Banknotes and coins

Banknote handling equipment

Banknote sorting machines can be classified into two types:

• Machines used by the customer , which are divided into:

1. Cash recycling machines, which accept banknotes, check their authenticity and suitability for circulation and dispense them.
2. Cash deposit machines (which accept banknotes and check their authenticity).

• Machines used by institutions' personnel , which are divided into:

1. Banknote processing/sorting machines, which check the authenticity of banknotes and their suitability for circulation; as such, they can be used in all institutions.
2. Machines that only check the authenticity of banknotes; as such they can be used only in branches that credit institutions have classified as remote.

These two types of machine must allow the processing of hundreds of banknotes, and the classification of banknotes as genuine or suspect (banknotes rejected) - without the intervention of an operator - and must physically separate suspect (rejected) banknotes from those classified as genuine.

Conformance testing

Banknote processing equipment must comply with the requirements established in the framework for recycling banknotes, which is part of a common procedure throughout the Eurosystem; which means that if it has successfully passed trials in one national central bank it can be used in any Eurosystem country.

Manufacturers or distributors of equipment wishing to apply for trials to be carried out must take the steps indicated in the following link:

Procedimientos para la autorización de homologación de maquinaria de tratamiento de billetes