Only new banknote series may be used starting Jan. 1

NEW GENERATION CURRENCY

BSP: New Design Series banknotes can still be exchanged for New Generation Currency till Dec. 31, 2016

With only one week to go before the year ends, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reminded the public that old peso bills from the New Design Series will no longer be accepted as payment starting January 1.

The old bills may, however, be exchanged for the New Generation Currency banknotes in banks and Bangko Sentral offices until December 31, 2016.

By Jan. 1, 2017, the NDS banknotes will no longer have any monetary value and will be fully phased out.

Leonides B. Sumbi, Bangko Sentral Cebu director, said some 432 million pieces of the old banknote series were still in circulation as of September 30.

There should be fewer old bills now and these are probably being circulated among overseas Filipinos or in remote areas without access to any bank, Sumbi said.

She cited a man from Bohol, who had to bring his old notes in bulk to the Bangko Sentral office in Cebu for exchange into the new bills.

Sumbi said most people in far-flung areas prefer to save all the old notes and exchange these in bulk to save time and money in going to the nearest bank.

Sumbi also noted that overseas Filipinos keep a minimal amount of Philippine banknotes in anticipation of their trip home.

Banks will not charge any fee for the exchange. Consumers can also ask for other denominations equivalent to the value of the banknote/s they are having exchanged. No floor or ceiling amount is required.

Sumbi said that Philippine banks have already been instructed to “be fair to all” and serve non-depositors as well.

The old 5-peso and 10-peso bills, which have been out of circulation for some time, are technically still legal tender and can also be exchanged for the new banknotes.

Special Considerations

The Bangko Sentral will be putting up a website for registration of special cases on Oct. 1,2016.

For people out of the country, they can register between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31,2016.  They will be required to provide certification that they are really out of the country during this period of time.

“You are out of the country, you are not in a position to go to a Philippine bank and have it exchanged to the New Generation Currency,” Sumbi said. However, they can only exchange a maximum of P10,000 per person.

They are also given one year from the time of registration to have their bills exchanged. For example, registrants on Oct. 25, 2016 can have their bills exchanged until Oct. 25, 2017.

For people whose bills are used as exhibits in court cases, they can register at the website and have the bills exchanged after the case has been decided.

Pipeline

The demonetization of Philippine coins is also being planned for next year, but it will not be simultaneously done with the banknotes to prevent confusion, Sumbi said.

So far, no timeline has been identified.