Currency (Royal Australian Mint) Determination 2009 (No. 3)

Denomination , Each coin has a face value expressed as a dollar or cent amount. For the $1 coin the denomination is “$1”, and for the 50 cent coin it is “50c”. The denomination determines the coin’s legal tender value and is part of the official series of Australian circulating coins, subject to the same legal tender rules under the Currency Act 1965 (e.g., for $1, unlimited legal tender; for 50c, unlimited legal tender for amounts not exceeding $20 in transactions unless the issuing entity otherwise agrees, but in practice vending machines and retailers set their own policies).

Standard composition , The $1 coins are struck from a copper, aluminium and nickel alloy, commonly referred to as “cupronickel with a twist”. The 50 cent coin uses copper and nickel (cupronickel). These compositions are chosen for durability, resistance to corrosion and appearance. The standard composition is a specification that the Royal Australian Mint must adhere to; any deviation could affect the coin’s electromagnetic properties and acceptance in automated handling systems.

Standard weight and allowable variation , Each coin has a target weight and a permissible deviation. For the $1 coin it is 9.00 grams ± 0.27 grams (a tolerance of 3% by weight). For the 50 cent coin it is 15.55 grams ± 0.40 grams (about 2.6% tolerance). The allowable variation accounts for manufacturing wear and die variation. Coins falling outside these tolerances may be rejected by sorting machines or considered defective, though single coins would rarely be weighed by users.

Maximum diameter and thickness , These are critical dimensions for coin handling equipment such as vending machines, parking meters, ticket machines and coin counters. The $1 coin has a maximum diameter of 25.12 mm and maximum thickness 2.80 mm; the 50 cent coin has a maximum diameter of 31.65 mm and maximum thickness 2.80 mm. The “maximum” wording implies that production may be slightly under those figures but not over, because oversized coins could jam machinery.

Shape and edge , The $1 coins are circular with interrupted milling (i.e., the edge has alternating smooth and milled segments), a design that helps visually impaired users distinguish denominations and inhibits certain types of counterfeiting (e.g., edge filing). The 50 cent coin is dodecagonal (twelve-sided) with a plain edge. The dodecagonal shape is a hallmark of Australia’s circulating 50 cent coin since 1969, making it easily distinguishable from other denominations by touch and sight.

Obverse and reverse designs , The obverse design is standard for Australian coins issued in 2009 under Queen Elizabeth II: the effigy by Ian Rank-Broadley, with the monarch’s name and the issuing country and year. The reverse designs are unique to this determination. The $1 reverse features five kangaroos in a stylised manner, which is similar to the standard $1 reverse design used from 1984 to 2012 (the “five kangaroos” design), except that the determination details the specific elements including an incomplete circle with a kangaroo superimposed. The second $1 coin adds the initial “C” inside a circle,this likely denotes a designer or mint mark (possibly for the Perth Mint?), but the determination does not explain it. The 50 cent reverse is commemorative (moon landing 40th anniversary). The designs are central to the coin’s identity and to its collectibility.

The primary entity affected is the Royal Australian Mint, which has the statutory authority and obligation to produce coins to these specifications. The Mint must set up dies, procure blank planchets of the correct composition and dimensions, run quality control checks to ensure weight and diameter within tolerances, and manage the distribution of the coins through the Reserve Bank of Australia and commercial banks. The two $1 coin variants require different die setups due to the extra “C” mark, increasing production complexity slightly.

Collectors and numismatists are the most affected group. The commemorative 50 cent coin, being a single-year issue for a specific anniversary, has a limited mintage window and will be sought after for collections. The two $1 coins,especially the variant with the “C” initial,may be of interest to collectors seeking varieties. The existence of two near-identical $1 coins from the same year creates a need for collectors to verify which one they have, and potentially to acquire both. This can increase transaction costs in the secondary coin market.

Businesses that handle cash , vending machine operators, retail stores, banks, and armoured car services , are affected only indirectly. The specifications (dimensions, weight, composition) are identical to the existing circulating $1 and 50 cent coins in use since the 1980s and 1990s, so no recalibration of coin acceptance equipment is required. The design changes do not alter the physical profile. Businesses must be able to distinguish genuine coins from counterfeits; while the design elements are new, they do not require any change in counterfeit detection methods (which rely primarily on dimensions, weight, and metal content). The significant determinant of acceptance is whether the coin is recognised as Australian legal tender, which it is.

The general public using cash will encounter these coins in their change. The $1 coins look almost identical to the standard circulating $1 of the same year (the 2009 standard $1 coin also depicts five kangaroos) , the “C” initial is a tiny mark that most people will not notice. The 50 cent coin’s moon landing design is clearly different from the standard 50 cent arms design, but it is the same size, shape and weight, so it will be accepted in transactions without issue. For the average person, there is no new compliance burden.

The Reserve Bank of Australia is involved in ordering, distributing and ultimately withdrawing coins, but this determination does not alter its procedures. The Bank must ensure that the coins meet the specifications as a condition of being circulated as legal tender.

Makers of counterfeit detection equipment may need to update their databases of coin designs if they rely on optical recognition, but the physical specs (weight, thickness, conductivity) remain unchanged, so most detection methods are unaffected.

The determination itself imposes no duties or rights beyond those that already exist under the Currency Act 1965. Under subsection 13A(1), the Assistant Treasurer has the power to determine coin specifications by legislative instrument. This is a delegated legislative power; rights flow from the determination that the coin is “current” legal tender.

Duty of the Mint: The Royal Australian Mint must produce coins that conform to the specifications in Schedule 1. If coins were struck that deviated beyond the allowable variation in weight or dimensions, they would technically not be coins determined under this instrument and might not be considered current coins under the Currency Act. The Mint has a duty to have quality control processes to avoid that.

Right of the holder: Anyone who obtains such a coin in Australia is entitled to treat it as legal tender, subject to the limits imposed by the Currency Act (section 16). For coins of $1 denomination, there is no limit on the amount that can be offered as legal tender. For 50c coins, the limit is $20 for any single transaction (i.e., no more than 40 coins of 50c and smaller denominations, unless the recipient agrees). That is a property right: the holder can use the coin to discharge a debt up to that amount.

Duty of the recipient: There is no general duty to accept Australian coins. Only the Reserve Bank and government instrumentalities may be obliged to accept them for certain payments. In private transactions, a person can refuse any form of payment, including coins. The legal tender status means that if a debtor offers the correct amount in current coins and the creditor refuses without contractual or legislative basis, the debt is not discharged; but the creditor is not compelled to accept coins in routine retail transactions (that is a matter of contract).

No rights to design or intellectual property: The determination does not grant any rights to the public to reproduce the coin designs. The designs are owned by the Commonwealth. Unauthorised reproduction could infringe copyright or the Currency Act’s prohibitions on counterfeiting.

Rights of coin collectors: Collectors have no specific rights under this determination, but they do have the right to buy, sell and trade coins as personal property, and to rely on the specifications as authoritative for verifying authenticity.

This determination does not itself create any penalties. Penalties for offences related to coins are found in the Currency Act 1965 and the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth). The determination is merely a specification of what constitutes a current coin for those purposes.

Under the Currency Act, section 24 makes it an offence to deface, mutilate or fraudulently diminish any current coin, punishable by a fine of up to 10 penalty units (currently $2,750 as of 2024, subject to indexing). Section 24B prohibits unauthorised reproduction of the whole or any part of a current coin if it is likely to be confused with a current coin. Section 24A prohibits making, buying, selling or importing counterfeit Australian coins. These provisions apply to any coin that satisfies the specifications in this determination once it is issued. The determination thus defines the thing that is protected: a coin matching these specs is a current coin, and interference with it or counterfeiting of it attracts the penalties.

Enforcement is carried out by the Australian Federal Police, the Reserve Bank’s counterfeit detection unit, and state police. The CoinNet system (a collaboration between the Mint, Reserve Bank and AFP) monitors counterfeit incidents. Because the coins in this determination are largely identical to existing coins in terms of composition and dimensions, counterfeit risk is not significantly increased. However, the commemorative 50 cent coin may attract premium counterfeiting because of its collectible aftermarket value.

No civil penalties: The determination creates no civil liability for individuals or businesses. Wrongly rejecting a coin as payment could be a breach of contract but not a statutory penalty. The Mint could face administrative consequences if it produced coins outside specification, but the determination does not provide a private right of action.

Inspector and monitoring powers: Again, these are not in the determination. The Currency Act gives certain enforcement powers to the Reserve Bank to examine coins, but these are ancillary.

The determination is made under section 13A of the Currency Act 1965 and must be read in conjunction with the entire Act. In particular, section 16 sets legal tender rules; section 14 empowers the Treasurer to determine the denominations of coins to be issued; and section 18 provides that a coin is current if it has been issued under the Act. This determination creates “current” coins for the purposes of those sections. It does not interact with state or territory coinage laws because coinage is a Commonwealth head of power.

The determination is a legislative instrument under the Legislative Instruments Act 2003 (now the Legislation Act 2003). As such, it was registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments and is subject to tabling and disallowance procedures in Parliament. This interacts with the parliamentary scrutiny regime.

Reserve Bank Act 1959 gives the Reserve Bank authority over currency distribution. The Bank distributes coins through Note Issuance and other departments. This determination informs the Bank which coins are to be distributed.

Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) , The trade of coins as collectibles may be subject to Australian Consumer Law. Misrepresenting a coin as having certain specifications (e.g., claiming it is a mint error when it is not) could breach consumer guarantees. However, the determination itself does not regulate that.

Crimes Act 1914 (Cth) and Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth) contain provisions against counterfeiting. The coin’s specifications are used as evidence of what a genuine coin is. The determination is likely to be admissible in prosecutions as proof of the prescribed characteristics.

Other determinations: Section 4 of this instrument explicitly states that it does not affect any other determination. Multiple coin specifications coexist. For example, there is a separate determination for the standard circulating $1 and 50c coins for 2009 not covered here. From a legal perspective, all coins that meet any valid determination are current. This can lead to a situation where, for a given denomination, multiple design variants exist simultaneously, all legal tender. That is by design, enabling commemorative and circulating coins to live side by side.

Intellectual property laws: The designs are artistic works owned by the Commonwealth. Unauthorised reproduction could infringe copyright. The determination does not grant a licence; it merely defines the coin for currency purposes. The Mint holds the copyright and typically allows collection related use but not commercial reproduction.

This determination is a standalone instrument. It has not been amended since its commencement on 23 June 2009. Its registered FRLI number is likely F2009L02423 (though not stated, it was registered under the now-defunct Federal Register of Legislative Instruments). As of the time of writing (2025), there is no evidence of any amending determination. The instrument remains in force and continues to define those three coins as current.

Amendments to coin specifications under section 13A(1) are common; the Assistant Treasurer issues new determinations for each new coin design, often multiple per year. For example, the Mint produces annual sets and commemorative coins. Each determination operates independently. This instrument could theoretically be repealed by a later determination that explicitly revokes it, but that would be unusual for coin specifications because existing coins remain in circulation even if future coins are specified differently. Coins do not cease to be current unless a specific repeal occurs (section 18 of Currency Act requires the Treasurer to declare a coin ceasing to be current, which is rare , often coins are simply removed from circulation by the banking system when worn or over time). Thus the 2009 coins specified here remain in circulation indefinitely, or at least until they are physically withdrawn by the Reserve Bank. The determination itself is permanent unless amended.

The fact that two $1 coin variants were created in the same instrument,one with the “C” initial, one without,raises questions. Possibly the “C” was an error inclusion? But the determination lists both as items. The Mint might have later produced only one variant in practice, or both. Without further official records, the amendment history is silent. The instrument has remained unchanged, and no subsequent determination has removed either coin from the list.

For compliance purposes, practitioners should note that the 2009 (No. 3) determination is one of a series. There was likely a 2009 (No. 1) and (No. 2) covering other coins (e.g., standard circulating coinage). Those are separate instruments and should be checked for completeness.

There is no reported litigation concerning this specific determination. Coin specification determinations are very rarely the subject of court proceedings because they are taken as delegated legislation that is non-justiciable on merits, and they generally do not deprive anyone of a right or impose obligations. Challenges could theoretically arise on administrative law grounds,for instance, if the instrument were not properly registered, or if the Assistant Treasurer exceeded the power under section 13A(1) (which is broad,“specifications of coins”). But no such challenge has been recorded.

One could imagine hypothetical litigation: a dispute over a coin’s legal tender status if a coin did not match the specification exactly (e.g., a counterfeit accusation or a defective coin refused by a vending machine operator). However, that would be a factual dispute about the coin, not a challenge to the determination itself. In such a case, the determination would be used as evidence of the correct specifications.

The broader Currency Act has seen some litigation on legal tender limits (e.g., Cubrilovic v Minister for Home Affairs [2020] FCA 102, though not directly on coins). The determination itself is too niche to have generated litigation.

The low probability of litigation is a cost saving for the Commonwealth, but from a free‑market viewpoint, it also means that disputes over coin authenticity or acceptance are resolved privately rather than through formal legal process, which suits economic efficiency.

Two $1 coins, one with a “C” initial: The determination specifies both a standard five‑kangaroo $1 coin and an identical one except for a “C” inside a circle on the reverse. The “C” is unexplained. It could be a mint mark for the Canberra Mint (C for Canberra), a designer initial, or a variant produced for a specific purpose. For anyone inspecting a 2009 $1 coin, it is critical to check for that initial. The presence or absence determines which specification applies. If a coin lacks the “C”, it is still a current coin (under Item 1). If it has the “C”, it is under Item 2. Both are legal tender, but collectors assign very different values. Businesses should not refuse either, but a casual observer might assume they are identical. This creates a need for careful identification if there is any reason to contest authenticity.

Identical physical dimensions: The $1 coins have exactly the same mass, diameter, thickness, shape, edge and composition as the standard circulating $1 coin produced in 2009 under another determination. That means if you only measure the coin, you cannot distinguish which determination it belongs to. The design is the only differentiator. For counterfeit detection, this is irrelevant, but for legal disputes over which determination applies, the design must be visually inspected.

The 50 cent coin is dodecagonal, same as standard 50c: The moon landing 50c coin has the same shape, weight, composition and size as the standard circulating 50c (which bears the Australian Coat of Arms). So a vending machine that accepts 50c coins will accept the moon landing coin without issue. However, because it is a commemorative design, some people might try to hoard it, reducing circulation. That is not a legal gotcha, but a behavioural one.

No end date: The determination has no sunset clause. These coins remain current forever unless a subsequent instrument declares them no longer current. Compare that to paper banknotes which are often withdrawn after a few decades. Coins stay in circulation much longer. This means a business might receive a 40th moon landing coin in change in 2050, and it is still legal tender. Most people will not recognise the design; they might think it is a foreign coin. That could lead to refusal. But legally it is still good.

The “interrupted milling” edge on the $1 coins: This edge treatment is specific to the $1 coin and helps differentiate it from the 50c coin (which is dodecagonal). If a $1 coin were minted with plain edge or continuous milling, it would not meet the specification. That could be a defect or an error coin. Collectors seek errors, but for ordinary use, an off‑spec coin might be rejected by machines or even considered counterfeit.

Multiple determinations overlap: Section 4 says this determination does not affect any other determination. So there may be a separate determination for a 2009 $1 coin without the five kangaroos reverse (e.g., a commemorative $1 coin for the year of the astronaut). A person could hold two different $1 coins from 2009, both current, but one is a standard issue and the other is a commemorative. For legal tender purposes, they are interchangeable. This can cause confusion for cash handlers if they see unusual designs.

No obligation to inform the public: The determination is registered and publicly accessible, but the Mint is not required to notify every citizen of the new coin designs. Most people will only learn of new coins when they see one. That is a low‑information environment. If a merchant refuses a coin that is genuinely legal tender, they may be breaking the law if their refusal is not contractual. In practice, merchants can refuse, but the legal tender concept still holds for debt payment.

For the Royal Australian Mint, compliance means producing coins that conform to Schedule 1. This requires:

• Using the correct metal alloys (copper‑aluminium‑nickel for $1, copper‑nickel for 50c).
• Stamping the obverse and reverse to the specified designs, including the inscriptions and the “C” initial where required.
• Verifying weight within the allowable variation (9.00 g ± 0.27 g for $1; 15.55 g ± 0.40 g for 50c). The Mint uses automated scales; any coin outside tolerance is destroyed or recycled.
• Verifying dimensions using automated gauges (maximum diameter and thickness must not exceed the specified figures, and they can be slightly less).
• Checking edge treatment: interrupted milling for $1, plain for 50c.
• For the 50c coin, ensuring the dodecagonal shape is correct (12 equally‑sided edges). The Mint must use the appropriate press and collar.
• For the $1 coins, the interrupted milling must alternate between milled and plain segments, which adds a step in the striking process.

The Mint must also maintain records of issuance and coordinate with the Reserve Bank for distribution. The determination itself does not mandate any reporting, but under the Currency Act, the Mint is required to keep accounts.

For businesses and individuals who receive these coins, compliance is minimal. There is no duty to accept them, but if a business does accept them, there is no further obligation. However, for cash‑handling businesses that rely on automated coin recognition, these coins will be accepted because their electromagnetic signature and dimensions match existing denominations. No recalibration needed. The only potential issue is with the “C” initial $1 coin: if a coin sorter uses optical recognition, it might treat the two $1 varieties the same because the weight and shape are identical. That is fine.

For detecting counterfeits, the specifications provide the baseline. A genuine coin should weigh within 0.27 g of 9.00 g, have a diameter between 25.00 mm and 25.12 mm (if the maximum is specified, the minimum is not given but standard tolerance would be around 25.00 mm), and have the correct electrical conductivity (from the alloy). A magnet test will not work on these alloys (they are non‑ferromagnetic). The design details are also key: the effigy and inscriptions must be sharp; many counterfeits have blurry details.

For coin collectors buying or selling these coins, compliance means verifying authenticity to the printed specifications. They can compare the weight and dimensions using a digital scale and calipers. The designs are images in the Register, so a collector can compare visual details. The “C” initial is particularly important for the $1 variant; if a coin intended to be the “C” variant lacks the mark, it is a different coin (or a mint error). Collectors should be aware that the determination lists both as valid, so both are official.

No registration or reporting required for anyone. The determination imposes no paperwork, no fees and no approvals. It is a purely specification instrument.

Enforcement risk for the public is virtually zero. The only risk is if someone counterfeits these specific coins; then they would be prosecuted under the Currency Act. But for ordinary users, there is no compliance burden at all. The free‑market principle that minimal regulation of coin design is desirable is satisfied here: the determination is a simple list, not a directive to the economy.