TAKE NOTE This is when the paper £5 note goes out of circulation and how to ensure your old fivers don’t lose their value

YOU must spend your old paper fivers before midnight tonight.

On Friday May 5, the old fashioned cotton paper notes will no longer be legal tender, which means you won’t be able to buy anything with them.

Last month, The Bank of England estimated that there were 165 million notes in circulation still in circulation before they can no longer be spent in shops.

What happens if you haven’t spent your old £5 note by 5 May 2017?

You won’t be able to spend them in shops or restaurants.

If you want to swap the old notes over for new tender you will have to make the trip into a bank, building society or Post Office.

You will need to be a customer of the bank for them to exchange the note.

You can use your local Post Office to deposit the old fivers into your bank account too.

It is possible that a high street bank will stop exchanging them after the cut-off date but The Bank of England is legally obliged to.

You can either do this in person or via post. Although if you post it to The Bank of England, you do so at the “sender’s risk”.

If you are exchanging large amounts of old £5 notes, you may be asked to provide identification, such as a passport or driving licence.

What should I do if I am handed one in a shop?

Shops have now been told not to hand over old £5 notes as change to customers.

If you are offered one in a shop, try simply asking the assistant to swap it for a new note or coins if a new note isn’t available.

But you shouldn’t panic if you do accidentally accept one as the following point proves it won’t be the end of the world.

Will there be a point when I can never exchange the old £5 note for new currency?

No, in theory you should always be able to exchange it with The Bank of England.

Bank of England notes keep their face value for all time, so don’t panic if you find one in the pocket of an old pair of jeans, there’s always time!

What happens to the £5 notes when they are withdrawn?

Those eco-friendly chaps over at the bank intend to recycle the old paper fivers using a composting treatment.

Will the Bank of England be releasing any other new notes?

There are plans to release a new £10 note this summer, which will feature classic British author Jane Austen.

This will be followed in three years time by a new £20 note which will feature the British painter JMW Turner.

There was also a new £1 coin issued in March.