France is taking a significant step in financial transparency by adopting the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) 2.0, effective from 1 January 2026. This upgrade expands reporting obligations to include digital assets and tighter due diligence requirements, aligning France with the OECD’s global standards and ensuring cross-border financial-account information is accurately exchanged.
CRS 2.0 in France: Legal and Market Context
CRS 2.0 builds on the original 2014 CRS framework, which standardized automatic exchange of financial-account information among over 120 jurisdictions. In France, the framework has been incorporated into domestic law through amendments to the Code général des impôts, complementing EU DAC2/DAC8 obligations. French financial institutions, including banks, insurers, custodians, and digital-asset platforms, must now capture information on crypto-linked accounts, e-money, tokenized assets, and traditional investments under a unified compliance perimeter.
As of 2025, France has more than 400 reporting financial institutions (RFIs), ranging from major banks to emerging fintech and crypto platforms. CRS 2.0 expands their responsibilities beyond traditional accounts, requiring enhanced self-certifications, verification of Tax Identification Numbers (TINs), and ongoing monitoring of account-holder status.
Scope and Responsibilities
CRS 2.0 obliges French RFIs to identify all account holders, both individuals and entities, and their controlling persons, collect accurate TINs, and track residency changes. Accounts to be reported include deposits, custodial holdings, investment products, and digital-asset-linked instruments. Legacy accounts must be reconciled, and institutions must demonstrate documented “reasonable efforts” for any missing identifiers.
Reporting includes detailed account information, financial data such as interest, dividends, and gross proceeds, and transaction details for crypto and tokenized assets. French RFIs must integrate banking, investment, and digital-asset data streams into a single, auditable reporting workflow.
Operational Workflow and Compliance Tools
CRS 2.0 compliance requires an end-to-end operational workflow. Financial institutions begin with onboarding and KYC procedures, capturing user identification, residency, and TINs. Transactions—including traditional, e-money, and digital-asset flows—are continuously monitored, flagged for threshold breaches or changes in account-holder status, and mapped to CRS XML reporting formats. Reports are submitted to the Direction Générale des Finances Publiques (DGFiP), with records retained for five to seven years.
Advanced compliance platforms like TaxDo automate these processes. TaxDo provides Global Real-Time TIN Lookup (GTL) to validate TINs against official tax authority databases in over 130 jurisdictions, and Global TIN Syntax Verification (GSV) to check format, structure, and checksum across 195 jurisdictions. Account-holder self-certifications are collected and e-signed digitally, ensuring complete and auditable documentation.
Ongoing due diligence is critical for CRS 2.0 compliance. TaxDo’s Global Identity Intelligence Engine (GIIE) continuously screens accounts against more than 290 global watchlists, including AML, PEP, and sanctions databases, and actively flags changes in client status or risk profile. By integrating TIN validation, GSV, GTL, e-signature-enabled documentation, ongoing due diligence, GIIE monitoring, and automated CRS XML reporting, TaxDo ensures French RFIs maintain accuracy, reduce operational risk, and meet CRS 2.0 obligations efficiently.
Investor and Institution Preparedness
French taxpayers and institutions must take proactive steps. Financial institutions should update onboarding systems, perform real-time TIN validation, reconcile legacy accounts, and implement automated monitoring for residency changes. Investors must maintain detailed transaction ledgers, consolidate wallets, validate TINs, and link all accounts to ensure compliance with CRS 2.0. Staff training on the revised standards is essential to unify processes and ensure operational readiness.
France in Global Context
France’s CRS 2.0 implementation aligns with other key jurisdictions, including Switzerland, Germany, and the UK, all of which are transitioning to enhanced reporting standards. By integrating CRS 2.0 with CARF for crypto assets, France ensures that traditional and digital portfolios are reported consistently, reinforcing its position as a leader in financial transparency. Early adoption of automated compliance platforms like TaxDo provides French RFIs a competitive advantage and positions them for seamless cross-border reporting.
Conclusion
The adoption of CRS 2.0 in France represents a critical evolution in financial transparency. French RFIs and investors must prioritize TIN validation, accurate account identification, ongoing due diligence, and audit-ready reporting. Platforms like TaxDo enable institutions to automate these processes, integrate crypto and fiat data, and maintain compliance with both domestic and international standards. By preparing now, French RFIs can navigate CRS 2.0 with confidence, ensuring operational resilience and maintaining trust in the global financial ecosystem.