RBI says Rs 2,000 notes can be exchanged through post offices as well

Mumbai: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has said that Rs 2,000 notes can be exchanged through post offices as well.

There are reports of people queuing up at the RBI offices for returning the Rs 2,000 notes.

In a set of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) on its website, the RBI said people can send the notes to any of its 19 issue offices from any post office.

People need to fill up an application form which is available online and send the notes to a RBI issue office from any facility of India Post, it said.

In May last year, the apex bank announced its decision to withdraw the Rs 2,000 notes, which was first introduced after the demonetisation exercise in 2016.

The decision to withdraw the Rs 2,000 notes was taken as most of these notes had exceeded their expected lifespan and were also not being used by the public for transactions, the RBI had said.

At present, over 97.38 per cent of the Rs 2,000 notes in circulation as in May 2023 have been returned. After allowing for exchange or deposit across bank counters, the RBI has made available multiple other channels where the notes can be exchanged or deposited.

A person can either exchange or deposit the notes up to a limit of Rs 20,000 at a time across the 19 issue offices along with the post office-based facilities, as per the FAQ.