Starting from November 20, 2026 in France, the bank overdraft will fall under the regime of consumer credit. Driven by ordinance no. 2025-880 and the European directive CCD2, banks will have to assess solvency, inform about costs and APR, and regulate terminations. Objective: protect without excessive fees, at the risk of tightening access for low-income households.
What the law says, in black and white
On September 3, 2025, the French government presented in the Council of Ministers the ordinance no. 2025-880, published in the Official Journal on September 4, 2025. This text fully transposes the directive (EU) 2023/2225, known as CCD2, which rewrites the regime of consumer credit. From November 20, 2026, overdraft facilities and bank overdrafts will fully enter this framework. The promise is clear: better inform, test solvency, and prevent over-indebtedness. The legislator wants to close a gray area that left bank overdrafts in a separate place. As a result, it was sometimes outside the careful scrutiny reserved for other credits.
In detail, beyond €200, the bank will have to assess the client’s solvency with more rigor, consult incident files if necessary, and provide complete pre-contractual information: total cost, APR, repayment terms. Contracts already in progress before this date remain excluded, except for ceiling revision or new offer. In other words, the entry into force will not challenge existing authorizations with a magic wand. However, it will regulate any substantial amendment and any new opening.
For small bank overdrafts, of an amount less than or equal to €200, the text provides for reliefs. Beyond that, the examination becomes thorough. The Bank of France reminds that there is no "right to overdraft": its granting is contractual and revocable with a 30-day notice. This primary truth, often ignored, becomes central as the rules tighten.
What changes daily for account holders
At the counter, a ritual will change: no more implicit, make way for explanation, formalization, and signature.
The bank overdraft ceases to be a simple margin of maneuver. It joins the family of credits, with its warnings, explanations, and usury thresholds. The relationship with the advisor will be transformed. The bank will no longer be able to rely on an implicit overdraft authorization. It will be necessary to explain, formalize, have a prior offer signed. The client will know, to the nearest euro, what the sought-after flexibility costs. Above all, they will know that this cost cannot exceed the usury rate published by the Bank of France. Moreover, an excess would expose them to a partial nullity.
This new effort of transparency prohibits nothing; it conditions. Institutions will have to assess whether a bank overdraft of €500, €1,000, or more is sustainable in view of resources. Solvency becomes the key to access. There lies the ambivalence of the system: more protection, but also more frequent refusals for vulnerable profiles.
The legislator’s intention: protect without humiliating
The government and the Central Bank display an objective: reduce incident fees that burden the budget of precarious households and avoid the spiral of over-indebtedness. Contrary to a punitive vision, the text aims for a homogeneous risk assessment at the European Union level. In a France where 45% of clients find themselves at least once a year in bank overdraft, according to the reference figures of Panorabanques 2024, the issue is not anecdotal. It affects millions of households and reshuffles the cards of a service long considered a discreet buffer.
On a social scale, this change carries a promise: upstream, better prevention; downstream, better protection. The turning point is primarily cultural. It is no longer a tacit privilege, it is an explicit, bounded, compared credit. Financial literacy benefits from it, at the cost of a certain tightening of access.
Possibly tightened access for constrained budgets
The risk, pointed out by consumer associations and opposition elected officials, lies in a scissor effect. On one side, the information becomes clearer. Furthermore, bank intervention fees and other rejection fees find a counterbalance. On the other side, households with irregular incomes will see their overdraft authorizations more closely calibrated. Self-employed workers, delivery drivers, and temporary workers might face lower ceilings. Moreover, those who navigate from month to month will face more frequent revisions. Additionally, more stringent requests for supporting documents may arise.
In this landscape, the status of vulnerable client takes on significance. It opens access to a specific offer with reduced overdraft fee regulation and essential services. The recognition of this vulnerability is based on objective criteria and can be requested when incidents multiply. The goal is not to label, but to protect, by limiting the accumulation of recurring fees.
This shift does not signify a ban. It enacts a filtering. In the background, a very French question: how to reconcile protection and access. UFC-Que Choisir promises increased vigilance on the quality of pre-contractual information. Furthermore, it will monitor the implementation of the caps already in place. Additionally, this particularly concerns so-called vulnerable clients.
What banks will do: increased rigor, reinvented relationship
For banks, the schedule is tight. By the end of 2026, they must train their advisors, update the account agreements, and adapt their systems. The text allows them to terminate an existing bank overdraft. This must be for objectively justified reasons. Moreover, a 30-day notice is required. They will also have to more finely document the explanation of risks and the proposal of alternatives. Additionally, the justification of the authorization level must be included. This will be an opportunity to more clearly distinguish overdraft facilities, used as a cash cushion. Furthermore, revolving or personal credits respond to other projects.
In practice, networks could favor modular ceilings, revised quarterly or semester by semester. Thus, they would avoid having fixed authorizations over several years. Highly mobile accounts will be subject to closer monitoring. Refusals, when they occur, must be justified and followed by a guidance towards less risky solutions.
Usury rate, bank charges, commissions: the new cost landscape
The bank overdraft is a short-term debt. It is paid in bank charges and incident fees when the authorized threshold is exceeded. From November 20, 2026, the APR must reflect all costs. The usury rate, published monthly by the Bank of France, will apply as the supreme ceiling. For clients, the information gains in clarity. Comparisons become possible, competition plays more, and the arbitration between bank overdraft, revolving credit, and installment payment becomes clearer.
The question of bank intervention commissions remains, sometimes felt as punitive penalties. Their unit amounts and monthly ceilings are included in the agreement. When a temporary authorized overdraft is allowed, these commissions can be levied; they must be clearly explained and taken into account in the information provided to the client so that they can anticipate the real cost of an overdraft compared to an authorization revision.
To navigate, a practical rule suffices: the higher the authorization, the longer the duration of negative balance extends. Consequently, the cost approaches the applicable usury ceiling. A client with an authorization of €1,000 and spending ten days per month in negative must be vigilant. Indeed, they must find in their prior offer a faithful estimate. This must be comparative with potential short-term credits.
Why do rates change? The usury rate reflects the average rates practiced on the market, increased by a margin. Moreover, it follows the economic situation. Its monthly update maintains a protective ceiling without freezing the credit economy: whether rising or falling, bank charges adjust, and the consumer can negotiate accordingly.
Schedule and instructions until fall 2026
Three milestones are imposed. On September 3, 2025, the text was presented in the Council of Ministers. On September 4, 2025, it was published in the Official Journal. On November 20, 2026, it comes into force. In the meantime, banking institutions proceed with mass updates: agreements, tools, training. Clients can anticipate by requesting a clear offer and reviewing their authorization. Additionally, they must verify that their fees comply with the existing overdraft fee regulation. The transition, if well conducted, should not result in a wave of refusals but in a case-by-case adjustment. In case of dispute, a detailed letter can recall the APR, request a ceiling revision, or the activation of the specific offer when financial vulnerability is proven.
Points of attention and gray areas
A misunderstanding persists around the €200 threshold. It is not a free pass, but a trap with reduced formalities. Beyond that, solvency must be examined and documented. Another ambiguity: the rumor of a "ban on overdrafts." Nothing of the sort in the texts. The Bank of France reminds: there is no right to an authorization. Moreover, the bank can refuse or revoke with notice as long as it justifies. Finally, vulnerable publics should not be depicted as a uniform block. Situations differ and solutions exist, from accompanied micro-credit to installment payment now regulated by European law.
Landmarks for navigating the new overdraft map
The bank overdraft becomes a credit like any other: it requires information, prior offer, and evaluation. The usury rate imposes itself as a limit. The status of vulnerable client opens up concrete rights. Banks are overhauling their practices to prove the relevance of each authorization. Consumers gain in clarity, provided they embrace the discipline of more active management. By November 20, 2026, France will have closed a cultural exception. This implies a delicate balance between a safety net and budgetary discipline. The overdraft will no longer be a tacit favor, but a thoughtful commitment.