30 September 2021

The Bank of England will be withdrawing the legal tender status of the paper £20 and £50 notes after September 30, 2022.

There are approximately £9 billion worth of paper £20 and £15 billion worth of paper £50 notes still in circulation. As they are returned to the Bank of England, these are being replaced with the new polymer £20 notes featuring J.M.W. Turner and polymer £50 notes featuring Alan Turing. After 30 September 2022, the new polymer notes will be the only ones with legal tender status.

The Bank is encouraging anyone who has these at home to spend or deposit them at their bank or Post Office well ahead of next September.

 

Nevertheless, businesses should expect to receive paper £20 and £50 notes right up to the final date, so make sure any employees handling cash stay trained on how to check these. We've got a guide on that here

After September 30, 2022, businesses (and individuals) with a UK bank account will still be able to deposit withdrawn notes into their account. Some Post Offices may also accept withdrawn notes as payment for goods and services or as a deposit to an account accessed via them. 

 The Bank of England will continue to exchange all withdrawn notes. Here's some more information

Scottish and Northern Ireland banknotes

  • Bank of Scotland and Royal Bank of Scotland have also issued new polymer £50 notes. Both of these issuers, as well as Clydesdale Bank, will withdraw their paper £20 and £50 banknotes on the same date as the Bank of England, i.e September 30, 2022. 
  • For more information about Scottish and Northern Ireland notes, visit https://www.acbi.org.uk/banknotes.html.

Additional resources and guidance