The US Government has NOT Banned Dollar Notes Printed Before 2021!

Social media is buzzing with rumours that the USA is going to have its own ‘notebandi’ (demonization) moment next year. It has been widely claimed that the US government has decided to not accept dollar notes printed before 2021 from January next year.

We found that as with many things on the internet, this was just another baseless speculation.

WHAT’S THE CLAIM?

Many users have tweeted that “after 31 January 2023, older dollar notes printed before 2021 will no longer be a legal tender anywhere in the world.”

Some websites also reported the same. Observer Times claims that the decision to reject older dollar notes was taken after the meeting between the US Federal Reserve Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank, and Governors of Africa’s Central Banks.

The news report further claims that “this effort is to curb billions of illegal monies in dollar bills warehoused around African continent emanating from drug-related, terrorism, kidnapping and money from corrupt politicians.”

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These claims were shared among WhatsApp users as well.

FACT-CHECK

First, we checked whether such a decision was really taken or not by the US government.

Given the gravity and magnitude of the decision, it would have been reported and discussed all over the news media. But we did not find a single credible news report on the rumoured decision of this so-called demonetization drive in the USA.

We even checked US Federal Reserve Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank, and various Central Banks from Africa and found no such announcement.

The absence of any reporting about the viral claim raises the question of its authenticity.

The US Currency Notes System

The Department of the Treasury operates and maintains the production of coins and currency in the US. It also does not have any update on this speculative ban on older dollar bills.

The US Currency Education Program (CEP) clearly states that it is U.S. government policy that all designs of US currency remain legal tender, regardless of when they were issued.

The Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) has the responsibility of developing and producing US currency notes. The US currently issues $1, $2, $5, $10, $20, $50, and $100 notes. You can read the full history of US currency here.

In the FAQ section of its website, the US Federal Reserve Bank advises that “people do not have to trade in your old-design notes for new ones.”

In other words, older notes remain in circulation even after new notes are issued.

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CONCLUSION

Hence, it is false news that the US government has banned older dollar notes printed before 2021. The viral claims and reports are baseless and merely speculative rumours. The US government has not announced or taken any such decision.

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