Japanese Currency Guide -Banknote-

Banknotes (paper currency) in Japan will be renewed in 2024. For the time being, both current and new banknotes will be used. Let’s take a look at both the old and the new!

For paper currency, check out this article!
Japanese Currency Guide -Coins-

1000 yen banknote

• In Japanese
  「¥1000」,「1000円(札)」,「千円(札)」,「せんえん(さつ)」

• Current Design (Image courtesy of the Ministry of Finance)
  • Obverse
    Hideyo Noguchi: He was a bacteriologist who, in 1911, discovered the agent of syphilis as the cause of progressive paralytic disease.
  • Reverse
    Mt. Fuji and Lake Motosu, and cherry blossoms
    

• New Design from 2024  (Image courtesy of the Ministry of Finance)
  • Obverse
    Kitasato Shibasaburō : He was a physician and bacteriologist and well known as the co-discoverer of the infectious agent of bubonic plague in Hong Kong during an outbreak in 1894, almost simultaneously with Alexandre Yersin. 
  • Reverse
    “The Great Wave off Kanagawa” by Katsushika Hokusai
• Tips
  • An older version of 1000 yen banknotes is also in use. The older version has a picture of a man (Soseki Natsume, author) on the obverse and a red-crowned crane on the reverse.

5000 yen banknote

• In Japanese
  「¥5000」,「5000円(札)」,「五千円(札)」,「ごせんえん(さつ)」

• Current Design (Image courtesy of the Ministry of Finance)
  • Obverse
    Ichiyō Higuchi: She was a writer, and her most well-known work is “Takekurabe”, (literally, “Comparing heights”; “Child’s Play” in the Robert Lyons Danly translation; also called “Growing Up” in the Edward Seidensticker translation). She is the third woman to appear on a Japanese banknote.
  • Reverse
    “Irises screen” by Ogata Kōrin

• New Design from 2024 (Image courtesy of the Ministry of Finance)
  • Obverse
    Umeko Tsuda: She was an educator and pioneer in education for women. She founded Joshi Eigaku Juku, which later became Tsuda College, in 1900. She will become the fourth woman to appear on a Japanese banknote.
  • Reverse
    Wisteria flower
    
• Tips
  • The number of 5,000 yen banknotes issued is smaller than other bills, and it is rare to receive them from ATMs or vending machines. It is said that the banknotes will become less widely used in the future, although a new design will be introduced in 2024.

10000 yen banknote

• In Japanese
  「¥10000」,「10000円(札)」,「一万円(札)」,「いちまんえん(さつ)」

• Current Design (Image courtesy of the Ministry of Finance)
  • Obverse
    Yukichi Fukuzawa: He was an author, writer, teacher, translator, entrepreneur, journalist, and leader who founded Keio University, Jiji-Shinpō (a newspaper), and the Institute for Study of Infectious Diseases. He is regarded as one of the founders of modern Japan.
  • Reverse
    Phoenix statue in the Phoenix Hall of Byodo-in Temple (a building depicted on a 10 yen coin)

• New Design from 2024  (Image courtesy of the Ministry of Finance)
  • Obverse
    Eiichi Shibusawa: He was an industrialist widely known today as the “father of Japanese capitalism”. He was the founder of hundreds of corporations, hotels, hospitals, schools, universities (including the first women’s university), and charitable organizations such as the Japan Red Cross.
  • Reverse
    Tokyo Station (Marunouchi side)
    
• Tips
  • In Japan, there is a slang word for 10000 yen bills, “Yukichi”. This comes from the name of Yukichi Fukuzawa, who has been depicted on 10000 yen banknotes for a long time since 1984. If you say in slang, “I want to see Yukichi”, that means “I want money! (I want 10,000 yen!) “ This slang will be less common when the new design is introduced in 2024…

What’s a 2000 yen banknote?

Have you ever seen a 2000 yen banknote? It was issued in 2000 to commemorate the 26th G8 Summit and the millennium. Since the summit was held in Okinawa, the obverse of the banknote features Shureimon Gate at Shuri Castle in Okinawa. The reverse depicts a picture scroll of The Tale of Genji, Japan’s oldest long novel from the early 11th century, and its author, Murasaki Shikibu.

2000 yen banknotes are still valid, but it is not easy to find them on the mainland. To give you an idea of how rare they are, they are not supported by many vending machines, and sometimes people check with the police because they think the banknotes are fakes.
In Okinawa, on the other hand, it is still widely used, and there are many vending machines that support the banknotes. You will often get a 2000 yen bill in change or out of an ATM.
Look for these special banknotes when you visit Okinawa!

I accidentally tore a banknote… what should I do?

You may be able to get your banknotes replaced. (Depending on how damaged they are, though.) Please contact your local bank or the Bank of Japan for advice. (Please note that Japan Post does not handle this.)

• How much you can receive: Full amount
  (e.g., the damaged 10000 yen banknote will be replaced by a 10000 yen banknote.)
  If all parts of the banknote are still there, and can be immediately restored to its original form. Or, if more than 2/3 of the original banknote can be identified.
  
• How much you can receive: Half amount
  (e.g., the damaged 10000 yen banknote will be replaced by a 5000 yen banknote.)
  If only 2/5 to 2/3 of the banknotes can be identified by combining the torn banknotes.
  
• How much you can receive: None
  If less than 2/5 of the banknotes can be identified by combining the torn banknotes.

Did you find any information that was new to you? Just one more thing for those who knew it all… Did you know that deteriorated money is sometimes recycled into toilet paper and envelopes? You may have encountered (ex-)money without even knowing it!
If you have any words you’d like to know how to say in Japanese, please leave a comment!

Related articles:

A Guide to Exchange and Withdraw Cash in Japan