Are you visiting England this year? Are you planning on bringing some English banknotes from a previous UK holiday with you? If so - be careful! Since September 2016 the old paper English banknotes have gradually been replaced with new notes that are printed on plastic. One of the reasons for this change is to allow enhanced security features to stop counterfeiting.
Why does this matter? Well, after a certain period of time - the old paper banknotes cease to be legal tender so you will not be able to use them in the UK. This already applies to the £5 and the £10 - the £5 paper banknote ceased to be legal tender on the 5th May 2017 and the £10 paper banknote ceased to be legal tender on 1st March 2018. If you possess such notes you can only deposit them into a UK bank account or exchange them in person at the Bank of England or by posting them to the Bank of England!
A number of guests on my tours this Summer brought old £5 and £10 notes with them not realising that this was the situation, so I hope this blog post helps!
You can still use the paper £20 and paper £50 banknotes but after the 30th September they will cease to be legal tender too. If you find you have some left over at the end of your holiday - be sure to spend them!
For more information on exchanging old banknotes you can visit the Bank of England website here.
If you go on one of my Bath tours I will tell you about some other interesting stories regarding the English banknotes!