The Press Information Bureau (PIB) has issued a fact-check report after several social media posts claimed that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will discontinue the circulation of ₹500 notes by March 2026.
Labelling the speculation as ‘fake’, the government media agency clarified that the central bank has not made any such announcement regarding the discontinuation of ₹500 currency notes.
“Some social media posts claim that the Reserve Bank of India will discontinue the circulation of ₹500 notes by March 2026. PIBFactCheck: This claim is fake! RBI has made NO such announcement,” PIB said in an X (formerly Twitter) post.
PIB warns citizens about unverified claims
The agency further stated that ₹500 notes continue to be a valid legal tender, which means they can be freely used for all transactions, urging the public not to fall for unverified claims or misleading information circulating on social media and other platforms.
“ ₹500 notes have NOT been discontinued and remain legal tender. Always verify news from official sources before believing or sharing it!” the government media agency said in the post.
Previous clarifications about ₹500 demonetisation claims
This is not the first time the Government of India has stepped in to clarify rumours and misleading claims about the demonetisation of ₹500 currency notes, reiterating that such speculation has surfaced repeatedly in the past and has been debunked.
In June, the PIB's fact-checking unit clarified on platform X that the claims about an upcoming alleged ‘demonetisation’ in March 2026 were false and that they were an attempt to spread misinformation among the masses through social media platforms.
During that time, a video circulated widely on social media in which a news anchor from a YouTube channel claimed that India is set to discontinue the circulation of ₹500 banknotes effective March 2026. This speculation was later refuted by the government.
Supporting the government's clarification, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary informed Parliament in August that there are no plans to discontinue the supply of ₹500 denomination banknotes. He further stated that the ATMs will continue to disburse ₹500 notes along with other denominations such as ₹100 or ₹200, dismissing rumours of any proposed withdrawal.
