A legal tender is a form of money recognized by a court of law. What constitutes legal tender varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. It can be anything that extinguishes a debt. In short, anything that can be used to pay a debt is considered legal tender. However, there are several types of legal tender.
Coins
In the coin industry, you may have heard the term “coins as legal tender.” But what does this term actually mean? What is the difference between coins that have zero intrinsic value and coins that have legal tender status? Coins that have legal tender status can only be accepted by the person who accepts them, and are therefore considered legal tender by the courts.
There are two types of legal tender coins: commemorative coins and “bullion coins”. Bullion coins are more commonly used as legal tender, including the Maple Leaf, Silver Eagle, and US Mint Silver Eagle. The face value of a coin does not reflect its precious metal content, which usually has a higher value.
Banknotes
A legal tender banknote is a banknote with a legal value that is accepted in the same way as cash. Using legal tender for a transaction is an advantage that helps ensure a smooth transaction. Legal tender is used to settle debts between parties in a transaction. Banknotes, coins, and cards are examples of legal tender.
Some countries have a unique legal tender banknote for their currency. The United Kingdom, for example, has two denominations of one pound. The first is the one that honors Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell, who discovered pulsars in 1967 and was awarded the Nobel Prize for physics the following year.
Non-circulating legal tender coins
Non-circulating legal tender coins are coins that are not circulated in their country. However, they are legal tender and may be used to make purchases in the country of issue. Many of these coins have special designs and are minted in limited quantities, making them good souvenirs. They are also more valuable than the face value because of the metal content of the coins. Whether you plan to use them as legal tender or as souvenirs, you must know how to identify these coins.
While the US government does not circulate the coins, they are considered collectibles that can be traded for real money. In the UK, legal tender coins can be used as a form of settlement for court debts. In 2007, a lawsuit was filed over unreported wages that were paid in bullion coins. Because the face value of the coins fell below the threshold for taxation, workers did not feel obligated to report their earnings.
Federal reserve notes
Federal reserve notes are currency notes issued by the Federal Reserve Banks. They were first introduced in 1913 and have largely replaced all other forms of paper currency in the United States. Because these notes are made of cotton and linen, they have no inherent value in the raw material, and are backed only by the government’s declaration that they are legal tender in the U.S.
The Federal Reserve has been redesigning their notes to make them easier to use and harder to counterfeit. The older designs are still safe because they have security features, including watermarks and color-shifting ink.
Reserve bank of India banknotes
The RBI is the sole issuing authority of banknotes in India. Each rupee banknote has a distinct serial number and prefix of letters and numerals. They are issued in packets of 100 pieces. These banknotes have security features, such as a windowed security thread and microprinting. They are also marked with the name of the issuing authority and the Ashoka Pillar emblem.
The Reserve Bank of India will continue to allow the public to exchange their old banknotes after July 1, 2011. It has reiterated that these old banknotes are legal tender. This decision caused some speculation that the RBI was trying to crack down on black money.
