Here are 5, easy, quick steps that you can take to avoid receiving counterfeit bills & protect your income!

Check for the security strip either slightly to the left ($5, $20, & $100) or right ($10 & $50) of the portrait. You can even insert paper clips in the top & bottom of the $100 bill for evidence that it was printed or stamped & not copied.

2. Raised printing on the collar of the portrait allows you to scratch with your finger nail to feel & hear the friction on the bill or denomination.

3. There are tiny red & blue fibers that are woven in the fabric. These fibers are slightly raised & provide a texture when rubbed. This texture will be absent on a counterfeit bill; even if, it has the color down-packed. Note: some of the micro-printing in the background that arcs above the red & blue circles stating the denomination in numbers & words; as this was, 8x magnification.

4. $5 bills & up from 1996 or later were made with color changing ink in the bottom right hand corner that shifts from green to black or gold to green when the bill is angled...

... as you can see here.

5. Last, but not least, the all-too-famous water marks. When held up to a light the water mark will appear as the portrait of the dead-president on the face of the bill or as an oval. The president must match or be an oval, or it is a counterfeit bill. In addition, some bills like the $100 bill have a numeric denomination that is water marked as well (to the left of picture).

In addition, you can also test your bills with a money pen & look for off-colored marks or with an ultra-violet light & look for off-colored glows or no glow at all on the security strip. Remember, if your bill fails anyone of these test then it is counterfeit!

We at Solid Tax Services strive to keep our communities financially educated; as well as tax law updated. Thank you.

In Trust,

Ashley Thomas, EA