If you are lucky enough to have a bundle of old £20 or £50 paper notes stuffed under your mattress, you need to act fast this week to get them banked.
Friday 30th September is last day the Bank of England’s old-style £20 and £50 notes will be legal tender. They, along with £5 and £10 notes have now been replaced by the polymer versions.
£11bn of paper notes in circulation
The Bank of England say there are more than 250m individual £20 banknotes, and more than 110m paper £50 banknotes still in circulation. They add,
“You may be able to deposit withdrawn notes at your own bank or with the Post Office.
“Alternatively, you can exchange withdrawn banknotes with selected Post Office branches or with the Bank of England.”
Missed the deadline?
If you miss the chance to deposit or change your bank notes before Friday certain Post Offices (not on the IW) will continue to allow you to pay the old paper notes (including old £5 and £10 notes) into any bank account you can access through the Post Office.
The closest one to offer that service is in Portsmouth (Slindon Street, near the Portsmouth and Southsea Railway Station).
For full details of other Post Offices on the mainland that offer the service, see the Bank of England Website.
Image: Tax Rebate under CC BY 2.0
