Is it illegal to cut up coins?
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It is not generally illegal to cut up coins, provided you are not doing so with fraudulent intent. The law focuses on protecting the integrity of currency to prevent financial crimes.
Is it illegal to cut US coins?
18 U.S. Code section 331: This statute addresses the mutilation, diminution, or falsification of U.S. coins. You can be charged with on offense for fraudulently defacing coins, mutilating coins, altering coins, diminishing them, impairing them, scaling them, or lightening them.
Is it illegal to squish pennies?
Yes, Squashing Pennies is Legal!
U.S. Title 18, Chapter 17, Section 331: Prohibits among other things, fraudulent alteration and mutilation of coins. This statue does not, however, prohibit the mutilation of coins if done without fraudulent intent if the mutilated coins are not used fraudulently.
Which coin is illegal to own?
Because the coin was never released to the public, it is illegal to privately own any of the 1933 double eagles, with the exception of the Weitzman Specimen. The United States Secret Service is said to investigate reports of the existence of other specimens that come to light.
What if I invested $1000 in gold 10 years ago?
Bottom Line
If you had invested in Kinross Gold ten years ago, you're probably feeling pretty good about your investment today. A $1000 investment made in December 2015 would be worth $13,821.78, or a 1,282.18% gain, as of December 15, 2025, according to our calculations.
How are Silver Coins Minted?
Why are 1999 pennies worth $4,500 today?
A 1999 penny can be worth as much as $4,500 today because of a rare minting error called a “wide AM” variety, where the “A” and “M” in “AMERICA” are spaced further apart than normal.
Is it illegal to put a hole in a penny?
As a matter of policy, the Mint does not promote coloring, plating or altering U.S. coinage: however, there are no sanctions against such activity absent fraudulent intent. The key word is fraudulent.
Why is a 1983 penny worth $10,000 today?
What Makes a 1983 Penny Worth Money? First, 1983 penny errors like doubled dies, off-center strikes, and clipped planchets. These production mistakes are rare and valuable. The 1983 copper cent, one of the rarest varieties, weighs more, is composed of 95% copper, and can cost thousands of dollars in auctions.
Is it legal to cut a dollar?
Section 331 of Title 18 of the United States code provides criminal penalties for anyone who fraudulently alters, defaces, mutilates impairs, diminishes, falsifies, scales, or lightens any of the coins coined at the Mints of the United States.
Is it illegal to carve coins?
In the U.S., the law is pretty clear: defacing coins or paper money with intent to defraud is illegal. That means if you're shaving silver off a quarter or trying to pass off an altered coin as rare, you're breaking federal law.
Is it illegal to make a hole in a coin?
18 U.S.C. 331 makes it illegal to “alter, deface, mutilate, impair, diminish, falsify, scale, or lighten” any coin minted in the U.S. or any foreign coin being used as currency in the U.S.
Can you damage US currency?
Currency notes can become mutilated in any number of ways. The most common causes are fire, water, chemicals, and explosives; animal, insect, or rodent damage; and petrification or deterioration by burying. The Director of the BEP has the final authority with respect to mutilated currency submission redemptions.
Is it legal to modify coins?
Coin Mutilation – Quick Facts
This law makes it illegal to “alter, deface, mutilate, impair, diminish, falsify, scale, or lighten” any coin minted in the United States. The law also covers any foreign coin used as currency in the United States.
Why is carrying money in excess of $10,000 illegal in the US?
If you are carrying $10,000 or more in currency or monetary instruments – even if the money is legal – you have to notify CBP when arriving in the U.S. Failure to do so can result in the seizure of your cash. CBP goes after large sums of money that could be used for criminal purposes.
Is breaking pennies illegal?
It is not illegal to melt, form, destroy, or otherwise modify US coins, including pennies, unless the objective is fraudulent or with the intent of selling the raw materials of the coins for profit. Projects that use coins as materials are entirely legal in the United States.
Can I drill a hole in a penny?
I first tried to make a hole in the coin using a metal punch, but the coin was too thick and it didn't work :( I ended up going to the hardware store and getting a small drill bit specifically for metal and that ended up working great. I used vice grips and a clamp to hold the coin in place while I drilled.
Can you turn a penny into a ring?
Introduction: Make a Ring by Melting Pennies.
Use a well ventilated area with power assisted ventilation to avoid breathing these fumes. That being said, this is ring made from pennies. You can smelt the copper coating off leaving you with zinc. Pennies minted after 1983 are all made like this.
Is it illegal to smash a penny?
According to statute 18 USC Section 331, in brief, it's illegal to mutilate coins with the intent to use them fraudulently, but since pressed pennies are made as souvenirs with no intent to pass them off as currency, they get the green light.
Are Hobo nickels illegal?
Legal Considerations
It's illegal to deface currency that's currently in circulation. However, due to the nature of the Buffalo nickel, its history, and its obsolete status, it's legal to alter them and continue the craft of hobo nickels.
Is it illegal to meltdown coins?
Individuals are generally allowed to melt other coins, such as silver dimes, quarters, and half-dollars, as long as they are not doing so for profit. For example, if you're melting coins for personal use, such as creating art or jewelry, and not for the purpose of selling the metal, it is typically permissible.