Paper £5 Note (Elizabeth Fry) - Security Features

Security Features | Design Features

£5 Front £5 back

We currently have two £5 notes in circulation: the paper £5 note featuring Elizabeth Fry and the polymer £5 note featuring Sir Winston Churchill. You can continue to spend paper £5 notes as usual until 5 May 2017. After this they will cease to be legal tender.

Feel of the paper - banknotes are printed on special paper that gives them their unique feel.

Raised print - by running your finger across the front of the £5 note you can feel raised print in areas such as the words 'Bank of England'.

Metallic thread - there is a metallic thread embedded in every banknote. This appears as silver dashes on the back of the £5 note. If you hold the note up to the light the metallic thread will appear as a continous dark line.

Watermark - hold the £5 note up to the light and you will see an image of the Queen’s portrait.

Print Quality - the printed lines and colours on the £5 note are sharp, clear and free from smudges or blurred edges.

Microlettering - using a magnifying glass, look closely at the lettering beneath the Queen’s portrait on the £5 note - you will see the value of the note written in small letters and numbers.

Ultra-violet feature - if you look at the front of the £5 note under a good quality ultra-violet light, the number 5 appears in bright red and green whilst the background remains dull in contrast.

Hologram - there is a hologram on the foil patch on the front of the £5 note. If you tilt the note, the image will change between a brightly coloured picture of Britannia and the number 5.