The replacement of damaged foreign currency banknotes can be problematic in Moldova and is left to the discretion of banks and currency exchange facilities. There is no legal provision that would oblige these to exchange damaged bills even for commission. Therefore, the Moldovans have no other way out than to keep the damaged banknotes for occasions when they will possibly travel to the bill’s country of origin or to seek help from acquaintances or relatives living abroad.
Answering an inquiry by IPN News Agency, the press service of the National Bank of Moldova said that under the regulations concerning the currency exchange facilities, these can accept bills with minor defects that appear as a result of normal wear and tear, such as dirt or erasing, small spots of fat or of another kind, notes and stamp prints (except of stamps showing that the banknote is not authentic), which do not modify the main signs of the bills. The currency exchange facilities have the freedom to decide whether to accept or not authentic foreign currency banknotes with more essential defects.
“In the case of banknotes that have insignificant defects, the currency exchange facilities or the currency exchange units of banks and hotels exchange these for commission. If there are other kinds of defects, except those specified in the regulations, it is the banks that decide whether to exchange them or not as they incur costs for replacing these bills,” said the National Bank’s press service.
The damaged foreign currency banknotes can be exchanged in the state where they were issued, as in the case of the damaged Moldovan lei that can be exchanged by the central bank.
