TZS – Tanzanian Shilling

Monetary System

1 Tanzanian shilling (TZS) = 100 senti

Bank of Tanzania

Following the decision to dissolve the East African Currency Board (EACB) and to establish separate central banks in Tanzania, Kenya, and Uganda, the Bank of Tanzania Act, 1965, was passed by the National Assembly in December 1965, and the Bank of Tanzania (BOT) was opened on 14 June 1966.
For more information, visit www.bot.go.tz.

2011 – 2019 Issues

According to an article in The Citizen dated 10 March 2011, Bank of Tanzania refuted rumors it was withdrawing this new family of notes introduced on 1 January. Apparently there were widespread complaints that the new notes are of inferior quality compared to the older notes. The bank insists the notes are of good quality and has no plans to withdraw them from circulation.
These notes have 7-digit serial numbers and 2-letter prefixes that advance alphabetically AA, AB, AC, and so on, resulting in 9,999,999 notes per prefix. All denominations have novel serial numbers at lower left front.

Description: 500.00 TZS – Tanzanian Shilling Size: 120 x 60 mm

Green. Front: Swahili text; coat of arms; Sheikh Abeid Amani Karume. Back: English text; snake coiled around stick; University of Dar es Salaam central hall building; graduating students wearing caps and gowns. giraffe. Motion windowed security thread. Watermark: Julius Kambarage Nyerere with electrotype 500. Printer: (Crane). 120 x 60 mm. Paper.

Description: 1,000.00 TZS – Tanzanian Shilling Size: 125 x 65 mm

Blue. Front: Swahili text; coat of arms; first president, Julius Kambarage Nyerere; Bismarck Rock in Mwanza Harbor; holographic patch. Back: English text; coffee plant; State House (Ikulu) building with flag in Dar es Salaam. Windowed security thread with demetalized BOT 2010. Security thread varieties. Watermark: Julius Kambarage Nyerere with electrotype 1000 and Cornerstones. Printer: (De La Rue). 125 x 65 mm. Paper.

Description: 2,000.00 TZS – Tanzanian Shilling Size: 130 x 66 mm

Tan and brown. Front: Swahili text; coat of arms; lion. Back: English text; palm trees; old Omani Arab Fort (Ngome Kongwe) in Zanzibar’s Stone Town; carved block; diamond-shaped Spark patch with giraffe head. Motion windowed security thread. Watermark: Julius Kambarage Nyerere with electrotype 2000. Printer: (Crane). 130 x 66 mm. Paper.

Description: 5,000.00 TZS – Tanzanian Shilling Size: 135 x 67 mm

Purple. Front: Swahili text; coat of arms; plant; black rhinoceros. Back: English text; mining machinery; rough and cut diamonds; diamond-shaped Spark patch with giraffe head. Motion windowed security thread. Watermark: Julius Kambarage Nyerere with electrotype 5000. Printer: (Crane). 135 x 67 mm. Paper.

Description: 10,000.00 TZS – Tanzanian Shilling Size: 140 x 68 mm

Red and yellow. Front: Swahili text; coat of arms; elephant. Back: English text; flowers; Bank of Tanzania headquarters building in Dar es Salaam; diamond-shaped Spark patch with giraffe head. Motion windowed security thread. Watermark: Julius Kambarage Nyerere with electrotype 10000. Printer: (Crane). 140 x 68 mm. Paper.

Tanzania

Tanzania came into being on 26 April 1964, with the merger of the mainland territory of Tanganyika—which had gained its independence from the United Kingdom in late 1961—and the former sultanate of Zanzibar, an archipelago in the Indian Ocean.

Extras

• On 1 July 2010, the East African Community (www.eac.int)—Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda—launched the EAC Common Market for goods, labor, and capital within the region, with the goals of a common currency (the East African shilling) by 2012, and full political federation in 2015. The common currency has yet to come to pass.
• According to a press release dated 2 April 2020, the Bank of Tanzania has enhanced the security features of its 2010 series of notes. The primary enhancement is the replacement of the Crane Motion windowed security thread with a Louisenthal RollingStar windowed security thread on the 2,000-, 5,000-, and 10,000-shilling notes. It’s unclear how the 1,000-shilling note has changed; the 500-shilling note was withdrawn in 2016.