Legal tender is a form of money that courts of law are required to recognize as satisfactory payment for any monetary debt. >> I think it is important to call out that refusing currency for a debt is not illegal in the sense that you will be fined or imprisoned. Legal tender describes any official medium of payment recognized by law that can be used to extinguish a public or private debt or meet a financial obligation. While cash and coins are legal tender for all debts, there is no federal law that requires businesses to accept them in exchange for goods and services, according to the Federal Reserve’s website. The posts further claim that when cash is turned down, the debt is legally recognized as paid. 'Refusal to accept payment in legal tender banknotes and coins is not unlawful,' it states. £50 notes as a standard policy. In short, what they choose to accept as payment is down to their discretion. The concept of “legal tender” only applies when there is a pre-existing debt. Let's assume for a moment that you the customer only have $2.00 bills and the store rep. refuses to accept it. ” He pointed out that in some parts of the country the only thing that is legal tender is, in … If legal currency was refused, a judge can (and most likely will) wipe the dept clean. It also means that cash is a legal tender for all public and private debts. Federal law makes U.S. currency a legal tender for paying debts. “Legal tender” is what makes an official currency official. And as a small business owner, you must accept dollars for your products or services. “And that’s all it means. "all United States money as identified above are a valid and legal offer of payment for debts when tendered to a creditor. With U.S. paper money imprinted with the declaration, "this note is legal tender for all debts, public and private", when can a business or government office refuse to accept cash payments. Even though it is legal currency, ... they can all be tracked. It may be legal tender, but more businesses are snubbing cash. Typically in a store there never a situation where there is a debt owed to the store by the customer. 5103, entitled "Legal tender," which states: "United States coins and currency (including Federal reserve notes and circulating notes of Federal reserve banks and national banks) are legal tender for all debts, public charges, taxes, and dues." “And that’s all it means. “Legal tender has a strict definition. Legal tender is currency that a creditor must accept from a debtor as settlement of a debt; it has no other meaning aside from in this specific context. In the UK, legal tender is only for the payment of a debt- so shops are under no obligation to accept and can refuse e.g. Yes. £50 - for any amount. Imprinted on each bill is this notice: “THIS NOTE IS LEGAL TENDER FOR ALL DEBTS, PUBLIC AND PRIVATE” Observe the word, “debt.” Which facially means you owe somebody money, but there is more to it, than that. 23 May 2005 at 8:15PM edited 30 November -1 at 12:00AM in I wanna buy-it or do-it. Can you refuse legal tender? Legal tender has a strict definition. If you want to pay for a pack of gum with a £50 note, it’s perfectly legal to turn you down. On the drive back home, about an hour and a half each way I might add, I vaguely remember learning something in school about it being against the law to refuse legal tender (cash) as payment but that was before credit cards and computers. August 4, 2016 7.48pm EDT. They can demand payment in shiny beads if they want to, it's completely up to them. However, that is not what the law says. Angus Kidman Updated Jul 22, 2020. Ask Finder: Can businesses legally refuse to accept cash? However, it doesn’t mean it has to be paper dollars. Is it legal for a business in the United States to refuse cash as a form of payment? You're handed some change in a store and the note is torn but stuck back together with ... you should refuse to accept the note on the grounds that ... Torn notes and the rules of legal tender You can … However, as one answered above, they would be stupid not to accept it. There is a widespread belief that if you give a business "legal tender" — official Australian coins or banknotes — they must accept it as payment. If cash is king, how can stores refuse to take your dollars? £20 - for any amount Telephone bills can also be paid at New Zealand Post Shops where cash and cards can be used. If you get to the checkout line at the local Piggly Wiggly and the cashier demands payment in rubles or pesos you have every right to say “Sorry buddy, but I’ve got some Federal Reserve notes burning a hole in my pocket.” Tender but shops are happy to accept as payment is down to their discretion of interest, I not! 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