Chapter II: Provisions relating to the freezing of assets and the prohibition on making assets available to third parties

Articles in this section · 17

Article L562-12

French Monetary and Financial CodeIn force

Updated 7 Nov 2023

Banking or professional secrecy shall not prevent the exchange of information between the persons and bodies referred to in Article L. 562-4 and the State departments responsible for preparing or implementing any freezing measure taken under this chapter, Articles L. 712-4 and L. 712-10 or an act adopted pursuant to Articles 75 or 215 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, where such information makes it possible to verify the identity of the persons directly or indirectly concerned by this measure or to monitor transactions involving frozen funds and economic resources. The information provided or exchanged may only be used for the purposes mentioned in this Article.

In order to carry out their duties under this chapter, the State departments mentioned above shall exchange with the other State departments and the licensing and supervisory authorities mentioned in Article L. 561-36 the information required to carry out their respective duties.

When they identify information likely to relate to an offence punishable by Article L. 574-3 of this Code and Article L. 459 of the Customs Code, the authorisation and control authorities referred to in Article L. 561-36 communicate this information to the State departments specified by decree.

Mariela Petrova

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Common Questions

Working with a corporate lawyer in France — Q&A

Any time a strategic decision changes how the company is owned, governed or contractually bound — incorporation, fundraising, M&A, restructuring, shareholder agreements, or major commercial contracts. Earlier engagement always costs less than later remediation.

A notary (notaire) is a public officer who authenticates specific deeds (mainly real-estate transfers and certain family-law acts). A corporate lawyer (avocat) advises on strategy, negotiates and drafts company documents, and represents you in disputes. The two roles complement rather than overlap.

Yes — most of our clients are foreign suppliers, investors or holding entities. We bridge the gap between French law and your home jurisdiction's expectations and deliver everything bilingually.

The SAS (Société par Actions Simplifiée) is the default choice for most international structures: flexible governance, single shareholder allowed, no minimum capital, and works cleanly with foreign holding entities. We assess SARL, SA, SCI on the merits when the situation calls for it.

Yes — communications with a French avocat are protected by the secret professionnel (Article 66-5 of the Law of 31 December 1971). This protection is broader than the common-law attorney-client privilege and applies to written and oral exchanges.

We work on fixed fees for clearly scoped engagements (incorporation, contract drafting, audits) and on monthly retainers for ongoing advisory. Hourly billing is the exception, not the default. You always know the cost before work starts.

Typical timeline is 2–3 weeks from KYC kick-off to RCS registration, assuming standard documentation. Holding-company structures, foreign-shareholder identification or in-kind contributions can extend this — we flag the gating items at the first meeting.

Absolutely. We routinely coordinate with your in-house counsel, expert-comptable or notaire — pragmatic collaboration is the norm, not the exception. We send them everything they need to do their part without duplicating work.

Mariela Petrova

Mariela Petrova

Avocate au Barreau de Paris

Toque #C2396

15+ Years In Corporate Practice

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Communications protected by professional secrecy — secret professionnel de l'avocat, Article 66-5 of the Law of 31 December 1971.

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