I need to repay an Irish woman who was kind enough to mail a package to me (I’m in the USA) even though she said to forget it.
According to the postage label the charge was “EUR 10.00”
Am I right that this means 10 Euros? And are all Euros interchangeable? I mean, do I need to ask the bank (um? or maybe from some type of coin dealer?) to specifically get me “Irish” euros, or will ANY country’s Euros be worth the same amount to her and be readily spendable? (Or is there an easier way to get the money to her?)
Oh, related question: is there any American product that the Irish tend to like but can’t get over there routinely? It’d be nice to be able to send her some treat as a thank you for her efforts.
Hmm, I really can’t think of anything I’m afraid. With the advent of the Internet there isn’t much we can’t buy but depending on how much you wanted to pay, it’ll cost you about $30 to have flowers sent to her…
I’m not sure how timely it is at this point, but you could get her some Girl Scout Cookies. My mom sends them over every year, and even though 99% of Irish people have never even seen them before, they always go down well (no pun intended) with my co-workers.
Not to be snarky - hey, you get smart by asking questions, right? - but yes, the whole point of the Euro was for everyone in the EU to have a common currency. A Euro is official currency of Germany, France, Italy, Ireland, the Netherlands and most other European countries - except the UK thank God!
While it’s true that each country has it’s own design on the Euro coins, it means nothing. It’s more like the US “50 State Quarters” program - a New York quarter is just as spendable in North Carolina as an NC one.
To be fair, the interchangability isn’t necessarily obvious. For instance, England and Scotland have the same money. There is no possibility of an exchange rate. But we each print different physical designs. I’m not sure if Scottish notes are legal tender in england (I guess yes ) but (1) you can change them in a bank 1-1 no questions no fee (2) if you try to spend a Scottish note in England many places look at you funny and say “What are you trying to pull.”
Weren’t interest rates pegged for a while before the Euro? In that case you’d have all the liquidity trade-wise, but still have to change money to go on holiday.
However, I think any Euros are fine. Also, the bank probably knows - try going in and asking for E10, and saying “Can you do that in Irish Euros” or even wait for them to ask.
Right. But neither England nor Scotland are on the Euro.
That’s because English pounds are issued by the Bank of England while Scottish pounds are issued (IIRC) by the The Bank of Scotland, The Royal Bank of Scotland and the Clydesdale Bank. IIRC, any Scottish bank has the right to print its own bank notes.
Technically, no. They’re two different currencies. However, much like US and Canadian money, most merchants use them interchangibly. However, the willingness of merchants to do so drops considerably the farther away from the border you get. No one in London wants Scottish pounds. Trust me. English bank notes are only legal tender in England, Wales, The Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. In Scotland, 1 pound coins are legal tender to any amount, 20ps and 50ps are legal tender up to 10 pounds; 10p and 5ps to 5 pounds and 2p and 1p coins are legal tender to 20p (separately or in combination). 2 pounds coins and (if you can get hold of one) 5 pound coins are also legal tender to unlimited amounts, as are gold coins of the realm at face value. Interestingly enough, Northern Ireland also has its own currency, which is only valid in Northern Ireland.
Well, I wouldn’t say “pegged”. There was the Exchange Rate Mechanism - which the UK broke, BTW. And although the Central Bank had immense say in member countries’ interest rates, they were still able to raise (or lower) them for cause.
All pretty much correct, although to describe them as ‘separate currencies’ rather than ‘separate issuers of banknotes’ is pushing it. The important detail, mentioned in the link you give, is that the concept of ‘legal tender’ only applies to the repayment of debt. If you’re purchasing goods or services, the vendor can accept or refuse whatever they like.
Exchange rates between Euro countries were pegged well before the introduction of the physical Euro.
Well, I wouldn’t say “pegged”. There was the Exchange Rate Mechanism - which the UK broke, BTW. And although the Central Bank had immense say in member countries’ interest rates, they were still able to raise (or lower) them for cause.
Considering the Canadian dollar is currently exchangeable for .735 US dollars, I think you’ll find very few merchants (at least in the US) who consider them interchangeable.
heh. I should have specified that I was talking about change there, not bills. Do folks near the US\Canadian border still use quarters, etc. interchagibly?
I welcome your amplification and correction on the rest of my post. (BTW: sitting here in it I am aware England doesn’t use the Euro. Perhaps I should have made that clear. But I would require a level of inattendance dwarfing even my ignorance to not notice the little bits of metal I carry around have ‘pound’ not ‘euro’ on them :))
But why do you say “but”? The rest of your post seems to support my point even more than my initial guesses - that it is entirely possible for two places to have the same currency (as in, euros, or GBP, or whatever), but different currencies (the physical notes), and hence you can’t assume that simply because Ireland has joined the Euro the actual Euro notes are completely interchangable.
As it happens, they probably actually are, but I made the point in defence of the OP, who I think people felt was being a bit dim in asking the question in the first place.
Authorised, explicit systems, such as the Bermudian Dollar pegged to the US$ and the latter being fully accepted;
General acceptance of an alternative physical currency on a 1:1 basis, as with Scottish notes;
Acceptance on a 1:1 with the hassle of conversion balancing out the loss to one party on the conversion, such as in some Canadian/US border areas, and in parts of N Ireland and border areas pre-Euro;
There’s also dual-currency acceptance, where retail outlets generally accept more than one currency, each at their own value, performing the calculation on the spot. I say ‘dual’, but I saw this in a Luxembourg petrol station where the sign listed over a dozen currencies they would accept and convert commission free. (Obviously, this was pre-Euro.)
