Fact Check: 5 Can the old, discontinued 500-rupee and 1,000-rupee notes still be exchanged? Is the RBI still exchanging these old, discontinued notes? This question has become relevant because on Thursday, Delhi Police seized a huge cache of old 500-rupee and 1,000-rupee notes. These notes are not worth 10, 20, or 50,000 rupees, but a whopping 3.5 crore rupees. Four accused in this case were arrested at the Shalimar Bagh Metro Station. They used to dupe people by promising to exchange old notes. This gang would tell people that the RBI was still exchanging old notes, and using this excuse, they would sell 500-rupee and 1,000-rupee notes at a lower price.

Can the old 500-1,000-rupee notes still be exchanged?

The question is, can old 500 and 1000 rupee notes still be exchanged? The answer is no. According to the RBI, this is absolutely impossible. According to the central bank, old 500 and 1000 rupee notes are no longer valid. These notes were discontinued in November 2016. New notes were issued to replace the old 500 rupee notes, while the 1,000 rupee note was discontinued altogether. During demonetization, an opportunity was given to exchange these old notes. But now these notes are completely illegal. This means that even if you have such notes, they are no longer worth anything.

The Central Government Cleared the Confusion

The Central Government's information agency, PIB, cleared up the confusion regarding the exchange of old 500 and 1000 rupee notes in a fact check. In an October 29th post, it clarified the exchange of old 500 and 1000 rupee notes. A clipping was circulating on social media, which PIB denied. The post stated, "A news article circulating on social media claims that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has issued new rules for exchanging old, discontinued 500 and 1000 rupee notes, offering one last chance."

PIBFactCheck stated that this claim is false. The RBI has not issued any such rules. It advised, "Please visit the RBI's official website, https://rbi.org.in, for information on financial regulations and the latest information."

So, which notes are being exchanged at the RBI?

The central government demonetized the 2,000 rupee note in May 2023, but maintained it as legal tender, meaning these notes could be easily exchanged at banks. Later, it was limited to the RBI only. These ₹2,000 notes can still be exchanged at the RBI. The facility to deposit or exchange such notes was available at all bank branches across the country until October 7, 2023. The exchange of the demonetized ₹2,000 banknotes was later limited. This facility is now available at 19 RBI issue offices. The central bank stated that, as of November 29, ₹5,743 crore worth of ₹2,000 notes remained in circulation.

How to exchange old ₹2,000 notes

RBI issue offices have been accepting ₹2,000 banknotes from individuals and entities for deposit in their bank accounts since October 9, 2023. Banknotes can be exchanged at 19 RBI deposit/exchange offices. This facility is available in Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Belapur, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Chandigarh, Chennai, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Jammu, Kanpur, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Nagpur, New Delhi, Patna, and Thiruvananthapuram. Furthermore, people can send ₹2,000 notes to any RBI issue office within the country through the Indian Post. This money is deposited into their bank account. Are old ₹00-₹1,000 notes still being exchanged? Don't fall prey to a fraudulent racket.

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