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Listen nowTime is running out to use paper £20 and £50 notes
Millions of paper notes will no longer be legal tender after 30 September 2022
There's only a few days left to either spend or swap old paper £20 and £50 notes, as they will no longer be legal tender after the end of this month.
After 30 September, you won’t be able to spend these notes in shops, or use them to pay businesses.
The Guardian recently reported that long queues had been forming outside the Bank of England in London, where people are keen to swap their old notes before the deadline.
Paper £20 and £50 notes issued by Bank of Scotland, Clydesdale Bank and Royal Bank of Scotland will also be withdrawn on the same date. The same goes for the paper £20 notes issued by AIB Group, Bank of Ireland, Danske Bank and Ulster Bank in Northern Ireland.
Here, Which? outlines four key things you need to know about the change.
1. Don't panic if you have old notes
If you have old paper notes, the Bank of England says you should either use them or deposit them at your bank or at a Post Office before 30 September.
From 1 October, only polymer notes will be accepted in shops, restaurants or anywhere else that takes cash.
If you miss the 30 September deadline, you might still be able to deposit old notes at your bank or at a Post Office branch - their policies can vary, so it might be best to check beforehand.
If not, don’t panic: the Bank of England honours every banknote that's ever been printed, so you'll always be able to take or post your note to its London office to swap it for a new one, even after it's gone out of circulation.
Its address is:
Bank of England,
Threadneedle Street,
London, EC2R 8AH.
If you're thinking of visiting the Bank of England ahead of the 30 September deadline, note that you might be stuck in a long queue.
2. These are the last paper notes in circulation
If you’re not sure what they look like, the paper £20 note – which first came into circulation in 2007 – features a picture of economist Adam Smith. The paper £50 note features portraits of 18th century entrepreneur Matthew Boulton and engineer James Watt. That’s been around since 2011.
These are the last paper notes currently available to spend in the UK. Both paper £5 and £10 notes have already made the transition to polymer.
The paper £20 note started being taken out of circulation in 2020, with paper £50 notes slowly being withdrawn in 2021.
The new polymer £20 note features painter JMW Turner, celebrating the contribution of the arts to British culture. The new £50 note features code-breaking computer scientist Alan Turing – and here are eight things you need to know about it.
3. Polymer notes have lots of advantages
The Bank of England says that not only are polymer notes stronger, more water resistant and cleaner than their paper counterparts, the material they're made from allows for enhanced security features, such as see-through windows and holograms. This makes them more difficult to counterfeit than paper notes.
The polymer bank notes also have tactile features that make them easier for the blind and partially sighted to use.
Once all paper £20 and £50 notes have been replaced, it will make the UK the world’s largest economy that uses only plastic-like banknotes.
- Find out more: why the Royal Mint decided it's time for a change
4. Some notes could be more valuable
Unfortunately, the majority of banknotes – even those that no longer have legal tender status – are only worth their face value.
That doesn't mean some notes aren’t more valuable than others.
The key feature to look out for is the serial number, which indicates when it was printed. Each time a new design enters circulation, the serial number changes to AA01 000001. Notes numbered close to that have been known to fetch large sums at auction.
But before you start trying to find one of these prized collectors items, be warned: the Bank of England tends to hold back some of the first printed notes with especially low or symbolic serial numbers.
Instead of releasing them into circulation, it donates these to people and institutions that were involved in the development of the note, or who traditionally receive a note when a new series is issued.
Notes with low serial numbers are also often up for grabs at charity auctions.
Because it’s been a while since both the paper and polymer notes first entered circulation, it’s unlikely that you’ll find these rare bills now. Although you might have more luck finding the last £20 or £50 paper note ever printed. In this case, you’ll need to look out for the highest serial number instead of the lowest.
Other features that push up the value are errors and serial numbers with unusual combinations. For example, memorable dates, repeated number patterns or lucky numbers.
- Find out more: how to spot a valuable banknote
This story was first published on 30 June 2022. It was last updated on 22 September, to remind anyone who still has old paper notes of the impending deadline.
