Bank of Canada updates progress on new $20 note

On the first anniversary of the coronation of His Majesty King Charles III, the Bank of Canada issued a progress update on designing a new $20 bank note.

As announced by the government at the coronation, the new note will feature King Charles III as the portrait subject. The back will continue to feature the Canadian National Vimy Memorial. The new note will be vertical like the current $10 note, made of polymer and primarily green in colour, the Bank said today.

The Bank will incorporate enhanced security features into the redesigned $20 note, which will keep Canada one step ahead of counterfeiting threats.

“The $20 bank note is Canada’s workhorse note—more than a billion are circulating in pockets, cash registers and ATMs across the country,” said Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem. “Cash remains an important payment method, and we’re looking forward to issuing a new $20 note that Canadians can continue to use with confidence.”

The process of issuing new notes involves several steps: research and development, design – including security features – and, finally, production. The Bank expects the new $20 note to be issued in early 2027.

In the meantime, the current $20 note, which was first issued in 2012 and which features the portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, will continue to circulate.

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Additional information

• The current Frontiers Series $20 note featuring Queen Elizabeth II was issued on November 7, 2012. A commemorative version of the $20 marking Queen Elizabeth II’s historic reign was issued on September 9, 2015.
• The $20 is the denomination with the highest circulation volume. There were over 1 billion $20 notes in circulation at the end of 2023.
• Queen Elizabeth II first appeared on Canadian currency as 8-year-old Princess Elizabeth on the First Series $20 note, in 1935.
• Canada’s Head of State has appeared in every series of bank notes since the Bank took on responsibility for issuing the country’s bank notes in 1935.
• Under the Bank of Canada Act, the Minister of Finance approves the ‘form and material’ of bank notes, including the portrait subject and other images.