# Canada to move to plastic banknotes **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 4, 2010, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344 "2010-03-04T23:21:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 12
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2012, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344/221 "2012-03-30T06:46:06Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > [Whoa. Looks like someone’s getting taken to task…](http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-01-27/flaws-in-printing-new-u-s-100-bill-were-avoidable-audit-says.html) Thanks Sunspace. Looks like someone(s) screwed up bigtime. And we’ll probably _never_ get the new 100s… ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2012, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344/222 "2012-03-31T02:29:41Z")
The simple solution would be to start using Canadian currency. [Those crazy Icelanders are considering it.](http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/top-business-stories/iceland-to-pick-new-currency-i-cant-stand-the-suspense/article2366088/) ---
**Author:** ![Mona\_Lisa\_Simpson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ce7236/32.png) [@Mona\_Lisa\_Simpson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mona_Lisa_Simpson)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2012, 6:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344/223 "2012-03-31T06:52:12Z")
I got a new 50 today. I will be spending my nifty fifty on necessities of life, like rainboots, rainhats, raincoats… yes I do love Vancouver but how can I show this beautiful city off to my hubby and my son if it won’t stop raining? Still I hear it snowed in Thunder Bay this morning. And the move couldn’t come at a better time. My former job won’t exist after April 12th. [The only stand-alone plasma collection site in Canada is closing after over 15 years.](http://netnewsledger.com/2012/03/29/canadian-blood-services-to-close-the-thunder-bay-plasma-centre/) 28 people out of work, many are women 5-8 years from retirement. There are no comparable jobs at least not in Thunder Bay. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2012, 7:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344/224 "2012-03-31T07:21:41Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > The simple solution would be to start using Canadian currency. [Those crazy Icelanders are considering it.](http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/top-business-stories/iceland-to-pick-new-currency-i-cant-stand-the-suspense/article2366088/) That’s known as [dollarization](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dollarization). Note that several other countries use the US dollar. But I don’t think the situation is so extreme that we need to dollarize to the Canuck buck. We’ll just keep using the old $100 bills until the BoE gets its act together. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2012, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344/225 "2012-04-22T13:19:13Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > > [@Cicero](#): > > > > I think it is a bit funny that Canada moving to plastic notes warrants a thread that is 4 pages long. Doesn’t anything ever happen there? > > Every week, I get my TIME magazine, and turn to the “World” spread, which has ten red dots on a map of the globe, showing the world’s hotspots: tsunamis, nuclear meltdowns, car-bombings, coups, plummeting currencies, congressional stand-offs, mass protests against crooked elections, and so on. > > I can’t remember ever seeing a red dot in Canada. > > Nope, nothing much happens up here. We like it that way. 🙂 > [@Muffin](#): > > And I hope we never do. **An Update:** Canada made the TIME world spread! Not because of a natural disaster, or a political crisis, or an economic meltdown. The Penny. We made the World spread because Canada is going to phase out its penny. Still no red dot, though. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2012, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344/226 "2012-05-01T05:15:28Z")
The new polymer $20 is to be ‘unveiled’ on 2 May! [Link from the Bank of Canada (those busy little beavers)](http://www.bankofcanada.ca/2012/05/media-advisories/bank-of-canada-to-unveil-new-20-polymer-bank-note/) ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2012, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344/227 "2012-05-02T03:22:16Z")
What with the back of the new twenty apparently featuring the Vimy memorial, and the note probably being issued in the second half of this year, and the new hundred having insulin and other medical breakthroughs and having been issued on World Diabetes Day… I think there’s a pretty good chance that the Bank of Canada will actually start issuing the polymer $20 into the ATMs, cash registers, and wallets of the nation on Remembrance Day. Nov. 11th. You heard it here first. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2012, 11:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344/228 "2012-05-02T11:53:57Z")
I think the person who gave me a small stack of bills yesterday had been playing with them. They alternated between paper and plastic. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2012, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344/229 "2012-05-02T16:39:38Z")
The $20 is unveiled. Vimy Ridge on the back, Queen on the front. Looks greenish-yellow in the video; we’ll see what it looks like in person. To be released in November. [Link from the Bank of Canada.](http://www.bankofcanada.ca/2012/05/press-releases/bank-canada-unveils-new-20-note-design/) [Video.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqpNNC1iEUY&feature=plcp) [Front.](http://www.flickr.com/photos/bankofcanada/7129211887/in/photostream) [Back.](http://www.flickr.com/photos/bankofcanada/7129211777/in/photostream) I like the inclusion of the red flowers. > [@Muffin](#): > > I think the person who gave me a small stack of bills yesterday had been playing with them. They alternated between paper and plastic. I’ve heard that the plastic ones are thinner. Do they seem that way to you? ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2012, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344/230 "2012-05-02T18:02:46Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > I’ve heard that the plastic ones are thinner. Do they seem that way to you? They seem thinner to me. And I agree that the poppies are a nice touch. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2012, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344/231 "2012-05-02T18:39:06Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > I’ve heard that the plastic ones are thinner. Do they seem that way to you? I can’t tell if the poly notes are thinner than the paper notes, but there is one heck of a texture difference. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2012, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344/232 "2012-05-04T02:49:17Z")
Have you taken a look at some of the other pictures in the linked Bank of Canada Flickr photostream? There’s a closeup of the Queen’s portrait… she’s looking straight out of the bill at you, with a firm expression that seems to say, “If you spend me wrong, so help me, if it’s the last thing I do in your hands, I’ll power up my laser eyes and give you a [spending experience you won’t soon forget](http://www.flickr.com/photos/bankofcanada/7129186425/in/photostream/)…” ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2012, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344/233 "2012-05-04T03:55:18Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > Have you taken a look at some of the other pictures in the linked Bank of Canada Flickr photostream? There’s a closeup of the Queen’s portrait… she’s looking straight out of the bill at you, with a firm expression that seems to say, “If you spend me wrong, so help me, if it’s the last thing I do in your hands, I’ll power up my laser eyes and give you a [spending experience you won’t soon forget](http://www.flickr.com/photos/bankofcanada/7129186425/in/photostream/)…” Unfortunately, they mistakenly gave the note designer a picture of [Diefenbaker](http://www.civilization.ca/cmc/exhibitions/hist/medicare/images/photo-keyplayers4_3a.jpg), so by the time the error was noticed, it was too late. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2012, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344/234 "2012-10-11T04:12:43Z")
_bump_ According to the [list of upcoming events](http://www.bankofcanada.ca/media-room/upcoming-events/) at the Bank of Canada, the polymer $20 will be ‘released into circulation’ on 7 November. I was wrong about it being on Remembrance Day. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2012, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344/235 "2012-10-11T13:09:03Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > Have you taken a look at some of the other pictures in the linked Bank of Canada Flickr photostream? There’s a closeup of the Queen’s portrait… she’s looking straight out of the bill at you, with a firm expression that seems to say, “If you spend me wrong, so help me, if it’s the last thing I do in your hands, I’ll power up my laser eyes and give you a [spending experience you won’t soon forget](http://www.flickr.com/photos/bankofcanada/7129186425/in/photostream/)…” That’s quite the glare. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344/236 "2012-11-07T20:08:24Z")
The plastic twenty [is released](http://www.bankofcanada.ca/2012/11/press-releases/bank-of-canada-issues-20-polymer/). ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344/237 "2012-11-07T20:59:52Z")
[Nifty zoomy graphic of the new banknote](http://www.cbc.ca/news/interactives/banknotes-zoom/index.html) from the CBC. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344/238 "2012-11-07T21:10:02Z")
The latest tweet from Stats Canada - > [@](#): > > 88% of Canadians who have handled the new polymer $20 bill are pretty sure that they saw a dong on it . 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344/239 "2012-11-07T21:14:58Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > The latest tweet from Stats Canada - . 😃 It also has boobies. Or so I’ve heard. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Doom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/0ea827/32.png) [@Dr\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Doom)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344/240 "2012-11-07T21:18:17Z")
The Queen certainly has a nifty (almost) uni-brow. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344.md?page=11) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/canada-to-move-to-plastic-banknotes/531344.md?page=13)