EUROPEAN UNION - EURO

The Eurozone, officially called the euro area, is an economic and monetary union (EMU) of 17 European Union (EU) member states that have adopted the euro (€) as their common currency and sole legal tender. The eurozone currently consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Spain. Most other EU states are obliged to join once they meet the criteria to do so.

Monetary policy of the zone is the responsibility of the European Central Bank (ECB) which is governed by a president and a board of the heads of national central banks and the Euro Group, which makes political decisions regarding the eurozone and the euro. The Euro Group is composed of the finance ministers of eurozone states, however in emergencies, national leaders also form the Euro Group.

Monaco, San Marino and the Vatican City have concluded formal agreements with the EU to use the euro as their official currency and mint their own coins. Others, like Kosovo, Montenegro and Andorra, have adopted the euro unilaterally. However, these countries do not formally form part of the eurozone and do not have representation in the ECB or the Euro Group.

In 1998 eleven member states of the European Union had met the Euro convergence criteria, and the Eurozone came into existence with the official launch of the euro (alongside national currencies) on 1 January 1999. Greece qualified in 2000 and was admitted on 1 January 2001 before physical notes and coins were introduced on 1 January 2002 replacing all national currencies. Between 2007 and 2011, five new states acceded.

The Notes above are specimen notes issued to schools for identification purposes. the reverse of the notes all have a map of Europe ( plus french overseas territories ) the front of each note has a different building representing different architectural styles . below are the national identification code letters.

National identification codes

Code Country

Z Belgium

Y Greece

X Germany

(W)(2) (Denmark)

V Spain

U France

T Ireland

S Italy

R Luxembourg

(Q) Not used

P Netherlands

(O) Not used

N Austria

M Portugal

L Finland

(K)(2) (Sweden)

(J)(2) (United Kingdom)

(I) Not used

H Slovenia

G Cyprus

F Malta

E Slovakia

D     Not used

C     Not used

B     Not used

A      Not used         

(2) United Kingdom, Sweden and Denmark are not part of the Eurozone but the letters are reserved for them .