Yes, in most cases a bank will replace a torn bill at full face value, as long as clearly more than half of the note is still there and a teller can identify the denomination without guesswork. Federal regulations call that kind of note “unfit” currency, and any commercial bank willing to accept it can hand you a clean replacement on the spot. If the bill is damaged worse than that — half or less remaining, charred, fused, or reduced to fragments — the bank can’t help, and you’ll need to send it to the Bureau of Engraving and Printing.1eCFR. 31 CFR 100.5 – Mutilated Paper Currency
When Your Bank Will Swap It Out
A ripped corner, a bill torn in half and taped back together, coffee stains, ink marks, general limpness and wear — all of that falls under “unfit.” Bring the note to a teller and ask for a replacement. The teller checks that more than half of the original bill is clearly present and that the denomination is obvious. If it is, the bank takes the damaged note, gives you a new one at full face value, and you’re done. There’s usually no paperwork on your side.
One thing to know going in: banks are permitted to make these exchanges, but no federal rule forces a particular bank to accept your damaged note.1eCFR. 31 CFR 100.5 – Mutilated Paper Currency Most do it as a routine courtesy, especially for their own account holders. If you walk into a branch where you don’t bank, you might be told to take it to your own institution. It’s not personal; it’s discretion.
If you’re bringing in a large quantity of damaged cash — say, money recovered from a house fire or a flood — the bank has to file a Currency Transaction Report with FinCEN for any cash transaction over $10,000 in a single business day.2Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. Frequently Asked Questions Regarding the FinCEN Currency Transaction Report That’s a standard compliance step, not a signal that your exchange looks suspicious.
When the Bank Can’t Help: Sending It to the BEP
Once a bill crosses into “mutilated” territory — half or less remains, or the note is so damaged that its value is genuinely uncertain — the bank has to turn you away. Charred bills from a fire, notes that have fused together from heat or moisture, currency reduced to fragments in an envelope: all of those need trained examiners. Mutilated currency can’t be exchanged at a commercial bank or deposited with the Federal Reserve. It has to go to the Bureau of Engraving and Printing’s Mutilated Currency Division.3Federal Reserve Financial Services. Mutilated Currency Procedures
The service is free.4Federal Reserve. What Should I Do If I Have Damaged or Mutilated Currency Every submission has to include a completed BEP Form 5283, which asks for your contact details, the estimated value of the currency, and a short description of what happened. You sign a certification that you’re the lawful holder and that the information is accurate. If the redemption comes to $500 or more, the form also requires electronic funds transfer details for payment.5Engraving and Printing. Instructions for Submitting a Request for Examination of Mutilated Currency – BEP Form 5283
Be patient. Standard cases generally take somewhere between six months and 36 months, depending on complexity and how busy the division is.6Engraving and Printing. Mutilated Currency FAQs When the examiners finish, Treasury issues payment by check or electronic transfer for whatever value they can confirm.
How to Pack Mutilated Currency
Bad packing can turn a claim into a denial. The core rule is simple: disturb the fragments as little as possible.
- Brittle or crumbling bills should be padded with cotton and placed in a sturdy box. Don’t try to separate the fragments.
- Flat currency stays flat. Don’t roll it, fold it, tape it, laminate it, or glue anything.
- Rolled currency stays rolled. Don’t try to flatten it out.
- If the bills were damaged inside a container — a purse, a lockbox, a safe — leave them in the container and send the whole thing.
- Pull out coins or other metal objects. Metal moving around during shipping will grind the paper into smaller pieces. Don’t include it in the same package.
Failing these steps can be enough for the BEP to deny the claim.7Engraving and Printing. Mutilated Currency Packing Directions
Where to Send It
By U.S. Postal Service, the BEP recommends Registered Mail with Return Receipt Requested to:
Bureau of Engraving and Printing
Mutilated Currency Division, Room 344-A
P.O. Box 37048
Washington, DC 20013
By private carrier like FedEx or UPS, use the street address:
Bureau of Engraving and Printing
Mutilated Currency Division, Room 344-A
14th and C Streets, SW
Washington, DC 202283Federal Reserve Financial Services. Mutilated Currency Procedures
Registered Mail is worth paying for. USPS caps insurance on currency sent through any other mail class at just $15. Registered Mail covers currency up to $50,000.8FAQ | USPS. Domestic Claims – The Basics
How the BEP Decides What to Pay
Examiners look at how much of the note is left and whether they can confirm it’s genuine. You get full face value when clearly more than 50 percent of a note is present along with enough security features to authenticate it. You can still get full value when 50 percent or less remains, but only if the way the bill was destroyed, together with your description of what happened, satisfies Treasury that the missing portion was totally destroyed and isn’t sitting in someone else’s pocket.9eCFR. 31 CFR 100.7 – Treasury’s Redemption Process
Claims are denied outright in a few situations:
- The submission shows a pattern of deliberate damage or an attempt to defraud the government. The currency is destroyed or held as evidence.
- The currency is tied to any criminal scheme.
- You put a material misrepresentation on the form.
- The fragments can’t be identified as U.S. currency at all.
- Half or less of a note remains and Treasury isn’t satisfied that the rest was totally destroyed.
Currency that has been completely destroyed with no recoverable fragment is not eligible either. The regulation is explicit that no relief is granted for paper currency that is totally destroyed.10eCFR. 31 CFR Part 100, Subpart B – Request for Examination of Mutilated Currency
What If the Teller Says the Bill Is Counterfeit
There’s a small risk worth knowing about before you hand a damaged bill across the counter. If the teller decides the note is counterfeit rather than just worn, the bank confiscates it. You don’t get a replacement and you don’t get reimbursed. Federal Reserve Banks won’t accept counterfeit deposits, and any suspected counterfeit is forwarded to the U.S. Secret Service.11Federal Reserve Financial Services. Handling Counterfeit Currency If the Secret Service later determines the note was genuine after all, it goes back to whoever submitted it; otherwise it’s seized permanently.12United States Secret Service. Suspected Counterfeit Note Submission Form The practical takeaway: if a counterfeit bill ended up in your wallet without your knowing, you absorb the loss.
Coins Follow Different Rules
The bank-exchange path is for paper currency. Worn but whole coins — called “uncurrent” in the regulations — can be deposited at a commercial bank, which sends them to the Federal Reserve for redemption. The U.S. Mint does not take uncurrent coins directly from the public.13eCFR. 31 CFR Part 100, Subpart C – Request for Examination of Coin for Possible Redemption For coins that are bent, partial, or fused, there is currently no redemption option at all: the U.S. Mint’s Mutilated Coin Redemption Program has been permanently closed.14U.S. Mint. Products and Coin Programs