How to invest in ETFs?
Updated on 20 July 2026
Investing in an ETF (tracker) means choosing between three possible tax wrappers: PEA (a French tax-advantaged equity savings account), life insurance or a securities account (CTO). Each has its own eligibility rules, fees and taxation, which determine the best option for your profile and investment horizon.
- PEA offers reduced fees, but ETFs must be issued by an entity domiciled in France or the EU.
- In life insurance, ETFs are accessible as unit-linked funds, with average contract fees of 0.88% per year, according to France Assureurs (2025).
- The securities account (CTO) gives access to almost all ETFs on the global market, but without any specific tax advantage.
- The ISIN code uniquely identifies each ETF, avoiding any confusion between trackers with similar names.
Choosing the right tax wrapper to invest in ETFs
| Wrapper | ETF eligibility | Taxation | Indicative fees |
|---|---|---|---|
| PEA | Issuer domiciled in France or the EU (or eligible synthetic replication) | Income tax exemption after 5 years; 18.6% social contributions still due | Among the lowest management fees of the three wrappers |
| Life insurance | Depends on the unit-linked funds offered by the insurer | €4,600 annual tax allowance (€9,200 for a couple) after 8 years | Average contract fees of 0.88%/year (France Assureurs, 2025), plus the fund’s own fees |
| Securities account (CTO) | Almost all ETFs on the market | No specific tax advantage, taxed at the flat tax (PFU) rate of 31.4% | Brokerage fees vary by broker |
Also read: Which ETFs or trackers should you choose? 5 tips for investing well
Investing your trackers in a PEA
Investing in PEA trackers lets you benefit from the performance of the underlying stocks, as well as the favourable taxation of the equity savings plan (PEA), which exempts capital gains realised after 5 years from income tax (the 18.6% social contributions remain due). PEA also has relatively low annual management fees compared with other tax wrappers, particularly life insurance.
To invest in a PEA-eligible tracker, you first need to check that it is actually PEA-eligible. Unlike individual stocks, ETFs replicating indices outside Europe can be held, but only if they are issued by a company domiciled in Europe. In France, firms such as Amundi (which absorbed Lyxor at the end of 2021) have specialised in building ETFs, making it possible to invest in the S&P 500 or the Nasdaq through a PEA by buying their trackers. Note that you can also invest in actively managed collective investment funds through your PEA.
To go further, see our selection of the best PEA-eligible ETFs.
Investing in ETFs through life insurance
Holding trackers as unit-linked funds in your life insurance policy is also a good way to invest in index funds. Like the PEA, life insurance lets you benefit from an annual tax allowance on gains (€4,600 / €9,200 for a couple) after 8 years, with social contributions remaining due regardless of how long you hold the policy. That said, you need to factor in the management fees tied to unit-linked funds in life insurance: according to France Assureurs, these contract fees average 0.88% per year in 2025, on top of the ETF fund's own fees.
As with the PEA, not every tracker is eligible for life insurance, and their number or the index they track depends directly on the insurer and the contract it offers. Some life insurance policies offer several dozen, or even a hundred, ETF unit-linked funds, while others offer none at all. If you want to invest in trackers through life insurance, make sure to check the number of trackers and the indices they replicate with your insurer.
There are several ways to approach ETF investing in life insurance: you can opt for self-directed management and choose the unit-linked funds you want to invest in yourself, or hand over the management of your policy to an insurer or an asset manager (known as managed-portfolio service), who will invest your money for you. Be aware, however, that not every managed-portfolio life insurance policy allows investment in stock market trackers.
Finary Life, the online life insurance policy underwritten by Generali Vie, offers for example more than 700 unit-linked investment options, including ETFs, with no entry or transaction fees.
Investing in an ETF through a securities account
Once again, just as with individual stocks, it is also possible to invest in stock market ETFs through a securities account (CTO). Unlike the PEA and life insurance, the securities account gives access to almost every tracker on the market, but it does not offer the tax advantages found in the other wrappers.
Investing in trackers through a securities account closely resembles buying shares on the stock market. You will need to look up the ETF you want to invest in, then place an order.
How to buy ETFs depending on the wrapper you choose
The way you buy ETFs depends on the wrapper you choose: placing an order for a securities account or a self-directed PEA, adding a unit-linked fund for life insurance, or delegating to a manager under managed-portfolio or discretionary management. Placing orders for a securities account is a familiar process, similar to buying shares on the stock market, but the process for a PEA can differ, particularly if you opt for a PEA under discretionary or managed-portfolio management, and for life insurance the way you invest in trackers depends on the type of contract you sign up for.
Placing orders on trackers for a securities account
As with buying shares on the stock market, you need to place orders to invest in trackers through a securities account. Before placing an order, however, you need to look up the tracker you want to invest in; you can search for the ETF by its name or by its ISIN code.
For a more detailed comparison of these two wrappers, see our article PEA or securities account: which one to choose?
While searching by name is simple for individual stocks and makes it easy to pick the company you want to invest in, the topic is a little more complex for stock market trackers. Several trackers can have very similar names, so searching for an ETF by its ISIN code (International Securities Identification Number) is the best way to make sure you invest in the right tracker, since each identifier is unique and corresponds to a single tracker.
Now that you have found the tracker or trackers you want to invest in, you can place your order. There are several types of orders depending on your investment strategy: you can place market orders, limit orders, or stop orders. Depending on the type of securities account you hold, you can either ask your account manager to place the order (banker, broker), or do it yourself directly on your platform.
PEA trackers: how to invest depending on the type of management
Investing in stock market trackers through a PEA takes two distinct forms depending on the type of management of your PEA: self-directed or discretionary management.
Self-directed management, which covers a large share of equity savings plans, works much like a securities account. You will need to search for your trackers by name or ISIN code, then place orders through your broker or directly through the online platform to add ETFs to your PEA. However, not every tracker is eligible for a PEA: they must be issued by a company domiciled in France or the European Union to qualify. You can search for any tracker on the online platform, but it will not let you invest in trackers that are not PEA-eligible; for those, you can go through a securities account or a life insurance policy.
If your PEA is under discretionary management, you will not need to choose and invest by yourself. With this type of management, you hand your portfolio over to an asset manager, who invests in ETFs on your behalf based on your investor profile and your risk aversion, identified beforehand. With a discretionary-managed PEA, you therefore do not directly choose the trackers you invest in; the asset manager does it for you.
ETFs in life insurance: investing in trackers through unit-linked funds
Investing in index funds through life insurance closely resembles investing through a PEA, particularly because the management options are similar.
Life insurance policies can be under self-directed or managed-portfolio management, so the process for investing in ETFs through a life insurance policy is very close to what we just saw for the PEA, with one difference: under self-directed management, it will not be an order placement but an addition of a unit-linked fund to your policy. The main difference between placing an order and adding a unit-linked fund lies in how long the investment takes to confirm: it is immediate if you place a market order for a PEA, whereas adding a unit-linked fund to a life insurance policy can take several days.
If you opt for a life insurance policy under managed-portfolio management, just as with the PEA, you do not directly choose the trackers you invest in. You delegate that choice to your policy’s manager, who will invest in line with your goals and investor profile.
As mentioned above, not every life insurance policy offers the option of investing in an ETF. If you want to invest in trackers through a life insurance policy, it is therefore important to compare the policies available to you, so you can choose the one that suits you best, whether under self-directed or managed-portfolio management.
Frequently asked questions
Which wrapper should you choose to invest in ETFs: PEA, life insurance or a securities account?
It depends on your horizon and your tax situation: the PEA suits long-term investment in European stocks with reduced taxation after 5 years, life insurance lets you diversify with a tax allowance after 8 years, and the securities account offers the widest choice of ETFs but no tax advantage.
Is an ETF always eligible for the PEA?
An ETF is eligible for the PEA only if its issuer is domiciled in France or the European Union, or if it synthetically replicates its index via a swap while meeting the PEA's eligibility criteria. Standard American ETFs are excluded.
What fees apply to ETFs held in life insurance?
In life insurance, ETFs held as unit-linked funds carry two levels of fees: contract fees, averaging 0.88% per year according to France Assureurs (2025), and the ETF fund's own fees, which are generally lower than those of an actively managed fund.
What is an ETF's ISIN code for?
The ISIN code (International Securities Identification Number) is a unique 12-character identifier assigned to each ETF. It makes it possible to find the exact tracker you are looking for, especially when several funds have very similar names.
Can you invest in ETFs across several wrappers at once?
Yes, you can split your ETFs across several wrappers, for example a PEA for European stocks and a securities account for ETFs that are not PEA-eligible, in order to benefit from the specific advantages of each wrapper.
Sources
impots.gouv.fr: taxation of PEA withdrawals after 5 years
impots.gouv.fr: taxation of withdrawals from a life insurance policy
France Assureurs: unit-linked life insurance in 2025
Amundi: completion of the Lyxor acquisition (December 2021)
Finary Life: list of unit-linked investment options
Regulatory disclaimers: Marketing communication. Investing carries a risk of partial or total capital loss. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. This article is provided for information and educational purposes only; it does not constitute personalised investment advice, a buy or sell recommendation, or tax advice. The capital guarantee on euro funds is provided by the insurer and depends on its financial strength. In a severe systemic crisis, the French "Sapin 2" law allows withdrawals to be temporarily restricted (liquidity), without affecting the guaranteed capital. Unit-linked funds are not guaranteed and carry a risk of capital loss. Before investing, read the Key Information Document (KID) and, where relevant, consult an authorised adviser. Finary SAS, an investment firm authorised by the ACPR (no. 19283), member of AMAFI. Insurance broker registered with ORIAS (no. 21001279), member of the CNCGP (association approved by the AMF). Crypto-Asset Service Provider (CASP) authorised by the AMF under the MiCA regime, references no. A2026-026 and no. N2026-008.
