Decision (EU) 2025/2182 of the European Central Bank of 16 October 2025 amending Decision ECB/2010/14 on the authenticity and fitness checking and recirculation of euro banknotes (ECB/2025/36)

• CELEX: Decision (EU) 2025/2182
• Articles: 3

Article 1 Amendments

Decision ECB/2010/14 is amended as follows:

(1)

Article 5 is replaced by the following:

‘Article 5

Detection of counterfeit euro banknotes

Suspect counterfeit euro banknotes and euro banknotes that are not clearly authenticated following classification carried out in accordance with Annex IIa or IIb or following manual authenticity checking by a trained staff member shall immediately, in line with national regulations and in any case within a maximum of 20 working days, be handed over by cash handlers to the competent national authorities or to the NCB, respectively. Suspect counterfeit euro banknotes shall be handed over together with all available information related to the account holder.’

;

(2)

Annexes IIa and IIb are amended in accordance with the Annex to this Decision.

Article 2 Final provisions

1.   This Decision shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union .

2.   Cash handlers of Member States that adopt the euro following the date of adoption of this Decision shall apply it from the date of adoption of the euro.

Schedules & Appendices

ANNEX

ANNEX

Annexes IIa and IIb to Decision ECB/2010/14 are amended as follows:

(1)

Annex IIa is amended as follows:

(a)

the following paragraph 4 is added under Table 1, under the heading ‘Specific rules regarding Table 1:’:

‘4.

NCBs may authorise, after consulting the competent national authorities, the reprocessing of category 2 euro banknotes by cash handlers. Such authorisation must be duly published by the NCB. Category 2 euro banknotes may therefore only be reprocessed by cash handlers where the NCB of their Member State has authorised reprocessing. The reprocessing must comply with the following rules.

Category 2 euro banknotes may be reprocessed on any successfully tested type of banknote handling machine. These banknotes are then treated as having been classified by the second banknote handling machine, according to the rules laid down in Table 1. By derogation from the rules laid down in Table 1, original category 2 euro banknotes classified as category 4a euro banknotes by the second banknote handling machine must not be used for recirculation. Original category 2 euro banknotes classified as category 4a or category 4b euro banknotes by the second banknote handling machine must be handed over to the NCB promptly after they have been reprocessed and classified by the second banknote handling machine.’;

(b)

the following paragraph 4 is added under Table 2, under the heading ‘Specific rules regarding Table 2:’:

‘4.

NCBs may authorise, after consulting the competent national authorities, the reprocessing of category 2 euro banknotes by cash handlers. Such authorisation must be duly published by the NCB. Category 2 euro banknotes may only be reprocessed by cash handlers where the NCB of their Member State has authorised reprocessing. The reprocessing must comply with the following rules.

Category 2 euro banknotes may be reprocessed on any successfully tested type of banknote handling machine. These banknotes are then treated as having been classified by the second banknote handling machine, according to the rules laid down in Table 2. By derogation from the rules laid down in Table 2, the traceability of the original category 2 euro banknotes to the original account holder (if available) also needs to be maintained in case these banknotes are classified by the second banknote handling machine as category 3 euro banknotes. Furthermore, original category 2 euro banknotes classified as category 4a euro banknotes by the second banknote handling machine must not be used for recirculation. Original category 2 euro banknotes classified as category 4a or category 4b euro banknotes by the second banknote handling machine must be handed over to the NCB promptly after they have been reprocessed and classified by the second banknote handling machine.’;

(2)

in Annex IIb, in Table 1, under the column ‘Treatment’, second row, the sentence ‘These are processed separately and handed over for final authentication to the competent national authorities immediately, at the latest 20 working days after processing by the machine’ is replaced by ‘These are processed separately and handed over for final authentication to the competent national authorities immediately, at the latest 20 working days after processing by the machine, together with information related to the account holder, if available.’.