So, Can We Still Use 5-Cent Coins in S’pore?

Last Updated on 2023-02-15 , 7:16 pm

These tiny little golden coins have a reputation that has changed over the years. Back in the olden days, people could buy a bowl of fishball noodles with just 5-cents (yeah, very, very long ago).

Fast forward to the present and we see ourselves struggling to get rid of all the 5-cents we have in our wallet. Heck, if you see one one the ground, you’ll just pretend you didn’t see it.

Just why do people shun 5-cents so much? Can we still even use it in Singapore? Let me break it down for you.

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5-Cent Coins

There has been a great deal of commotion going on in the recent years about the existence of 5-cent coins. Some people believed that it has lost its value, while others still stood its ground.

When we visit the hawker centres, sometimes our 5-cent coins are being rejected when we pay with it. Why do people reject this poor coin so much?

According to the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), under the Currency Act, retailers must accept payment in any denomination within the legal tender limits. The legal tender limit is $2 for 5-cent coins. This means that you are not allowed to pay more than 2 dollars worth of 5-cent coins.

That means technically speaking, you can still use 5-cent coins as long as you don’t use 40 of them at one go.

People are shunning 5-cent coins because some of them think that the coin is out of circulation: that is untrue. The 1-cent coin is the coin that’s no longer being issued since 2002, but it can still be used.

Maybe it’s due to the high cost of living that people have that misconception. After all, what can you buy with 5 cents?

Now, what if retailers do not wish to accept your 5-cent coins? They would have to display notices prominently at their premises, as stated in the Currency Act. So if you see notices stating that they do not accept them, slowly walk away with your dear 5-cent coins and proceed to another stall.

So, the short answer is that you can still use it if the stall owner accepts it, as described in the scenario above.

Featured Image: Srinivasan.Clicks / Shutterstock.com