Collecting 0 euro souvenir notes: what they are, how to read the serial number and how to store them

You see them at the till of a museum, a zoo or a castle: purple notes with a large 0 on them. They look like real euro notes, but you cannot pay with them. Even so, thousands of collectors fill albums with them. They are well made and affordable, and every attraction has its own design.

What is a 0 euro note?

A 0 euro note is a souvenir note with a face value of zero euros. The idea comes from Frenchman Richard Faille. The first notes appeared in France in 2015. There are now thousands of different designs from dozens of countries, from the Eiffel Tower to a Trabant museum in Berlin. In the UK you will also find £0 souvenir notes in a similar style.

• Not legal tender. No central bank issues them and you cannot pay with them anywhere.
• Printed by a real banknote printer. The French printer Oberthur Fiduciaire, which is also accredited to print euro banknotes, makes them on cotton-based security paper.
• Security features. These include a watermark, a hologram, a security thread, microtext and details that glow under UV light.
• Size: 135 × 74 mm, slightly larger than a 20 euro note.
• Price: a new note usually costs a few euros at the attraction itself. Part of the proceeds often goes to the organisation that ordered the note.

Reading the serial number

At the bottom right of every note is a serial number of four letters and six digits, such as XEAK002263. It is not a random code:

Part	Example	Meaning
1st letter	X	Usually the issuing country, using the old country letter of the euro banknotes. For example X for Germany, U for France and N for Austria.
2nd letter	E	Always an E, the printer’s code.
3rd and 4th letters	AK	The client that ordered the series.
Digits	002263	The sequential number within the print run.

The country letter is not always followed. Both the Brandaris lighthouse in the Netherlands and the Faro della Vittoria in Trieste carry UEPL, for example. Swiss notes are an exception: their serial number starts with CH, without the E.

Next to the 0 is a small edition, such as 2022-4. That is the year followed by the design number. If an attraction issues a second design in the same year, that becomes 2022-2, for example.

Which notes are sought after?

Most 0 euro notes are bought for fun. A print run is usually 5,000 or 10,000 notes, sometimes fewer. Some notes still become worth a lot more:

• Early designs from the first years.
• Small print runs and series that sold out quickly.
• Low and special numbers, such as 000001 or a mirror number like 002002.
• Anniversary and special editions. In 2020 some notes were given the overprint “ANNIVERSARY 2020”, which is only visible under UV light.
• Notes signed by Richard Faille.
• Printing errors, such as a misspelt title. Sometimes such a series was recalled and reprinted, which makes the error note sought after.

Also watch out for copies. Fake notes are in circulation, especially online. Only buy expensive notes from a reliable seller and compare the watermark and hologram with a genuine note.

Tip: Put the edition, such as 2022-4, in the notes and the serial number in the serial number field. Only you can see that serial number, even when you share the collection. Try AgAurium for free →

Where to buy them

• At the attraction itself, usually at the till or in the shop. This is the cheapest option.
• From dealers and collectors, once a note has sold out at the attraction.
• At fairs for coins and paper money.
• Online, for example on eBay. Ask for a clear photo of the serial number and the edition.

For more on starting a banknote collection, including catalogues and where to buy in the UK, read Starting a banknote collection.

How to store them

0 euro notes are simply paper, so the same rules apply as for real banknotes: no folding, no paper clips and always store them flat.

• One sleeve per note. Choose polyester, polypropylene or rigid PVC without plasticisers, never soft PVC. An inner size of 140 × 80 mm is made for 0 euro notes.
• Then into an album or box, upright or flat, away from light.
• Hold them by the edges, with clean, dry hands or thin gloves.
• Leave the hologram strip alone. Scratches and fingerprints on the hologram show up straight away.

For more on choosing sleeves and what never to do, read How to store banknotes without damage.

Keeping track of your 0 euro notes in AgAurium

Once you start, you soon have a hundred. Then it becomes hard to remember which ones you already own. In AgAurium you record each note with a photo of the front and back. AgAurium can read the text on the photo and fill in fields such as serial number and year for you. Put the edition, such as 2022-4, in the notes.

Only you can see the serial number. If you share your collection, the other person does not see it. Bear in mind, though, that the number is often readable on a photo. With the search function you can check at a fair in seconds whether you already have a note. Under storage place you can note something like “album 3, page 12”.

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