, it is possible to scan the QR code of your IBAN.

Finally, validate the addition via the security pass: you are now ready to make the transfer.

Send back funds

Once the recipient is added, go to the tab reserved for international transfers

Enter the required information: departure/arrival account, amount, currency, date of execution.

You will only have to confirm the shipment with the safety pass.

Paylib

The transfer via Paylib is only on the phone. It allows you to send money directly to a bank account.

Open the Société Générale application and select Paylib payment. Then enter the recipient number and validate. He will receive an SMS indicating that the money has arrived on his account.

How to do if I don’t have the remote bank subscription ?

If you have not subscribed to the remote bank service pack, you will have to go to an agency to make your transfer.

Once at the counter, ask to send. Among the information you might ask for, there is: name, first name, IBAN number, BIC/SWIFT code, address ..

Then you will only have to choose the currency and the amount, then confirm the operation.

CAUTION: Only SEPA and non-SEPA transfers can be made in agency. Instant transfers and Paylib are only made online. In addition, shipments made to the counter are much more expensive than those made online.

Cost and delay of a bank transfer to Société Générale

The cost and delay of a separate/instantaneous/paylib transfer depends on 3 main parameters: type of transfer, place of sending (online or in agency) and country of arrival³.

Type of transfer	Deadline	Cost
Paylib	20 seconds maximum	Free
Instant	Between 10 and 20 seconds	0.80 €
Separate	About 24 hours	Online: Free Agency: 5 €

Regarding non -separate transfers, it’s a little more complex. To the parameters mentioned above, we must add the type of fee sharing and the sum.

For a transfer made online⁴:

Sum sent	“Share” (compulsory for transfers to an EEA country)	“Ben” (payable by the beneficiary)
≤ 500 €	9 €	9 € + 20 €
> 500 €	13 €	13 € + 20 €

Shipments made in agency are much more expensive:

Sum sent	“Share”	“Ben”
≤ 500 €	13 €	13 € + 20 €
> 500 €	0.10 % (min. 36 €/max. 70 €)	0.10 % (min. 36 €/max. 70 €) + 20 €

To have more information on this subject, go to our article devoted to the international transfers Société Générale.

Note: the bank uses a rate increased for conversions into currencies⁵. The surcharge depends on the currency and the amount. It is therefore impossible to assess the cost of a transaction upstream.

For non -separate transfers, transfer deadlines are variable. They depend on the calendar, the countries of sending and reception. On average, it takes 3 to 5 days so that funds arrive on the beneficiary’s account (indicative value only)

Maximum amounts of Société Générale bank transfers: what are they ?

Online shipments are reserved for daily operations. They are not suitable for large financial operations.

The maximum for a separate or instantaneous transfer made online is € 4,000 ⁶. If you want to send a larger amount, contact your advisor. For shipments via Paylib, the ceiling is € 500 per day.

Send money abroad with the Wise account

International transfers with Société Générale is expensive: in addition to the transfer commissions, you will have a surcharge of the exchange rate.

To lower the invoice, make the operation via the Wise account: thanks to the interbank rate and a transparent price grid, you will save big on the price of the transaction.

1. News General (published on 02/13/2020)
2. Safety phone configuration assistance

3, 4, 5, 6. Société Générale banking services (p. 13 For prices and ceilings of instant/separate transfers/Paylib, p. 24 For the exchange rate, p.27 For prices for non -separate transfers)

Check for the last time on August 31, 2021

This publication is provided for general information only and does not aim to cover all aspects of the subjects it deals with. This is not the only source of advice on which you should rely. You must obtain professional or specialized advice before taking, or to abstain, to make any decision on the basis of the content of this publication. The information contained in this publication does not constitute legal, tax advice or other professional advice from Wise Payments Limited or its affiliated companies. Past results do not guarantee a similar result. We do not make any declaration, guaranteed, express or implicit, that the content of the publication is exact, complete or up to date.

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