Look for a small circle with diamond-shaped patterns. If you hold the banknote up to the light, the diamond shapes should align perfectly to form a seven-pointed star inside the circle. While you still have the banknote held to the light, you should also be able to see the Australia Coat of Arms under the print.
The first two numbers of the prefix, which indicate the year the banknote was produced, are the same for all banknotes printed in the same year. All banknotes on a sheet will have the same suffix, which decreases by one from one sheet to the next.
Banknotes have fine line patterns on each side and are multi-coloured. If you hold the note to the light you can see the Australian Coat of Arms. Feel - Genuine banknotes are: Printed on polymer (plastic) and have a distinctive feel.
The official 'RBA Banknotes' app is an interactive tool for exploring all current Australian banknotes, including the new $5 issued in 2016, the new $10 issued in 2017, the new $50 issued in 2018, the new $20 issued in 2019 and the new $100 issued in 2020.
Diamond-shaped patterns printed on each side of the banknote, should combine perfectly to form a seven-pointed star, inside a circle. You can see this when you hold the banknote up to the light. And, while you're there, you can also see the shadow image of the Australian Coat of Arms.
Hold the note to light to see an embedded thread running vertically to the left of the portrait. The thread is imprinted with the letters USA and the numeral 100 in an alternating pattern and is visible from both sides of the note. The thread glows pink when illuminated by ultraviolet light.
Serial Number
A unique combination of eleven numbers and letters appears twice on the front of the note. Each note has a unique serial number. The first letter of the serial number corresponds to the series year.
We Sell Rare Australian $100 Polymer Banknotes
Some notes can be particularly valuable with the right serial numbers or if in mint condition, the rarest polymer 100 dollar bill can reach up to $2,750 each.
The Reserve Bank of Australia has estimated that approximately 19 million one dollar notes are still in circulation, so most Australian 1 dollar notes are still only worth a dollar each.
Generally, the more unique the serial number on your dollar bill, the more likely it is to be worth more than face value. Some examples of uniqueness include repeating numbers, numbers with a star after them and sequences (such as 12345678).
Sites like Heritage Auctions might give you some idea of the value if you own bills worth more than face value. Heritage Auctions touts itself as the world's largest numismatic auctioneer. Coin World is another website that might be able to give you an idea of what your bills are worth.
While rare serial numbers often generate interest, banknotes will only ever be worth their face value to us.
The Reserve Bank, and most commercial banks, will redeem old Australian banknotes at face value. If you take your old banknotes to a commercial bank they may exchange them for current banknotes.
Low Serial Numbers are quite popular to collect, paper money collectors usually look out for any number below 100, or even 1,000 as they're the most desirable of the low serial numbers. Such as any number below 00001000, or 00000100.
Some Australian 2 dollar notes can be particularly valuable with certain serial numbers or if they are in mint condition. Values can reach up to $5,000 for the rarest old Australian two dollar bill. Many non-collectors think it is crazy that 2 Australian dollars might be worth that much money!
We Sell Rare Australian $100 Paper Banknotes
Paper $100 notes were issued from 1984 up until they were replaced in 1996. Some notes can be particularly valuable with the right serial numbers or if in mint condition, reaching up to $600 for the rarest notes.
One of the most valuable dollar bill variations in the world, called a “ladder” in collector's parlance, could be worth about $6,000, according to the Penny Hoarder website: “When the serial number ascends (e.g. 12345678) or descends (e.g. 8765431) in order, collectors call it a ladder.
In fact, while a normal $1 star note sells for about $3, a duplicate print run star note typically sells for $15 - $20. There is a situation, however, where these bills can be worth much more than that. Only a few pairs of the same serial numbers have been put together.
The Australian one-dollar note was introduced in 1966 due to decimalisation, to replace the 10-shilling note. The note was issued from its introduction in 1966 until its replacement by the one-dollar coin in 1984. Approximately 1.7 billion one-dollar notes were printed.
Curiously, despite $100 notes being considered relatively "rare", RBA data indicates they make up 22 per cent of all Australian banknotes currently in use. The $50 note is the most prevalent, comprising 48 per cent of all banknotes in circulation.
Vintage $100 bills can make a valuable addition to any collection. These bills feature interesting historical figures and unique designs, and some can even be worth thousands of dollars due to printing errors or rarity.
Have it Back incorporates nearly all freely available serial numbers. Utilizing this database, you can verify before or after purchasing an item if said object has been marked as missing or stolen.
Fake bills may have serial numbers that are not evenly spaced or that are not perfectly aligned in a row. If you received multiple suspicious bills, see if the serial numbers are the same on both bills. If they are the same, then they are counterfeit notes.