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Answers to commonly asked questions about our online exchange service for your leftover currency.

You can exchange your leftover foreign coins and banknotes for cash in 3 easy steps:

Step 1: Discover which currencies you can exchange. We exchange leftover cash for more than 50 different currencies, both circulating and obsolete. The complete list of exchangeable currencies and exchange rates is here.

Step 2: Choose one of these two options:

  1. Print out the exchange form. Fill in your details. Choose a payment method and payout currency. Sign and date the exchange form.
  2. No printer needed: Click on the currency you want to exchange. Add the banknotes and coins you have to your online wallet. Repeat for each currency you have. The wallet shows how much cash you will receive. When ready, click on ‘Cash in now’. Confirm your currencies. Fill in your details online. Choose a payment method and confirm. Make a note of the reference number.

Step 3: Send your currency by post to our office. Include your filled out paper exchange form OR include your reference number written on a piece of paper. Our address is:

LOC
Unit 1 Portland Business Centre
Manor House Lane
Datchet SL3 9EG
United Kingdom

We recommend using a recorded/tracked delivery service such as Royal Mail Signed For. You can also self-deliver your currency: Either to our Datchet office or to our central London office, located near Oxford Circus on the 3rd floor of 207 Regent Street, London W1B 3HH.

Upon receipt we will send you a confirmation email, and pay the exchange value via your selected payment method.

Not long! We aim to get you paid within 5 working days or less, starting from the day of receipt.

It takes us 1-3 days to process your currency. Processing involves opening the post, counting, checking security features, sorting, sending the confirmation email, storage and data entry. We do this in batches. We start a new batch every second working day.

Next we get you paid. The time for a payment to come through depends on the selected payment method:

  • Payments by PayPal come through instantly.
  • UK Bank Transfers take 1 working day to come through.
  • International bank transfers take 1-4 working days to come through. 
  • Cheque payments for £10 and more are sent by First Class mail. They arrive in 1 working day. 
  • Cheque payments for less than £10 are sent by Second Class mail. They arrive in 2-3 working days. 

The majority of our customers receive payment within 5 working days. Should there be a delay for whatever reason, we will contact you.

You can find our internet leading exchange rates here. We use these exchange rates to calculate payout.

  • If you use the online wallet, the payout amount is shown. We fix the exchange rates for 14 days. If we get your currency later than this, we’ll use the exchange rates on the day we process it.
  • If you use the paper exchange form, we’ll use the exchange rates on the day we process your currency.

Our currency pages have a currency calculator. These will allow you to see how much cash you will receive for your leftover currency, at current exchange rates. For example, check out our Spanish pesetas banknote page.

We don’t charge any fees or commission. You will receive payout based on our exchange rates shown here.

Our overheads and margins are covered by the so-called spread between the mid-market exchange rate and our buy exchange rate. This is the same business model used by every bureau de change.

For currency types that are more difficult to exchange, for example foreign coins, the spread between the mid-market exchange rate and our buy exchange rate is typically higher than for types of currency that are more easy to exchange. Still, our buy exchange rates are the best rates for foreign coins and obsolete notes on the Internet. We monitor this daily. In the unlikely event of finding a better buy exchange rate for foreign coins or obsolete banknotes elsewhere, please let us know.

We don’t charge fees, but some of the third party payment institutions we work with may charge you a fee:

  • PayPal charges a fee of £0.20 plus 3.40% of the amount received. If you live outside the UK, the PayPal fees for international payments apply.
  • For international bank transfers: We don’t charge a fee, but sometimes your bank may charge you a fee to receive an international payment. This seems to be the case with many Canadian banks. Ask your bank if you’re unsure. There is no fee for customers living in the United Kingdom or Single European Payment Area (SEPA).

The following costs are paid by ourselves so you’re not charged for them:

  • Payment by cheque: We pay the postage. There is no fee for you.
  • International bank transfer: We pay the transfer fee. There is no fee for you.

There are no hidden fees. We do not charge any fees or commission.

Most certainly yes. Our service is available for international customers. We’ve helped people from all continents exchange their leftover currency for cash.

You can indeed self-deliver your currency to one of our two offices. Please make sure to wear a face covering when you self-deliver your currency. These are the two offices where you can self-deliver your currency:

Berkshire office:
Unit 1 Portland Business Centre
Manor House Lane
Datchet SL3 9EG
open Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm. Closed on Saturdays, Sundays and bank holidays.

The Berkshire office is located within 100 meters of Datchet railway station, on the Waterloo to Windsor & Eton Riverside line. Located near the M4-M25 junction, it is also easily accessible by car. Parking is available.

Central London office:
LOC 3rd floor
207 Regent Street
London W1B 3HH
open Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm.

If you plan to visit the central London office: The nearest Tube station is Oxford Circus. Please make sure to wear a face covering. Please ring the doorbell with the label “3rd floor”. The sign on the door on the third floor says Hold Everything. Please be advised that our Regent Street office is a post collection point, not a brick and mortar exchange office. The people working there cannot exchange your money on the spot, but they will collect what you deliver and give you a receipt.

Please include your filled in exchange form or your reference number, and enclose it with your currency in a closed envelope/box/bag addressed to ‘LOC’. You can self-deliver any coins and notes. We will then sort and count them, after which you will receive a confirmation email, containing the amount per currency and the exchange value paid via your selected payment method.

You can but you don’t have to. We can sort and count your currency for you, free of charge. We know that it’s not easy to recognise all those different currencies. So why not let us take care of the sorting for you, at no extra cost. We’ll send you a receipt with the totals per currency, and we’ll get you paid fast.

Feel free to send in your currency unsorted and/or uncounted. Please enclose an exchange form, with your personal details filled out. You don’t have to fill in the amounts per currency, we’ll fill those in for you.

Yes, absolutely. Feel free to send multiple currencies together.

No. There is no maximum amount that we accept for exchange. For high value transactions we will request some extra information from you. In order to prevent activities related to money laundering and terrorist financing, we will take risk-based due diligence measures.

Transactions over £1,000 GBP, €1,000 EUR or $1,000 USD exchange value are considered high value transactions. This also applies to the total of linked transaction over a period of 12 months. The extra information we will request for different types of high value transactions is listed in our Terms and Conditions page, under ‘Money laundering regulations: due diligence measures’.

No. There is no minimum amount or value when sending banknotes or coins for exchange. We process all transactions, no matter how small they are. Many little bits often add up to a nice total amount.

We repatriate most coins and notes back to the countries of origin, where we exchange them at the central bank through a formal process.

Notes and coins for which the exchange deadline has expired are organised into collections and lots, which we sell to collectors at trade shows and auctions.

We keep some notes and coins for our own personal collection. At Leftover Currency, we are coin & banknote enthusiasts, and members of the International Bank Note Society (IBNS).

All our contact details are on the contact us page.

We aim to respond to all emails and messages sent through the contact form within 2 working days. Our office hours are Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm (GMT UTC+0).

Certainly so. We’ve created an A-Z glossary explaining commonly used financial jargon terms.

If you are looking to purchase currency, either for a collection or for travel purposes, feel free to get in touch.

Yes: You don’t need a printer. You can even go through the whole exchange process on your smartphone.

Add the banknotes and coins you have to your online wallet. When ready, click on ‘Cash in now’. Confirm your currencies. Fill in your details online. Choose a payment method and confirm. Make a note of your reference number.

Write your reference number on a piece of paper and enclose it with the currency when you send it in for exchange.

We use your reference number to retrieve your details. Upon receipt of your currency we will send you a confirmation email, and pay the exchange value via your selected payment method.

Yes: We will send you a detailed receipt via email. It contains the amount and exchange value per currency, and the total exchange value paid out.

We might be able to exchange your banknotes or coins, even if they are not shown on our website. We add more currencies to our website regularly.

For banknotes and coins not pictured on our website, it’s best to contact us first, before sending them in for exchange. Please do not send them unsolicited as we might be unable to exchange them. Unexchangeable coins and notes will be returned upon your request and at your expense. Standard Royal Mail rates apply.

Please contact us to confirm whether we exchange your banknotes and/or coins that are not pictured on our website.

We add extra currencies to our website regularly. If you have notes or coins that aren’t listed on our Exchange Rates page, please do not send these unsolicited as we might be unable to exchange them. Unexchangeable currency will be returned upon your request and at your expense. Standard Royal Mail rates apply.

Please contact us to find out if we can exchange any currencies you have that are not mentioned on our website.

Yes! If you are sending from the United Kingdom, and if the combined weight of the coins and/or banknotes is over 1kg, we can in most cases fully refund your postage costs. Please contact us prior to sending your currency to find out more.

Yes, absolutely so. Collecting foreign coins and leftover travel money  is a great way to raise funds for your charity. When your charity has received donations in foreign currencies, we can help you.

Because you are exchanging the coins and notes for a good cause, we will add 5% to the exchange value. We will exchange every coin and banknote: Either for its exchange value, bullion/metal value or collector’s value, whichever is higher. That way every coin and every banknote donated to your charity makes a difference.

It is possible to submit your charity’s coins and banknotes unsorted and uncounted. We can take care of the sorting and counting, free of charge. We will provide you with a detailed overview of amounts counted and value paid out per currency.

For charities, we may be able to refund postage or arrange for a prepaid courier service to pick up the currency. Please contact us before sending the currency so we can advise you on the best method of posting the collected currency.

Our turnaround time for charities is fast. Most of the time we can pay out within 5 working days. For large lots of unsorted currency we may need a few extra days, in which case we’ll let you know.

To qualify for the extra 5% and refunded postage, please enclose a cover letter when you send the charity currency for exchange. Please include your charity name and registered charity number in the letter.

Our customers love to donate their leftover currency to a worthwhile cause. We have partnered with some fantastic charities so our customers can donate their leftover currency to them. If you run a charity and would like to have it included on our charity pagelet us know.

We do. Read more about it on our Corporate page.

Yes. The risk of your shipment getting lost in the mail or being tampered with is very small: Less than 0.5%, based on Royal Mail statistics. Royal Mail has an excellent delivery record. If you follow a few simple guidelines, the risk of anything bad happening to your letter or parcel is very, very small. We have listed some helpful tips & tricks about how to send money in the post.

If you are sending currency worth over £20, we recommend that you use a recorded delivery service, like Royal Mail Signed For®, TNT Express® or USPS Tracking®. It will enable you to track your shipment and it will provide you with a proof of delivery.

Yes. We exchange both coins and banknotes. This makes us different from other bureaux de change. The complete list of exchangeable currencies and exchange rates is here. Click on any currency name or rate to go to a detailed page with pictures and descriptions of all exchangeable notes and coins.

Absolutely. We are a registered money service business, supervised by HMRC. We comply with the Money Laundering Regulations (MLR). Our MLR registration number is XQML00000112713. You can verify this using the HM Revenue & Customs supervised MSB register.

We know it takes good faith and trust from our customers to send in currency prior to payment. We will always honour the trust our customers put into us. We are fully aware that our reputation means everything. Please look us up in the search engines and see what our customers say about us. We depend on our customers’ trust and we will never misuse this.

Feel free to have a look at the Leftover Currency reviews on the independent review site Trustpilot. These reviews are outside of our control. The Trustpilot reviews reflect the true opinion of our customers about our service, verified by an independent, market-leading review site.

Most certainly yes. Since 2012 we have helped over 50,000 customers in the UK and worldwide to exchange their leftover currency. We are rated 'Excellent' with over 4,000 five-star reviews on TrustPilot, and we were featured on Martin Lewis' MoneySavingExpert and Fox News. In addition to the general public, we work with well-known charities such as Unicef, public sector clients and corporate customers such as the British Museum and Heathrow Airport.

Got any questions? Give us a call during office hours (Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm) or send us a message using the contact form.

Call: 0800 030 6855

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