EN 
 
 
OPINION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK 
of 9 December 2010 
on certain new provisions on cash currency circulation 
(CON/2010/89) 
 
Introduction and legal basis  
On 23 November 2010, the European Central Ba nk (ECB) received a request from Národná banka 
Slovenska for an opinion on the draft decree ame nding Decree of Národná banka Slovenska No 607/2008 
Coll. of 16 December 2008 on certain details regardi ng cash currency circulation and on amendments to 
certain decrees (hereinafter the ‘draft Decree’). 
The ECB’s competence to deliver an  opinion is based on Articles 127(4) and 282(5) of the Treaty on the 
Functioning of the European Union and the first, second and third indents of Article 2(1) of Council 
Decision 98/415/EC of 29 June 1998 on the consulta tion of the European Central Bank by national 
authorities regarding draft legislative provisions1, as the draft Decree relates to currency matters, means 
of payment and Národná banka Slovenska. In accordan ce with the first sentence of Article 17.5 of the 
Rules of Procedure of the European Central Bank,  the Governing Council has adopted this opinion. 
 1.  Purpose of the draft Decree 
The main purpose of the draft Decree is to dele te provisions of Decree No 607/2008 Coll. under which 
Národná banka Slovenska implemented the Framewor k for the detection of counterfeits and fitness 
sorting by the credit institutions and other professi onal cash handlers (hereinafter ‘the Framework’) 
against the background of Slovakia’s adoption of the euro. As of 1 Ja nuary 2011, the Framework will be 
replaced by Decision ECB/2010/14 of 16 September 2010 on the authenticity and fitness checking and recirculation of euro banknotes
2. For this reason, it is no longer necess ary to maintain those provisions of 
Decree No 607/2008 Coll. which implemented the Fr amework’s provisions on authenticity and fitness 
checking. In order to introduce a Single Euro Paym ents Area (SEPA) standard, it is also proposed to 
delete the requirement to have lodgements of euro banknotes that are faced and oriented. Finally, the draft 
Decree aims at introducing a number of amendments to reflect the practical needs of cash currency 
circulation. 
 
                                                 
1  OJ L 189, 3.7.1998, p. 42.  
2   OJ L 267, 9.10.2010, p. 1. 
 
2 2. General observations  
2.1 The ECB notes that in Slovakia currently only Národná banka Slovenska exchanges incomplete 
mutilated and damaged euro banknotes. The draft Decree extends this obligation to commercial 
banks, provided that only a negligible part of the euro banknote is missing3. In this respect, the 
ECB notes that any euro banknote with its length reduced by 6 mm or more or its width reduced by 5 mm or more is considered to be ‘unfit’ and th erefore unsuitable for recirculation in accordance 
with Decision ECB/2010/14
4. Types of banknote handling machines successfully tested by a 
national central bank which check euro banknotes for fitness must be able to detect and separate 
‘unfit’ banknotes which are ‘unfit’ on the basi s of the specifications mentioned above. The 
recirculation of ‘unfit’ banknotes, both via ba nknote handling machines and over the counter 
following checks for fitness by trained staff members, should therefore be prevented.  
2.2 Article 4(2) of Decree No 607/2008 Coll. pr ovides that incomplete banknotes are replaced by 
Národná banka Slovenska in accordance with the rul es applicable in the euro area. However, if an 
amendment to Article 4(1) is adopted, commercia l banks will also be obliged to exchange 
incomplete euro banknotes to a limited extent . For this reason, the ECB suggests amending 
Article 4(2) accordingly.  
 3. Specific observations 3.1 The new Article 3(6) of Decree No 607/2008 Co ll. extends the applicability of provisions on the 
withholding procedure for counterfeit banknotes and co ins to banknotes and coins that shall not be 
exchanged. The ECB understands that this provi sion may address cases where less than 50 % of a 
euro banknote is presented or where banknotes and coins are unidentifiable as a result of damage. 
There is, however, scope for a misunderst anding that, unlike banknotes and coins under new 
Article 3(6), counterfeit euro banknotes and coins can  actually be exchanged, although this clearly 
cannot be the case. The ECB therefore suggests that this new provision should rather refer to ‘other’ situations in which an exchange is not possible in order to clarify that withholding of counterfeit banknotes is an option.  
3.2 The ECB also recommends that the references to  ‘banks and cash handlers’ in Decree No 607/2008 
Coll., as amended by the draft Decree, are replaced  by a reference to ‘cash handlers’ within the 
meaning of Decision ECB/2010/14.  
 
                                                 
3  Pursuant to the proposed amendm ent, negligible part shall mean  a missing part that reduces length or also width of a euro 
banknote by not more than 10 mm, whilst the difference shall be  always measured in relation to the nominal length or 
also nominal width of the euro banknote. 
4  See Annex IIIa, point 7 in connection w ith Article 2(11) of Decision ECB/2010/14. 
 
3 This opinion will be published on the ECB’s website.  
  Done at Frankfurt am Main, 9 December 2010. 
 
[signed] 
 
The President of the ECB 
Jean-Claude TRICHET