You might someday have the need to photograph banknotes, coins or postage stamps. Do it wrong and you or your customer could get a visit from the RCMP or be on the receiving end of a lawsuit. Copying currency and stamps isn’t just about counterfeiting, it’s also a copyright issue.
Photographing Banknotes
Wouldn’t it be great if you could print your own money. You could use your digital camera and inkjet printer to show your friends that professional photography really pays off! Unfortunately governments have laws against this.
From the Canadian Criminal Code, Section 457:
Likeness of bank-notes
457 (1) No person shall make, publish, print, execute, issue, distribute or circulate, including by electronic or computer-assisted means, anything in the likeness of
(a) a current bank-note; or
(b) an obligation or a security of a government or bank.
Exception
(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to
(a) the Bank of Canada or its employees when they are carrying out their duties;
(b) the Royal Canadian Mounted Police or its members or employees when they are carrying out their duties; or
(c) any person acting under a contract or licence from the Bank of Canada or Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
Offence
(3) A person who contravenes subsection (1) is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction.
Defence
(4) No person shall be convicted of an offence under subsection (3) in relation to the printed likeness of a Canadian bank-note if it is established that the length or width of the likeness is less than three-fourths or greater than one-and-one-half times the length or width, as the case may be, of the bank-note and
(a) the likeness is in black-and-white only; or
(b) the likeness of the bank-note appears on only one side of the likeness.
Essentially this means that you cannot reproduce a banknote at 75% to 150% of actual size and in colour and with both sides showing. The Bank of Canada has more reproduction restrictions (link to PDF).
Banknotes are also covered under copyright laws. In this case, the Bank of Canada is mostly concerned about three things: (i) any commercial use that might tarnish the dignity and importance of Canadian banknotes; (ii) any use that could poorly reflect the reputation of the Bank; and (iii) any use that might lead to counterfeiting.
If you or your customer must have a full, flat view of a banknote in colour at actual size (i.e. anywhere from 75% to 150% of actual size), then you can get images from the Bank of Canada or apply for special permission from the Bank of Canada. Other countries usually make available similar photos of their banknotes.
These anti-counterfeiting laws and copyright laws are not just for photographs of banknotes on their own as shown above. These laws apply to any photo or video that includes a banknote somewhere in the frame.
Editing Pictures of Banknotes
If you have photos of banknotes, you might want to edit those images. When you try to open a banknote image using Adobe software, and perhaps also other photo-editing software, you might see something like:
This dialogue box leads to more information. Canadian information is here.
Anti-counterfeiting code has been embedded in Adobe Photoshop and perhaps in some other photo software, and in colour copiers and some flatbed scanners, since at least 2003.
This anti-counterfeiting measure won’t detect older banknotes that don’t have the secret pattern embedded in the paper. The twenty dollar bill shown at the top of this post doesn’t have the pattern but the ten dollar bill and the ten euro bill do.
Photographing Coins
There are no counterfeiting laws with regard to photographing coins or publishing pictures of coins but copyright laws may apply.
The Royal Canadian Mint has copyright ownership on the coins and medallions it produces. It has been known to sue (and here) for unauthorized reproduction of its coins.
Photographing Postage Stamps
Postage stamps are copyrighted by the Crown (i.e. the Canadian government) but may be reproduced for editorial purposes with some restrictions.
From the Canada Post Corporation Act:
2. Subject to sections 3 and 4, reproductions of postage stamps
(a) may be made and published to illustrate or accompany a news item or article in a newspaper, magazine or periodical; and
(b) may be made and published
(i) in a philatelic publication or catalogue, or
(ii) on the stationery of a philatelic club or society, other than on envelopes or other like containers or articles.
3. Any reproduction made and published pursuant to section 2 shall be
(a) at least 50 per cent larger or 50 per cent smaller, by area measurement, than the postage stamp of which it is a reproduction; or
(b) clearly defaced by means of a line that is embodied in the plate or die from which the reproduction is made.
4. Plates or dies used or employed in the reproduction of postage stamps pursuant to section 2 shall be made entirely of babbit or other soft metal or material.
Canada Post also sells commemorative coins produced by the Royal Canadian Mint. I will assume these commemorative coins fall under Royal Canadian Mint regulations.
Please check the date of this article because it contains information that may become out of date. Tax regulations, sales tax rules, copyright laws and privacy laws can change from time to time. Always check with proper government sources for up-to-date information.
