Can you not open an account over here MG in your name for him, so as it can be paid directly into that????

Reading between the lines I suspect it isn't the banks that have said he can't have an account. No contract to me sounds like "no tax-no questions" and if he opened an account there would be questions! All countries have some form of money laundering laws and not just for the organised crime/terrorist group issues - it's to stop tax dodges. The only thing I can suggest is an international money transfer system like Western Union, paying the money in at their agent to send to his UK account so he can draw it out as required using his plastic. But even if they allow cash deposits the two sets of charges will eat into his earnings.

He also needs to think about medical cover. UK travel insurance for that length of stay will costs a fortune, an EHIC won't give enough cover and if he isn't registered he won't be getting anything else.

2an EHIC won't give enough cover and if he isn't registered he won't be getting anything else."

Can you tell me more? - The money transfer thing we can sort, but I thought that we had a reciprocal NHS type arrangement within the EU?

ATB,J.

EHIC Card is only valid on temporary visits to EU countries such as holidays or business trips, not for working. There are schemes that cover students who are on gap years .. I believe one firm that provides insurance is http://www.essentialtravel.co.uk/travelinsurance/gap-year-travel-insurance.asp this may be what you need. If you google Insurance for student on working holiday you should get some more companies.

Even for short term tourists the EHIC only gives entitlement to what residents get in any particular country - which may not be as much as what we get in the UK - although there are a few exceptions where odd charges are waived for simplicity. In the cases of anything that had to be paid for but would have been covered in the UK they might be reclaimable when you get home. I take it your son will need French cover, you'd better study this because they have a lot of charges http://www.nhs.uk/NHSEngland/Healthcareabroad/countryguide/Pages/healthcareinFrance.aspx

Anyway, prob... he's being paid in Euros (cash) - he doesn't have a written contract....

I'm assuming that this is the same son as you were inquiring for about getting to either Grenoble or Alpe d'Huez? What is the job he's going to be doing out there? If he's working in a chalet, hotel or bar then he should be being employed and paid in line with standard French employment law which I would be pretty sure includes having a proper contract and if he doesn't have a contract then the problems are potentially greater than just what does he do with his wages. If this is some sort of under-the counter cash in hand type of job then there's actually a good chance that he won't be earning that much to worry about because it's likely to be a way of circumventing minimum wage requirements etc. Will his 'employer' be providing accommodation as part of the deal? And is it free or will he be expected to pay for it from his earnings? If he is then he needs to check very carefully what the deal is - he could find that the charges swallow an awful lot of what he's earning and in an expensive part fo the world like the French Alps he might not end up with a surplus that will need banking anyway.

But if this work is not connected with catering but is about actually engaging in a skiing related occupation then a bank account is the least of his worries. Ski instruction and mountain guiding are very much 'closed shops' in the Alps - and if he's being employed to do something like this then he's a) going to find that he'll be made very unwelcome by the established instructors and guides but more importantly b) he'll have none of the legal and insurance cover that properly employed staff have for when things go wrong. This sort of work is a 'closed shop' for a very good reason - the safety and wellbeing of both client and instructor.

Please note too that if he is planning on doing any sking etc then he definitely needs good winter sports insurance in place. if you fall off a mountain in the UK or have an accident out of reach of a road then the police call in a RAF search and rescue helicopter team to come and airlift you off the mountian to hospital for free. This most definitely is not the case in the French Alps - if this happens there then you are talking about a 5 or even 6 figure bill. Bills for £50,000 can be very easily run up and whilst his EHIC card might cover him for getting the broken limb set in the hospital, it won't cover him for getting there in the first place.

SM

Could he not pay it into his home account by using a service like Western Union?

Well, he's been there three weeks now and is having a ball.... he gets free calls home as often as he wants... still not established what he's doing with the money though!

ATB,J.

Spending it?

and is having a ball

I think this is the clue

SM