All Bank of Ireland, Danske Bank and Ulster Bank paper £5 and £10 notes will be withdrawn from circulation in Northern Ireland on the 30th September 2019.
Polymer notes from these banks have been circulating since February 2019.
Separately First Trust Bank confirmed in February 2019 that they will cease their own note issuance by 30th June 2020 and will instead dispense Bank of England banknotes or sterling banknotes of equivalent value. First Trust Bank banknotes remain legal currency until 30th June 2022.
Issuing banks will continue to accept all Northern Ireland notes from their own customers. These can be either deposited into their bank account or exchanged for polymer notes. Bank of Ireland, Danske Bank and Ulster Bank have also agreed that they will exchange their own paper £5 and £10 notes from non-customers up to the value of £250.
Other banks, building societies and The Post Office may continue to accept and exchange Northern Ireland paper notes after 30th September.
The Association of Commercial Banknote Issuers (ACBI) say that polymer delivers significant benefits over paper, particularly when combined with state of the art security features which make the notes harder to counterfeit. Polymer is also stronger than paper and so notes will last longer, remain in better condition and deliver environmental benefits.
Therefore the ACBI is encouraging the general public to spend or exchange any paper £5 or £10 notes in advance of the deadline. A spokesperson confirmed: “The Northern Ireland noteissuing banks will continue to accept old paper based notes and there are currently no plans to change this.”
