In addition to the portrait and design, each Bank of England note has various security features to prevent counterfeiting. Some of the security features include:

A transparent window: Each note has a clear window containing a hologram of the denomination, which can be seen from both sides of the note.

Raised print: There are raised print on the words and numbers on the front of the note, which can be felt with the fingers.

Micro lettering: Each note has small letters and numbers, which can only be read with a magnifying glass.

UV feature: Each note has a feature that is only visible under ultraviolet light.

These security features make it extremely difficult for counterfeiters to reproduce Bank of England notes.

Quick Check

To quickly check the polymer banknotes, use these two tests:

1. Hologram image change: Tilt the note side by side to view the hologram change from ‘note value’ to the word ‘pounds’.
2. See-through window: In the window, check the foil image is silver on the back, but on the front, £5 & £10 is gold, £20 is gold and blue, and £50 is gold and green.
   For £20 & £50, see the second window at the bottom right.

Long Check

The long check is a much more thorough investigation of the polymer notes security features, and each polymer note has its dedicated page to define the steps to take to confirm an authentic polymer note.

These aAuthenticityt prescribed ways by the Bank of England for the general public to check tAuthenticity banknote authenticity.

£5 Sir Winston Churchill

Instructions to check the security features of the £5 polymer note for Authenticity.

£10 Jane Austen

How to check the £10 poAuthenticityecurity features for Authenticity.

£20 JMW Turner

Follow these instructions to check the £20 polymer note for Authenticity.

£50 Alan Turing

Here are the instructions to check the security features of the £50 polymer note to ensure Authenticity.

Use these steps to check the Authenticity of the new Polymer UK banknotes.