What happens if a note or coin is more than 100 years old — complete Antiquities Act rules?
A currency note or coin that is 100 or more years old is an antiquity under the Antiquities and Art Treasures Act 1972. This creates two legal consequences: the export of the item requires a licence from the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), and the owner must register the item with ASI under Section 5-6 of the Act. Domestic possession — buying, selling, holding, collecting within India — is not restricted by the Antiquities Act. The Kerala High Court confirmed in 2023 that the Act restricts export, not domestic possession.
The 100-year threshold — how it works
Section 2(b) of the Antiquities and Art Treasures Act 1972 defines an 'antiquity' as including any coin, sculpture, painting, or other work of art or craftsmanship 'of an age of not less than one hundred years.' The threshold is calculated from the current date — not from the date of the Act's enactment. As of 2026, any note or coin produced before 1926 qualifies as an antiquity. This means: all notes from the British India era produced before 1926; all coins from pre-independence India produced before 1926; and any other numismatic piece of this age.
The threshold advances with time. In 2030, notes from before 1930 will become antiquities. A collector who acquires a 1929-dated note in 2028 should track this — by 2029 it will become an antiquity and registration will become mandatory.
The registration requirement
Sections 5 and 6 of the Act require persons who possess antiquities to register them with the ASI or the relevant state government authority. Registration involves: applying to the competent authority, providing a description and photographs of the items, and obtaining registration certificates. S.R. Kiran v. CBI Bangalore (Karnataka HC, 1999) confirmed that non-registration of antiquities is a punishable offence — it is not merely an administrative formality.
Judicial Authority S.R. Kiran v. CBI Bangalore · High Court of Karnataka · Cri LJ 3079 (1999) Non-registration of antiquities held in possession is an offence under the Antiquities and Art Treasures Act 1972. Registration is mandatory, not merely advisory. A collector who holds numismatic items qualifying as antiquities without registering them with ASI is committing an offence under the Act, regardless of how the items were acquired. |
The export restriction — ASI licence required
Section 3 of the Antiquities and Art Treasures Act prohibits the export of antiquities without a licence from the Director General of ASI. This restriction applies to all forms of international movement — in personal baggage, through courier, through postal service. A collector who takes a pre-1926 Indian coin or note out of India without an ASI export licence has committed an offence under the Act, even if the item was otherwise legally acquired and held.
Domestic possession — not restricted
Within India, the Antiquities Act does not restrict the domestic holding, buying, selling, gifting, or inheriting of antiquities. The Kerala High Court in 2023 confirmed this position: the Act's restrictions are on export, not on domestic possession. A collector may freely buy and sell pre-1926 currency notes and coins within India, build a collection of such items, display them at exhibitions, and transfer them to other Indian collectors — provided the registration obligation is met and no export is contemplated without the ASI licence.
Judicial Authority Kerala High Court — Antiquities Act domestic possession · Kerala High Court · 2023 The Antiquities and Art Treasures Act 1972 restricts the export of antiquities without ASI licence. It does not restrict domestic possession, buying, selling, or holding of antiquities within India. A collector who holds antiquity-status numismatic items within India is doing so lawfully, subject to the registration requirement. |
Laws & authorities referenced in this chapter
Antiquities and Art Treasures Act 1972 — §2(b) (definition of antiquity: 100 years old), §3 (export prohibition without ASI licence), §5-6 (registration requirement)
S.R. Kiran v. CBI Bangalore — Karnataka High Court, Cri LJ 3079 (1999) — non-registration is an offence
Kerala High Court, 2023 — Antiquities Act restricts export, not domestic possession
Notes/coins 100+ years old = antiquities under Antiquities and Art Treasures Act 1972. Two obligations: (1) Register with ASI — non-registration is an offence (S.R. Kiran, Karnataka HC 1999); (2) ASI export licence before taking abroad — export without licence is an offence. Domestic possession: unrestricted (Kerala HC 2023). Threshold: pre-1926 items are antiquities as of 2026. Track items approaching the threshold — registration becomes mandatory when they cross 100 years.
This is educational content, not legal advice. For a specific situation, please consult a qualified legal professional. Excerpted from Currency, Coins & The Law by Mayank Agarwal, Part 12: FEMA & International — Cross-Border Collecting — Currency, Antiquities & Foreign Exchange.