The Reserve Bank has decided to update the $5 banknote to feature a new design that honours the
culture and history of the First Australians.
This new design will replace the portrait of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. The other
side of the $5 banknote will continue to feature the Australian Parliament.

This decision by the Reserve Bank Board follows consultation with the Australian Government, which
supports this change.

The Bank will consult with First Australians in designing the $5 banknote. The new
banknote will take a number of years to be designed and printed. In the meantime, the
current $5 banknote will continue to be issued. It will be able to be used even after
the new banknote is issued.

Background

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians are respectfully advised that the
following includes the names of some people who are now deceased.

The first $1 banknote, issued in 1966, included imagery of Aboriginal rock paintings and
carvings and designs based on a bark painting by David Malangi Daymirringu. Australia’s
first polymer banknote, a $10 issued as a one-off in 1988, included examples of ancient
and contemporary Aboriginal art, echoing the appreciation of the art’s significance,
both nationally and internationally.

The current $50 banknote features author, activist, inventor, musician and preacher,
David Uniapon, a Ngarrindjeri man from South Australia. The $5 banknote showcases the
Forecourt Mosaic, which is based on a Central Desert dot-style painting by Michael
Nelson Jagamara titled ‘Possum and Wallaby Dreaming’.