Exchanging old banknotes

There is no deadline to exchange old banknotes with the Bank of England. But it is usually easier and quicker to exchange notes at your own bank or at the Post Office.
The Bank of England counter is open Monday to Friday, 9.30am to 3pm (excluding Bank Holidays). Last entry at 2.45pm.

Exchanging old notes at your UK bank

If you have a UK bank account, the easiest and quickest way to exchange old banknotes is to pay them into your bank account. 

Banks and building societies that accept old paper notes as deposits include:

  • Barclays 
  • Halifax 
  • Lloyds
  • Nationwide
  • NatWest
  • Santander 

 

Exchanging old notes at your UK bank

Exchanging old notes at the Post Office

The Post Office will accept most old notes as a deposit into any UK bank account you can access with them.

There are also 47 Post Office branches across the UK that will swap old banknotes, even if you do not have a bank account.

See the Post Office website to exchange withdrawn banknotes.

The Post Office is suitable for you if you:

  • have £300 or less
  • would like your money changed immediately 
  • do not have a UK bank account
  • have photo ID
  • have banknotes that look like those below

Featuring Elizabeth Fry

Featuring Charles Darwin

Featuring Adam Smith

Featuring Matthew Boulton and James Watt

Exchanging old notes by post

There is no deadline to exchange old banknotes with the Bank of England by post.

We are currently experiencing delays of up to 90 working days processing postal banknote exchanges.

Banknotes are sent at your own risk. So please take appropriate measures to insure against loss or theft.

Exchanging by post is suitable for you if:

  • you have very old banknotes that cannot be exchanged at the Post Office 
  • you would like the money paid into a personal or business account

We can reimburse you with:

  • cash (if you live in the UK and the amount is under £300)
  • a sterling cheque
  • an electronic payment to a bank account that accepts sterling payments 

We can only pay into accounts that accept sterling (GBP) and all payments are sent via SWIFT transfer. We do not charge for this service, but their intermediaries may charge you. 

What you need to do

  1. Individuals should fill in and print the banknote exchanges application form and businesses should fill in and print the business banknote exchanges application form.
  2. For exchanges over £700 and all business exchanges, enclose a copy of your photo ID and proof of your permanent address (even if this is outside of the UK) – see our acceptable Identification and proof of address documents
  3. Enclose supporting documents – this is very important for exchanges over £700 and for businesses exchanging with us by post 
  4. Send your money, identification and supporting documents to:

Dept NEX
Bank of England
Langston Road
Loughton
Essex
IG10 3TN 

  • We may ask you for identification (ID) and proof of address for an exchange of any value.

    Identity documents we accept are:

    • valid passport
    • valid photo card driving licence (full or provisional)
    • British residents’ permits
    • national identity card (if you are a non-UK national)
    • firearm or shotgun certificate.

    We accept the following as proof of address (permanent home address even if it is outside of the UK):

    • valid photo card driving licence (full or provisional) – if you haven’t used this as proof of ID
    • electoral register entry
    • utility bill or certificate from utility supplier (dated within the past six months)
    • Council Tax bill (dated within the past six months)
    • bank, building society or credit union statement or passbook (dated within the past six months)
    • recent mortgage statement
    • local council rent card or tenancy agreement
    • benefits book or letter from the benefits agency (dated within the past six months)
    • telephone bill (excluding mobile phones, dated within the past six months)
    • credit card bill (dated within the past six months)
    • HM Revenue and Customs tax notification (dated within the past six months)
    • Jobcentre Plus letter confirming your National Insurance number
  • In addition to the mandatory identification documents we require, some of the documents we may request are:

    If you are exchanging on behalf of a business:

    • An original letter of authority naming you and signed by a representative of the company on headed paper. The letter must contain the following:
      • The company name
      • Registered company number
      • Registered office in country of incorporation
      • Preferred type of payment
    • A copy of photo ID and proof of address for the representative who signed the letter.
    • Evidence you have tried to deposit these banknotes to a UK bank that is part of the Note Circulation Scheme (NCS).

    If the money forms part of an estate:

    • Provide a Will/ Grant of Probate
    • A copy of the death certificate

    If the money is a gift:

    • A signed letter from the person gifting you the money explaining how they accumulated the money
    • A copy of photo ID and proof of ID from the person gifting you the money
    • Evidence of the original source of the money

    If this is money you have earned and saved:

    • Provide bank statements showing your income and the money being withdrawn
    • Evidence of where you exchanged the money (if this money was not originally in pound sterling)
    • Proof of employment and income

    If you are exchanging on behalf of another individual:

    • A signed letter from the true owner of the money confirming you can exchange the money, the letter must include: 
      • Your name
      • The original source of the money
      • Preferred payment type
    • Photo ID and proof of address for the owner of the money
    • Evidence of how they obtained the money

    If you brought this money into the UK (even as a family or group) and the value is £10,000 or more:

    • A customs declaration form

How to contact us 

If you have any questions, you can contact us: 

King Charles III banknotes

There is no need to exchange current banknotes for the new King Charles III notes. Banknotes featuring the portrait of Her late Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, will remain legal tender, and can continue to be used. 

The Bank’s counter at our Threadneedle Street building will only issue Queen Elizabeth II banknotes.

Exchanging notes at the Bank of England

The Bank of England counter is open Monday to Friday, 9.30am to 3pm (excluding Bank Holidays). Last entry at 2.45pm.

There is no deadline to exchange old banknotes with the Bank of England.

Our counter can get very busy so we may issue you with a ticket to return at a later time on the same day. If you arrive after 12pm, you may not get served before we close at 3pm.

Our opening hours are Monday to Friday 9.30am until 3pm (we are closed on bank holidays). 

Before you arrive, you may want to find out about our accessibility and safety measures.

This option is suitable for you if you:

  • have very old banknotes that cannot be exchanged at the Post Office 
  • have a UK or overseas bank account
  • have more than £300
  • can present original photo ID and proof of address documents for your permanent residence (even if it is outside the UK) 
  • need the money back immediately (we cannot guarantee all customers will receive money back on the same day)

What we will ask you to do on the day

  1. Fill in a form (find out how we use your information).
  2. Tell the cashier how much money you are exchanging.
  3. Provide identification and proof of address.
  4. Explain the source of the money and provide supporting documents

What we will do

  1. Record your details in our system. 
  2. Review supporting documentation for the source of the money (if you cannot provide all of the required documents, you may not receive your money on the same day).
  3. We may ask you questions or ask for more information. We do these checks to comply with anti-money laundering and sanctions obligations. Please see our terms and conditions.
  4. Issue you with new banknotes or pay the money into your UK or overseas bank account (for overseas bank accounts that accept sterling payments). 
  • We may ask you for identification (ID) and proof of address for an exchange of any value.

    Identity documents we accept are:

    • valid passport
    • valid photo card driving licence (full or provisional)
    • British residents’ permits
    • national identity card (if you are a non-UK national)
    • firearm or shotgun certificate.

    We accept the following as proof of address (permanent home address even if it is outside of the UK):

    • valid photo card driving licence (full or provisional) – if you haven’t used this as proof of ID
    • electoral register entry
    • utility bill or certificate from utility supplier (dated within the past six months)
    • Council Tax bill (dated within the past six months)
    • bank, building society or credit union statement or passbook (dated within the past six months)
    • recent mortgage statement
    • local council rent card or tenancy agreement
    • benefits book or letter from the benefits agency (dated within the past six months)
    • telephone bill (excluding mobile phones, dated within the past six months)
    • credit card bill (dated within the past six months)
    • HM Revenue and Customs tax notification (dated within the past six months)
    • Jobcentre Plus letter confirming your National Insurance number
  • In addition to the mandatory identification documents we require, some of the documents we may request are:

    If you are exchanging on behalf of a business:

    • An original letter of authority naming you and signed by a representative of the company on headed paper. The letter must contain the following:
      • The company name
      • Registered company number
      • Registered office in country of incorporation
      • Preferred type of payment
    • A copy of photo ID and proof of address for the representative who signed the letter.
    • Evidence you have tried to deposit these banknotes to a UK bank that is part of the Note Circulation Scheme (NCS).

    If the money forms part of an estate:

    • Provide a Will/ Grant of Probate
    • A copy of the death certificate

    If the money is a gift:

    • A signed letter from the person gifting you the money explaining how they accumulated the money
    • A copy of photo ID and proof of ID from the person gifting you the money
    • Evidence of the original source of the money

    If this is money you have earned in your job and saved (including for a previous visit to the UK):

    • Provide bank statements showing your income and the money being withdrawn from your bank
    • Evidence of where you exchanged the money (if this money was not originally in pound sterling)
    • Proof of employment and income

    If you are exchanging on behalf of another individual:

    • A signed letter from the true owner of the money confirming you can exchange the money, the letter must include: 
      • Your name
      • The original source of the money
      • Preferred payment type
    • Photo ID and proof of address for the owner of the money
    • Evidence of how they obtained the money

    If you brought this money into the UK (even as a family or group) and the value is £10,000 or more:

    • A customs declaration form
Security measures are in place and access will usually only be permitted to the individual who is exchanging banknotes, we will ask members of your party or family to wait outside the building. We ask that you do not bring large bags with you and your bags will be searched. We request that liquids, bikes, scooters and motorcycle or bike helmets are not brought into the building.

Additional information

This page was last updated 06 September 2024