There has been a rapid growth in the counterfeiting of euro banknotes and coins since the launch of the currency in 2002. In 2003, 551,287 fake euro notes and 26,191 bogus euro coins were removed from EU circulation. In 2004, French police seized fake 10 euro and 20 euro notes worth a total of around €1.8 million from two laboratories and estimated that 145,000 notes had already entered circulation.

Many shops and bars will not accept notes of more than 50e, so you may want to get these changed in a bank.

As Joe Mendy found out, (see the news October 3rd 2007)  it is your responsibility to ensure that the notes that you use to pay for goods are genuine, but how can you tell?

Ridged detail: Every note has a small dark patch which is ridged. These are located in the top centre of the note to the left of the large number indicating the value of the note. Run your fingernail across this patch and you should feel the ridges.

 

Holograms: the €5, €10 and €20 notes carry a holographic band to the right of the front side. This band is imprinted with the note's denomination; e.g., "€5 €5 €5...." in the case of the five-euro note.

In the case of the €50 notes and higher, the band is replaced with a holographic decal.

Variable colour ink appears on the lower right corner of back side of the €50 and higher. When observed from different angles, the colour varies between purple and green.

Registration: The note denomination in the upper-left corner of the front of each note is printed incompletely, as is the denomination in the upper-right corner of the back. When held up to the light, this denomination is visible in its entirety. Genuine notes will exhibit perfect alignment (or 'registration') between the front and back. If the note has been printed incorrectly, i.e. by a counterfeiter, these numbers may appear poorly aligned.