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How to rent a bank safe deposit box?

Going around the world and becoming a digital nomad also means adopting minimalism.

Before we left, we separated 90% of what we owned and gave the few remaining boxes to the family.

However, there were still some very important assets and documents that we couldn’t afford to lose or destroy, even though we trust our family, it is too important to take any risks. So we deposited them in a safety deposit box at the bank.

Renting a bank safe deposit box? It’s like a spy movie, like Jason Bourne who goes to retrieve fake passports, cash and a weapon in a Swiss bank safe. It is however a classic and cheap banking service.

Jason Bourne’s vault

Why rent a bank safe deposit box?

In the collective imagination, renting a safe deposit box is often synonymous with a need for secrecy: we all have in mind the image of the little old man who hides gold ingots so that he doesn’t have to declare them to the tax authorities. A detail that may indeed interest some people: the bank isn’t obliged to inform the tax authorities of the opening of a safe deposit box (and it isn’t aware of what is put in it).

In most cases, and in ours, it’s much simpler. As we no longer have a permanent home, we need to keep important documents or sentimental goods safe.

As an example :


  • Salary slips
  • Family Booklet
  • Property titles
  • Hard disk with personal data backup
  • Family jewelry

And ours…

How to rent a bank safe deposit box?

It is relatively simple, it is a standard service offered by all physical banks. In our case, it is Société Générale

The most complicated thing is actually to find an available safe. Not all agencies have a safety deposit box and it is possible to be put on a waiting list if there is no availability.

All you have to do is prove your identity and sign a contract to obtain your safe deposit box.

How much does it cost to rent a safety deposit box?

To tell the truth, I was expecting it to cost a lot more.

The rate varies according to the banks and the size of the safe deposit box you want.

In our case, we went through the Société Générale and rented a standard size safe (30 dm3) for a rate of 110 € / year to be paid in one go (per year).

How does it work in practice?

Once the contract is signed, the bank will give you the key to your safety deposit box, which only exists in one copy (even the bank does not have a duplicate).

When you want to access your safe deposit box, you must go to the reception desk of your agency (your safe deposit box is therefore only accessible during opening hours). Simply explain that you wish to access your safe deposit box. You must then show proof of identity and sign the safe deposit box register (all accesses to your safe are listed).

The bank employee will then accompany you to the vault and show you your safe deposit box.

To open the safe deposit box, it is necessary to use two keys: yours, which only exists in one copy, and a control key from the bank.

The employee will then use the control key and leave you alone. You can then discreetly use your key to open the safe.

You can stay as long as you want to retrieve or deposit items. Once you are finished, simply close your safe deposit box with your key and you can leave the bank.

Who can access your safe?

By default, you are the only one who can access your safe.

However, you may grant power of attorney to as many people as you wish. To make a power of attorney, you must come to the bank with the person you trust. He or she will have to prove his or her identity and deposit his or her signature.

Once the power of attorney is completed, the person will be able to access your safe alone. You will obviously have to give him/her the key so that he/she can open it.

What happens if I lose the safe deposit box key?

This is very bad, since there are no doubles!

However, if this happens, the bank can force the safe and then replace it.

When the contract is drawn up, the bank offers you insurance to cover this risk. Being already a customer of the bank, the insurance was offered to us at no extra charge.

If you ask to break into the safe when you don’t have insurance, it will cost you 600 euros.

The insurance can also be subject to a deposit when the contract is signed.

What happens if the bank gets robbed?

In the 1980s, it was very common for bank branches to be victims of bank robberies.

Improved security procedures and increased dematerialization (branches have less and less cash in their safes) have made robberies exceptional.

However, this can happen, just like a fire, a flood, … which would destroy or deteriorate the contents of your safe.

In this case, the bank offers a guarantee that varies according to the size of the safe deposit box you have. In our case, the guarantee is €30,500.

Not so confidential anymore

Until recently, safes benefited from a legal vacuum: there was no obligation to declare them to the tax authorities. The safes were therefore widely used to hide cash, gold, jewelry, …

This is no longer the case since a decree of 24 April 2020 that puts an end to anonymity by obliging the declaration of safes to FICOBA (Bank Account File).

For the customers, nothing to do, it is the banks that will transmit the information to the tax authorities. From September 1, 2020 for new safe deposit box openings and no later than December 31, 2024 for existing accounts.

Please note that the contents of the safe remain confidential, until the day a judicial authority requires its opening.

If you would like to open an account with Société Générale and then open a safe deposit box like us, click here to become a sponsor

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