New €20 Note

Third in ‘Europa Series’ of banknotes, offering enhanced security features

New portrait window is an innovation in banknote technology

Notes can be checked using Feel, Look, Tilt method

The new €20 banknote will start circulating across Ireland and the euro area from tomorrow, 25 November.

The note is the third in the ‘Europa series’ of banknotes. It is the same size and is similar in appearance to the existing note, but has a number of new security features. These features are also present on the Europa Series €5 and €10, and can be easily checked using the ‘Feel, Look and Tilt’ method. They include:

• a portrait watermark of the Greek goddess Europa;
• raised lines along the sides of the note;
• a shiny emerald colour number; and
• a portrait hologram of Europa.

In addition to these, the new €20 has an additional security feature, known as the portrait window. When you look at the banknote against the light, the window near the top of the hologram becomes transparent and reveals a portrait of Europa, and rainbow-coloured lines, on both sides of the note.

When the banknote is tilted, rainbow-coloured lines appear around the value numeral and in the window on the back of the banknote.

Notes

For further details on the new €20 note and the Europa series of banknotes, visit the Central Bank of Ireland's dedicated page here, or the ECB's website www.new-euro-banknotes.ie.

• The existing €20 note remains legal tender, and the new €20 will circulate alongside it.
• The Central Bank of Ireland has actively engaged with stakeholders to support them in their efforts to be ready for this banknote, including by offering training, facilitating banknote borrowing, and hosting an information seminar.
• English- and Irish-language information leaflets on the note are available, and we also have braille and audio versions. You can email euroseries2@centralbank.ie to request copies.

About the euro

• Euro banknotes and coins have been in circulation since January 2002.
• The total number of €20 banknotes in circulation in the euro area was 3.2 billion as at end-October 2015.
• 18.1 billion banknotes were in circulation with a €1,053.8 billion face value (as at end-October 2015).
• The total net issuance of €20 banknotes in Ireland at end-October 2015 was 21.7 million banknotes.

Security features

The note is easy to check using the FEEL, LOOK and TILT approach.

FEEL

Feel of the paper – Feel the banknote. It is crisp and firm.

Raised print – the main image, the lettering and the large value numeral feel thicker.

What’s new - On the new banknote, there is a series of short raised lines on the left and right edges.

LOOK

Portrait – Look at the banknote against the light. A faint image showing the value of the banknote and a window becomes visible.

What’s new? – On the new banknote, a portrait of Europa is also visible.
Security Thread - Look at the banknote against the light. The security thread appears as a dark stripe and the value of the banknote can be seen in tiny white lettering.

What’s new? - The € symbol can be seen in the security thread on the new banknote, while the word ‘EURO’ appears in the banknotes of the first series.

TILT

Hologram - Tilt the banknote. The silvery stripe on the right reveals the value of the banknote and the € symbol.

What’s new – Portrait hologram on the new banknote, a portrait of Europa and a window also appear.

Emerald number - tilt the banknote. On the new banknote, the shiny number in the bottom left corner displays an effect of the light that moves up and down. The number also changes colour from emerald green to deep blue.