Three-million Brexit 50p coins to be released into circulation on October 31
THREE million special-edition 50p coins will be released into circulation on October 31 to mark the date the UK leaves the EU.
The Brexit coins will feature the inscription: "Peace, prosperity and friendship with all nations", as well as the historic date the UK is due to leave the EU - 31 October 2019.
The plan to produce 10,000 special Brexit coins was first announced by former chancellor Philip Hammond in last year's Budget.
They were due to have the original 29 March 2019 Brexit date inscribed on them.
But following its delay, Mr Hammond's predecessor, Sajid Javid, then asked officials in August if the coins could be made en masse in time for the October 31 deadline.
Despite this, a batch of Brexit coin prototypes were embarrassingly minted with the March 29 deadline date on them - even though MPs had already voted to delay Brexit.
The latest iteration received approval by the Queen's Privy Council of ministers yesterday, so it can now start being produced, the Treasury has announced.
It's been confirmed that the 50p coin will look exactly as set out earlier in the year, with the only difference being the updated date.
Is your small change worth a fortune?
IF you think that you might have a rare coin then you might be able to make a real mint.
The most valuable coins are usually those with a low mintage or an error.
These are often deemed the most valuable by collectors.
You should check how much the coin is selling for on eBay.
Search the full name of the coin, select the "sold" listing and then toggle the search to "highest value".
It will give you an idea of the amount of money that the coin is going for.
You can either choose to sell the coin on eBay or through a specialist like ChangeChecker.org.
If you choose the auction website then remember to set a minimum price that is higher or at the very least equal to the face value of the coin.
Even if your coin “sells” on eBay for a high price there’s no guarantee that the buyer will cough up.
It its terms and conditions, the auction website states that bidders enter a “legally binding contract to purchase an item”, but there’s no way to enforce this rule in reality.
The most eBay can do is add a note to their account for the unpaid item or remove their ability to bid and buy.
The Royal Mint will make three-million coins ready to go into circulation on Halloween, but more than 10million of them will be produced over the coming year in total.
This means the coins will be stocked by banks and that they can be spent in shops.
Additional commemorative coins will also be up for grabs for collectors as brilliant uncirculated, silver proof and gold proof versions once the UK leaves the EU.
Customers can register interest on the to get updates on the process, and we've asked Royal Mint how much these will cost.
The Sun has also asked the Royal Mint when it'll start producing the Brexit coin and what happens if the UK doesn't leave the EU on October 31. We haven't heard back yet so we'll update this story once we do.
Rachel Hooper of coin collecting website Change Checker told The Sun she expects the coin to be "highly sought-after", though she couldn't put a value on it yet.
The Royal Mint often marks national occasions with a commemorative coin.
A new 50p coin was released when the UK joined the European Economic Community (EEC) in 1973, and again when the UK joined the single market in 1992, as well as when the UK held the EU presidency in 1998.
But perhaps the most popular coins were ones in the set of 29 50ps launched to mark London hosting the 2012 Olympics.
These coins can sell for hundreds of pounds to a collector, which means that the Brexit coins could also be worth a mint.
The 50p coin released to mark 250 years of Kew Gardens is currently the most sought after and sells for up to £155 on eBay.
Although, recently one of the Olympic coins accidentally minted by mistake sold for a huge £590 online.
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Other coins sought after by collectors include the Beatrix Potter 50p coins, with the original 2016 Peter Rabbit coin selling for £621 on the auction site last month.
We've put together a guide to the most valuable 50p coins so you can get an idea of how much your change is worth.
The Royal Mail has repeatedly refused to issue a commemorative Brexit stamp, insisting the event is still too politically controversial.
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