When was it legal to spend foreign coins in the USA?

When was it legal to spend foreign coins in the USA?

 

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I know it was illegal for a while, but is it not legal today?

 

In the early years of this country...circulating foreign coins was commonly accepted. I don't know that it is "illegal" today...but I think you would be hard pressed to do it. I know the occasional Canadian cent or nickel pops up in our change. But I doubt I could go to the store and pay with Canadian money successfully.

 

Foreign coins were legal tender until the coinage act of 1857.

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collId=llsl&fileName=011/llsl011.db&recNum=184

 

Yep, what Yankee said!

Just for the fun of it, here is my favorite "potentially spent in the USA" foreign coin.

 

Canadian coins and even currency were accepted by many US merchants when I was growing up, in the the 60's and 70's.

 

Beautiful piece of 8.

 

Has it ever been illegal?

 

I thought the law of 1853 demonitized foreign coins. It took us that long to ramp up US production so we could still continue commerce and make foreign coins non-legal tender. Merchants were still free to accept them, its just they weren't required to. Show up at a bar with a pocket full of Mexican gold coins and I am sure they will help you spend it.

 

In a similar vein, are all non-gold US coins still "spendable"? If I wanted to use an indian-head cent or shield nickel, is that legal? One time living in NYC, I was buying a paper at a corner market and the counter guy was looking at a nickel in a funny way. It was a V-nic and I told him it was real, and when he started to toss it in the till, I gave him another nickel for it.

 

Until 1857 foreign coinage was mostly freely spent and easily converted to US coinage. Since then, if a merchant is willing to accept foreign coinage, you may still spend it.

 

I do not believe any US coins have been voted non-legal tender save for maybe Trade dollars. Some places might have LIMITS as to what you can pay in coinage, but not making any US coin illegal.

 

Dang it, THIS close.

 

That's how I understand it.

What it comes down to is a simple question of what's the difference between "spending" a coin, and trading it, or selling it? Of course the ability to "spend" it to get something you want does not make it "legal tender". Nobody is obligated to accept it as payment, nor can any creditor demand that you make payment in foreign currency for a debt in the US.

 

The only us coin or paper money ever demonetized was, in fact, the Trade Dollar, in 1887 and it was made legal tender again by the Coinage Act of 1965.
All coins and paper money ever issued by the USA continue to be legal tender.

 

I was under the impression that gold coins and gold-backed notes were demonetized.

 

Nope! Just not redeemable for gold/silver. Still legal tender for face value.

 

Correct. All these coins are still "legal tender" but it is up to the establishment if they want to accept them...like any form of currency.

 

Gold coins were never demonitized, just ruled illegal to own above a certain quantity. Roosevelt wanted to force people to be active in the economy and not just sit on gold and ride the depression out.

Like Rick said, both gold and silver certificates are still legal tender for face value, just not redeemable any longer for the metal.

 

I found a panama coin recently from change. Also I find Germany coins, euro cents, Canadian cents, so people are spending them.