Glossary

On Ciclade.fr, "account" means all bank accounts and savings products (current accounts, livrets A, home ownership savings schemes, employee savings schemes, etc.) subject to the "Eckert" Act of 13 June 2014 as well as Order no. 2018-95 of 14 February 2018 which extends the "Eckert" Act to overseas collectivities (New Caledonia, French Polynesia, Wallis and Futuna)

See "employee savings body".

Authority responsible for supervising the banking and insurance sectors in France.

https://acpr.banque-france.fr/accueil.html

Regular income from investment of a capital sum. This is also the payment of income from a policy (life annuity, death insurance), a judicial ruling or a debt security.

The AGIRA brings together the insurance companies operating on the French market as well as the professional organisations involved in the sector. It can be contacted free of charge by natural persons or legal entities potentially designated by the beneficiary clause of a life insurance policy whose policyholder died within the last ten years. The AGIRA will pass the request onto insurance companies who are then obliged to make efforts to find beneficiaries.

If you have reason to believe you are the beneficiary of an insurance policy whose policyholder died in the last ten years, get in touch with the AGIRA using the dedicated form: www.formulaireassvie.agira.asso.fr

Postal address : AGIRA

Recherche contrats Assurance-Vie

1 rue Jules Lefebvre

75431 PARIS CEDEX 09 FRANCE

Financial institution in which bank accounts and savings products are open in the meaning of the Monetary and Financial Code.

See "passbook savings account".

Caisse des Dépôts and its subsidiaries form a public group serving the general interest and economic development of local areas. Caisse des Dépôts is a special public institution founded by the Act of 28 April 1816. The Law has particularly tasked Caisse des Dépôts with managing deposits and making long-term investments in companies to contribute to their development. Its mission was reaffirmed by the Act of 4 August 2008 bearing on modernisation of the economy.

Comprising cash, the cash account is associated with the securities account which, by definition, comprises securities. In order to acquire the securities, deposits must already have been made into the cash account.

Any person submitting a request or claim to Caisse des Dépôts via Ciclade.fr.

N.B.:  during his/her search on Ciclade.fr, the claimant must enter the name of the person who held the account or life insurance policy being tracked down.

When an account or life insurance policy is irrevocably closed down. Under the "Eckert" Act of 13 June 2014, such closure may also be initiated by the bank, insurance company or employee savings body when dormant accounts or unclaimed life insurance policies have reached the statutory timeframes for their balance to be transferred to Caisse des Dépôts.

Regulated passbook savings account, tax-free, created in 1983. The Codevi has been officially named "Livret de développement durable (LDD)" since 2007.

Policy taken out by a legal entity, or a company manager, called the policyholder, on behalf of a group of members and possibly their beneficiaries. The insurance policy may be amended between the policyholder and the insurance company without having to obtain the permission of each member.

The PERCO is a company savings scheme that allows an employee to set up a supplementary retirement fund through his or her employer. The PERCO can be funded by voluntary payments by the employee, with a ceiling, or by sums from profit-sharing, participation, transfers from other employee savings schemes or rights registered on a time savings account (CET).

The PERCO has been replaced by the collective company PER since October 1, 2019.

Bank account for people starting up or taking over a company with the aim of borrowing, after a savings period of between two and five years.

An employee savings product enabling employees to build up savings in the form of a portfolio of securities (shares and/or bonds) with the help of their company. The sums are unavailable for a minimum of five years, save in the event of withdrawals allowed in exceptional circumstances (such as marriage or civil partnership, birth of a third child or divorce) and come from voluntary contributions on the part of employees and a supplement from their company. Profit-sharing incentives and participation bonuses may also be deposited into a company savings scheme.

Any contact initiated by the customer with the financial institution (call, email, online banking connection, appointment, etc.) which activates an account or life insurance policy.

A correspondence exists when there is a possible correlation between the data entered into the search form and that sent by the financial institutions.

A correspondence does not necessarily mean the repayment of amounts.

Examples of a rejection:

• A homonym: you have the same surname and first name as another person, after verification of other personal information like the date and place of birth, you are not the beneficiary of the account. It is important to get as much precise information as possible during your search (preferred name in addition to the surname, other first names on the registry)

• In the personal area you have not properly identified yourself (example: notary, beneficiary or account holder, etc.). Don't forget to position yourself according to your situation during your request.

Credit institutions cover several types of entities accredited by the ACPR (the authority responsible for supervising the banking and insurance sectors in France), notably banks, but also specialist credit institutions which are primarily authorised to receive repayable funds from the public and grant credits.

Ordinary individual account used for depositing and managing one's own money and having payment means. Also called a bank account or checking account.

See "current account".

Bank account or savings product in the meaning of the Monetary and Financial Code for which no transaction initiated by the customer, his/her legal representative or duly authorised person to act on his/her behalf has occurred, and the customer has not made any contact, over a 12-month period. This 12-month period is extended to five years for fixed-term accounts. An account is only dormant if all of the other accounts held in the same institution are also dormant.

Authority responsible for supervising the banking and insurance sectors in France.

Sums from dormant bank accounts and unclaimes life insurance poilicies, endowment policies or capitalisation bonds, within the meaning of the "Eckert" Act of 13 June 2014, in addition to Ordre n°.2018-95 of 14 February 2018 wich extends the "Eckert" Act to overseas collectivities (New Caledonia, French Polynesia, Wallis and Futuna).

Collective savings scheme set up within certain companies. The principle entails paying each employee a share of the company's earnings (profit-sharing incentive) or its profits (participation bonus). The sums attributed are deposited in a company savings scheme (PEE). They may also be paid directly to the employee if requested by the latter.

On Ciclade.fr it is possible to search for a dormant company savings scheme (PEE). Profit-sharing incentives and participation bonuses which have not been paid into a company savings scheme and were deposited at Caisse des Dépôts before 2016 do not come within the scope of the Eckert Act. This means that they cannot be accessed from this website. To find out more, have a look at http://consignations.caissedesdepots.fr/participation-des-salaries.html.

Investment firm tasked with managing savers' personal accounts. It receives instructions to apply for and buy back shares, processes these and initiates the corresponding payments or transfers.

See "Company savings scheme (PEE)".

An endowment policy is a savings product. It makes it possible to capitalise on a sum or sums paid by an investor within a contract which may then be invested in various other schemes. Over the life of the endowment contract, the investor may withdraw all or part of his funds which otherwise are paid out to him when the contract expires, either in the form of an endowment which represents the amount invested increased by the capitalised interest, or else in the form of an annuity paid during his lifetime.

Corporate proxy, legal proxy or proxy by agreement (in terms of legal proceedings), legal representative, heirs, creditors and solicitor/notary in charge of the holder's or policyholder's estate.

All of the assets in a person's possession at the time of his or her death, which will be redistributed in the context of an inheritance. These assets are made up of tangible or intangible personal or real estate and diverse receivables.

Date on which the life insurance policy ends and no longer accrues interest. This date is set by the policy signed between the insurance company and the insured person.

Entity subject to the law on dormant bank accounts and unclaimed life insurance policies, particularly the requirement to transfer unclaimed sums to Caisse des Dépôts: banks, insurance companies and employee savings bodies.

See "security".

On Ciclade.fr, these refer to accounts (current accounts, Livrets A, home ownership savings schemes, company savings schemes and so on), life insurance and endowment policies, capitalisation bonds and bearer bonds which may be the subject of a search.

Period during which an account cannot be considered dormant insofar as its dormancy is a result of the application of legal or regulatory provisions or of a judicial ruling.

Under the "Eckert" Act of 13 June 2014, sums from dormant accounts and unclaimed life insurance policies which, after reaching the statutory dormancy periods, are transferred to Caisse des Dépôts by the financial institutions (monthly for life insurance policies and quarterly for accounts).

See "collective insurance policy".

Any natural person or legal entity owning a bank account. If the account is held by several different persons, they are called joint account holders.

Regulated savings product whose funds can be accessed at any time.

Savings product making it possible to save with a view to obtaining a loan at the prime rate and a subsidy from the State.

On Ciclade.fr, "insurance companies" refer to all insurance firms, insurance businesses, mutual companies, unions and personal protection institutions.

Person who is covered by an insurance policy.

See "insurance company".

Legal entity, other than a credit institution whose main and usual line of business entails providing an investment service.

Collective account opened on behalf of two or more people, who do not have to be related or united in any way, known as joint account holders. When a joint account is opened an account agreement must be signed by all the joint account holders. Each of the joint account holders can use the account alone, just as if s/he was the sole account holder.

Group whose legal status grants it rights and obligations. The group is generally made up of several natural persons (individuals) but can also bring together several legal entities.

There are two different categories of legal entities: public legal entities (the State, public institutions or local authorities) and private legal entities (companies, associations, non-trading companies, unions, etc.).

Person legally designated to represent and defend the interests of another person, be they natural (such as a minor's mother or father) or legal (a company for example).

The married name is the surname of your spouse wich you use as your preferred name.

See "Preferred name"

Held by the French National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (Insee) since 1946, the RNIPP displays birth, marriage and death records. It is kept up-to-date at regular intervals through civil registration reports forwarded to Insee by parishes following births, deaths, acknowledgements and indications made in the margin of birth certificates for people born in mainland France and its overseas départements (DOM).

Individual with its own legal personality in its own right. To be able to benefit directly and fully from its legal capacity, a natural person must be of age (except in the case of emancipation before coming of age) and not partially or totally disabled (placed under supervision or guardianship); otherwise this capacity is exercised on its behalf by a legal representative.

Order relating to the geographical extension of the "Eckert" Act to overseas collectivities (in New Caledonia, French Polynesia, and Wallis and Futuna islands) to implement various banking and financial provisions. Read the legislative text

See "Eckert Act of 13 June 2014".

The overseas collectivities (COM) are the territorial collectivities of the French Republic governed, since the constitutional reform of 28 March 2003, by Article 74 of the French Constitution (namely, the application of the principle of legislative exception vested in a competent local institution).

They comprise the former overseas territories (TOM), as well as other territorial collectivities with special status. Affairs of state (defence, police, justice, treasury) are administered by the French government.

There are currently five overseas collectivities. These territories vary quite widely in status and internal organisation; some of these details were stipulated in the Organic Law of 21 February 2007:

• Saint-Pierre and Miquelon (Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Canada) which was an overseas department (DOM) from 1976 to 1985.
• Wallis and Futuna (Pacific Ocean), an archipelago subdivided not into communes, but into three territorial districts, each of which corresponds to a kingdom of customary law which has jurisdiction in some matters (management of traditional public domain, etc.).
• French Polynesia (Pacific Ocean to the east of Australia), group of five French archipelagos corresponding to five administrative subdivisions (Marquesas Islands, Windward Islands, Tuamotu-Gambier Islands, Austral Islands and Leeward Islands). It has broad political autonomy.
• Saint Barthélemy, an island in the Lesser Antilles (Caribbean), 
• Saint Martin, the northern portion of the island of the same name in the Lesser Antilles.

The creation of these two collectivities took effect on 15 July 2007. Prior to that, Saint Martin and Saint Barthélemy were two communes integrated in the Guadeloupe overseas department (DOM).

Order no. 2018-95 of 14 February 2018: an extension of the "Eckert" Act to the overseas collectivities for implementation in 2020, only to the territories of French Polynesia, New Caledonia, and Wallis and Futuna, with the need to identify the funds and products originating in these three overseas collectivities so the unclaimed sums after the thirty-year forfeiture period can be paid to the territories

A participation bonus is one whose amount is determined by rules as set out in the participation bonus agreement. Out of principle, it is deposited in a company savings scheme (PEE) which, under the "Eckert" Act of 13 June 2014, can become dormant and any sums transferred to Caisse des Dépôts.

See "passbook savings account".

Passbook savings accounts can be opened in banks for depositing cash over the short term, in preparation for an investment or purchase. The bank is free to determine their interest rate.

Regulated passbook savings account, exempt from tax and social security contributions. The LEP was created to help low-income households deposit their savings under conditions enabling them to maintain their purchasing power.

Passbook savings scheme for young people

Institutions other than credit institutions and e-money institutions accredited by the ACPR (the authority responsible for supervising the banking and insurance sectors in France) to provide payment services (e.g. institutions that enable customers to send money overseas).

On Ciclade.fr, a password-protected space where a claimant whose initial search has yielded results can continue his or her claim. S/he then enters the information required and attaches the documents supporting the account or policy being sought as well as his/her identity. Once his/her claim has been submitted, it is processed by a Caisse des Dépôts operator. All of this data is compared with the information forwarded by the financial institutions to Caisse des Dépôts. If the claimant is identified as a legitimate beneficiary of the sums s/he is claiming, they will be returned to him/her.

Person who signs the form taking out a life insurance policy or capitalisation bond or contract.

A profit-sharing incentive is a bonus whose amount and payment conditions are set out in the profit-sharing incentive agreement. Out of principle, it is deposited in a company savings scheme (PEE) which, under the "Eckert" Act of 13 June 2014, can become dormant and any sums transferred to Caisse des Dépôts.

All savings products (accounts and passbook schemes) whose operating terms and conditions are determined by the public authorities. e.g.: livret A, livret de développement durable (LDD), livret d’épargne populaire (LEP), livret jeune and so on.

Under the "Eckert" Act of 13 June 2014, return of sums from a dormant account or unclaimed life insurance policy to their legitimate beneficiary. Restitution may be carried out by the original financial institution when it is still in possession of such sums. If the sums have lain dormant for so long that they have been transferred to Caisse des Dépôts, their beneficiaries must search for them on Ciclade.fr. Caisse des Dépôts examines their claim and, if approved, the sums are returned to their beneficiary(ies).

Life insurance policy whose capital has not been paid out upon expiry of the term fixed in the policy or upon the death of the insured person.

Life insurance policy which has expired and whose capital has not been claimed by the policyholder or the beneficiaries. Or, in the event of the policyholder's death, the life insurance policy is declared "unclaimed" when the insurance company learns of the date on which the policyholder died.

When the insurance company declares a policy "unclaimed", it must make active efforts to track down the beneficiaries.

The PERP is a long-term savings product which gives its holders the chance to top up their pension at regular intervals once they retire.

See "life insurance policy".

Passbook accounts, savings accounts and schemes: company savings scheme (PEE), Livret A, Livret de développement durable (LDD), home ownership savings scheme (PEL), home ownership savings account (CEL), savings scheme for young people, share savings plan (PEA), share savings plan aimed at financing small- and medium-sized enterprises and mid-caps (PEA PME-ETI), Passbook savings account for low-income households, tax-friendly long-term savings account, etc.

Anyone who has reason to be believe they are a beneficiary of dormant sums transferred by the financial institutions to Caisse des Dépôts can enter a search on Ciclade.fr. If their search yields results, the claimant must create a personal account to continue with his or her claim.

Account into which any security can be deposited (shares, bonds, equity warrants, fees, etc.) held by the account holder.

A SEPA transfer is a transfer in Euros which is able to move funds both within France and throughout all of the countries in the Singe Euro Payments Area.

To make SEPA transfers and payments, you must use the new bank details in the IBAN and BIC format. These codes have already been around for several years on the bank statements provided by your bank.

The following are members of the SEPA:

- The 28 member States of the European Union;

- The four member States of the European Free Trade Association: Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland;

- The Principality of Monaco and the Republic of San Marino.

In terms of France, the overseas départements and regions (Guadeloupe, Martinique, French Guiana, Reunion and Mayotte), as well as the territories of Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon, Saint-Barthélemy and the French part of San Marino are part of the SEPA.

The PEA allows for a portfolio of shares to be acquired while benefiting, under certain conditions (such as keeping the shares for at least five years), from tax exemption on dividends and capital gains. Making up the PEA is a securities account and a cash account.

Complementary to the share savings plan, the PEA PME-ETI is aimed at facilitating the financing of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and mid-caps, both listed and unlisted.

See "current account".

Under the "Eckert" Act of 13 June 2014, sums from dormant accounts and unclaimed life insurance policies that have reached the statutory dormancy periods by 1 January 2016 to be transferred to Caisse des Dépôts by the financial institutions.

Stocks of dormant assets were transferred to Caisse des Dépôts between 1 July 2016 and 31 December 2016. Sums that have lain dormant for 30 years or longer have been transferred by the financial institutions to the State directly.

See "thirty-year forfeiture period".

Regulated savings product that could be opened between 1990 and 2003. PEP holders can continue to use them.

As part of the "Eckert" Act of 13 June 2014, as extended by Order n° 2018-95 of 14 February 2018 which entails the expansion of the "Eckert"Act to overseas collectivitites, this is the 30-year timeframe at the end of which unclaimed sums will be handed irreversibly over to the State. This 30-year timeframe encompasses both the period during which the sums are kept by the financial institution (bank, insurance company or employee savings body) and by Caisse des Dépôts.

Before the "Eckert Act" entered into force and through 2016, financial institutions directly transferred their unclaimed sums that had lain dormant for 30 years to the State.

See "thirty-year forfeiture period".

See "time deposit account".

Account on which the sums deposited are locked away for a certain period, in return for a rate of interest determined when the account is opened. The rate of interest varies depending on the time deposit account (fixed rate, progressive rate, variable rate, etc.).

Any order given by the payer or beneficiary in which sums are paid in, transferred or withdrawn.

The www.ciclade.fr website allows to search for bearer bonds. To initiate the examination of your application, contact the financial institution of origin that issued the bearer bond to learn about the procedure for restitution of dormant assets resulting from these contracts (note: the restitution procedure may differ from one institution to another and it is important to follow the instructions that are given to you by the institution to ensure the processing of your application). Once the bearer bond(s) has/have been verified by the insurance organisation, they will give you a certificate of authenticity. The, you can make your research via the online form ​by entering the reference(s) present on the certificate of authenticity. You can enter a maximum of 10 references online. If you enter more than 10 references, you will have to carry out a new search.

Dedicated line for private customers: 0 809 40 40 41 (calls from landlines and mobiles are charged at the local rate, additional charges depend on your operator), Monday - Friday from 9am – 5pm.

Dedicated line for notaries: 0 809 40 40 46 (calls from landlines and mobiles are charged at the local rate, additional charges depend on your operator), Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm.

The www.ciclade.fr website allows to search for bearer bonds. To initiate the examination of your application, contact the financial institution of origin that issued the bearer bond to learn about the procedure for restitution of dormant assets resulting from these contracts (note: the restitution procedure may differ from one institution to another and it is important to follow the instructions that are given to you by the institution to ensure the processing of your application). Once the bearer bond(s) has/have been verified by the insurance organisation, they will give you a certificate of authenticity. The, you can make your research via the online form ​by entering the reference(s) present on the certificate of authenticity. You can enter a maximum of 10 references online. If you enter more than 10 references, you will have to carry out a new search.

Dedicated line for private customers: 0 809 40 40 41 (calls from landlines and mobiles are charged at the local rate, additional charges depend on your operator), Monday - Friday from 9am – 5pm.

Dedicated line for notaries: 0 809 40 40 46 (calls from landlines and mobiles are charged at the local rate, additional charges depend on your operator), Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm.

Person named by the policyholder in the beneficiary clause of a life insurance policy to receive the benefits covered when the policy expires in the event of a life or death policy. Depending on the type of policy taken out, the beneficiary and the insured person may not be the same person:

• if a life insurance policy is taken out: the policyholder can be both the insured person and the beneficiary; a third party can also be named a beneficiary.
• if a policy providing cover in the event of death is taken out: the insured person is different from the beneficiary and, in this situation, the capital or annuity is paid to the latter when the policy expires.

Any natural person or legal entity with reason to believe they are a beneficiary of a life insurance policy whose policyholder died within the last ten years can contact the AGIRA.

On Ciclade.fr, the term "beneficiary" also refers more broadly to anyone able to recover sums that have been transferred to Caisse des Dépôts, either because they are the holder of an account, life insurance policyholder or beneficiary or entitled party of an account holder or life insurance policyholder.

Life insurance policy clause in which the policyholder names one or more beneficiaries.

Financial investment enabling the policyholder to save money with a view to passing it on to a beneficiary when an event directly involving the insured person occurs: either s/he dies or s/he survives. This savings product enables the policyholder to earn interest on his/her policy depending on the capital invested. 

If the policyholder survives, s/he remains the beneficiary and holder of the funds and is free to recover the capital and interests.

If the policyholder dies, the policy is wound up and the capital and interest transferred to the beneficiary(ies) of his/her choice (children, spouse, live-in partner, siblings, other non-family members, legal persons such as associations, etc.).

Savings account whose funds can be accessed at any time. The interest is exempt from income tax and social security contributions.

See "fixed term".

Formerly called "compte pour le développement industriel" (Codévi), the LDDS is a regulated savings account, exempt from tax and social security contributions, which can be opened by any adult domiciled in France. The sums deposited in LDDS accounts are mainly used to help finance programmes of social benefit or in connection with sustainable development, such as projects aimed at saving energy.

Implemented since October 1, 2019, it is declined as follows:

• The collective company retirement savings plan is open to all employees of a company eligible for this plan and replaces the PERCO (collective retirement savings scheme)
• The individual PER (investment or insurance PER), open to all with the possibility of subscribing to it with a financial establishment or an insurance organization and succeeds the PERP and the MADELIN contract
• The mandatory company PER, a plan open to all employees of a company eligible for this scheme or reserved for certain categories of employees (the employees concerned are obliged to subscribe) and is the successor to the so-called "Article 83" contract.

Supplementary pensions schemes (sometimes called " additional " pensions) refer to optional funded pension plans offered by certain companies to their employees ("collective contracts") as well as individual retirement savings accounts.

These plans allow each person to build up savings/annuities for retirement in addition to the mandatory pension plans.There are several types of supplementary pension contracts:

• Private subscription: Plan d'épargne retraite populaire (PERP), PREFON (Caisse nationale de prévoyance de la fonction publique), FONPEL (Fonds de pension des élus locaux), CAREL-MUDEL (Caisse autonome de retraite des élus locaux - Mutuelle des élus locaux), COREM (Complément de retraite mutualiste), CRH (Complément retraite des hospitaliers), RMC (retraite mutualiste du combattant), PER
• Professional subscription: MADELIN contract, "Farmers" contract, Article 39 CGI contract, Article 82 CGI contract, Article 83 CGI contract, PERCO, PER

Once your request has been submitted, the average processing time is approximately 90 days, or even longer depending on the nature of the file. We ensure the validity of the data which may be old, incomplete or erroneous. Requests are studied carefully to avoid the risk of allocation error. Given the very large number of requests received, our response and processing times are extended. It is not necessary to contact us for the progress of your file. Everything is done to process your requests as soon as possible.
When monitoring the progress of your request in the personal space, a delay of several weeks is currently observed between the information specifying "to pay" and the actual payment. There is no need to worry.
 

Under the Eckert act (direct to “Eckert” act of 13 June 2014), ING has transferred all assets from inactive accounts and the balances of certain accounts closed as part of the shutdown of its activities targeting private individuals in France (31/12/2022) to Caisse des Dépôts. Searching for these amounts on ciclade.fr has been possible since 02/15/2024, learn more HERE

If you do not find these amounts, please contact ING France by clicking HERE

Term life insurance is a personal protection policy that provides financial protection for relatives in the event that the policyholder/member/insured dies during the policy’s term. In such circumstances, the named beneficiaries receive a lump sum or an annuity depending on the cover provided under the policy.

Assets that are not claimed under a term life insurance policy are only deposited with the Caisse des Dépôts where the policyholder/member/insured person died on or after 1 January 2015, under law no. 2014-617 of 13 June 2014 (known as the Eckert law),

If the policyholder/member/insured died before 1 January 2015, the beneficiaries must directly apply to the insurers/personal protection institutions/mutuals. The sums are not deposited with the Caisse des Dépôts.