Iran's Four-Zero Redenomination: A Timeline

Collector's Guide · World Banknotes · October 2026

Iran Is Removing Four Zeros From the Rial: The Timeline So Far

Parliament voted in October 2025, the Guardian Council signed off in November, and the central bank is working toward a 2030 phase-out. Here is each step, and what the 10 million rial cheque becomes.

The short answer

Iran is removing four zeros from the rial, so 10,000 old rials will equal one new unit. Parliament approved the plan on October 5, 2025, the Guardian Council followed in early November, and on November 22 the president told the central bank to begin two years of preparations. The old rial is due to be phased out by 2030.

What is Iran's four-zero redenomination?

It is a plan to cut four zeros from the rial, so 10,000 of today's rials become one new unit. Redenomination changes the numbers printed on prices and banknotes, not what money buys: a price that reads 10,000,000 today would read 1,000 afterward.

It is a long-standing plan that moved quickly in 2025. The Central Bank of Iran outlined detailed plans in May, the bill returned to parliament in August with the rial kept as the official unit, and lawmakers voted in October.

What is the timeline for Iran removing four zeros from the rial?

These are the dated steps reported so far.

Date	What happened	Source
May 13, 2025	The Central Bank of Iran outlines detailed plans to remove four zeros from the currency.	bne IntelliNews
August 3, 2025	The bill advances in parliament again, with the rial kept as the official unit.	bne IntelliNews
August 12, 2025	A report says new notes with four fewer zeros are expected from 2027.	IFN Investor
October 5, 2025	Parliament approves removing four zeros from the rial.	Iran International
Early November 2025	The Guardian Council approves the bill. One new unit equals 10,000 rials, with a three-year transition overseen by the central bank.	Rudaw, November 8
November 22, 2025	President Masoud Pezeshkian instructs the central bank to begin two years of preparations.	Iran International
February 24, 2026	The central bank moves the plan into a "preliminary operational phase," and the old rial is to be phased out by 2030.	bne IntelliNews

Read together, the dates fit a simple schedule. Two years of preparation from November 2025 points to late 2027, and up to three years of side-by-side circulation after that reaches 2030, the year the old rial is due to be gone. That is our reading of the reported dates, not an official calendar. We have not found an official announcement of the new notes' design, denominations or issue date.

Will Iran's new currency be called the rial or the toman?

Reports differ. bne IntelliNews wrote in August 2025 that the revived bill keeps the rial as the official unit, while Rudaw's account of the Guardian Council's decision speaks of a "new toman" worth 10,000 rials. What the accounts share is the ratio: four zeros come off, so 10,000 old rials equal one new unit. The final wording will settle the name.

What does the 10 million rial cheque become after redenomination?

Divide by 10,000. A 10,000,000 rial cheque would read 1,000 new units. This is how today's large numbers translate:

Today, in rials	After four zeros come off
100,000	10
500,000	50
1,000,000	100
5,000,000	500
10,000,000	1,000

The 10 million rial cheque was issued by Bank Melli Iran on behalf of the Central Bank of Iran and is dated April 2026. Our explainer describes it as the highest current cash-equivalent denomination as of May 2026. We have not seen an announcement of how the cheque will be handled during the transition.

Four zeros come off the number. The paper that carried them stays in the record.

Why do the numbers on Iranian banknotes keep growing?

Denominations grew with the rial's decline. In late August 2026, bne IntelliNews reported the open-market rate at around 2,031,000 rials per US dollar. When a currency loses value over years, the central bank prints larger notes to keep payments practical, and eventually the numbers on the notes outrun the unit itself. Redenomination is how countries reset them. Venezuela and Yugoslavia both did it, and our guide to Venezuela's 2021 and Yugoslavia's 1993 zero-removals shows how it looked from the collector's side.

Why do collectors follow notes from before a redenomination?

When zeros come off, the high-denomination series becomes a finished chapter. The notes that carried the old numbers are tied to a specific set of dates, and a new family takes over. Collectors have long treated those final issues as a category of their own, which is why redenomination sits at the center of this hobby. Our guide to Iran's 5 million rial note covers another recent high-denomination issue.

Frequently asked questions

How many zeros is Iran removing from the rial?

Four. 10,000 old rials will equal one new unit, so a 10,000,000 rial amount becomes 1,000.

When will Iran's new banknotes be issued?

We have not found an announced issue date. A report in August 2025 said new notes would arrive from 2027, and the president's November 2025 order began two years of preparations, which points to late 2027. Treat both as targets, not commitments.

Will old Iranian banknotes stop being valid right away?

No. Reports describe a transition of up to three years in which old and new currency circulate together, and the central bank says the old rial is due to be phased out by 2030.

Does redenomination change what money can buy?

No. It changes the numbers, not the value: 10,000 old rials and one new unit are the same amount of money.

How much is the 10 million rial cheque in US dollars?

At the open-market rate bne IntelliNews reported in August 2026, about 2,031,000 rials per dollar, 10,000,000 rials is roughly US$4.90. Rates move daily, and that is face value, not what collectors pay.

Where does Planet Banknote source its Iranian notes?

Through established U.S. numismatic channels. Iranian banknotes are traded openly in the U.S. collectibles market, including at Heritage Auctions.

Sources

The 10 million rial cheque

The high-zero era on one piece of paper: the 10,000,000 rial cheque, uncirculated and dated April 2026. Available singly or as a set of ten.

See the 10 million rial cheque

Iran's Four-Zero Redenomination: A Timeline