The official currency of El Salvador is the US dollar. The ISO code is USD and the abbreviation US $ or just $, which is also the symbol. 1 US dollar equals 100 cents. The banknotes are available as 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 dollar notes. The coins are 1, 5, 10, 25, 50 cents and US $ 1.
History of the Salvadoran Currency
Before 1919, the peso was the common currency in El Salvador. The Colones (majority of the El-Salvador-Colón) were Salvadoran currency from 1919 and are retained by the central bank today, or new ones are no longer issued.
The ISO code for El Salvador Colón was SVC and the abbreviation ₡. One colón was equal to 100 centavos. The currency had its name based on the Spanish name of the explorer Christopher Columbus – Cristóbal Colón. Colones were colloquially referred to as “pesos”.
In January 2001 the US dollar replaced El Salvador’s previous currency, the El Salvador Colón. This is still valid, but is hardly used anymore.
The US dollar is used as currency in the United States and in the following countries: Bonaire, British Virgin Islands, Ecuador, El Salvador, Liberia, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, East Timor, Palau, Panama, Saba, Zimbabwe, Sint Eustatius, Turks and Caicos Islands.
The changeover to the US dollar was actually only intended to temporarily cushion the economic weakness of El Salvador, as the Colones were affected by high inflation. In the meantime, however, the US dollar has established itself, so that the currency reform has already occurred.
Exchange and exchange into the currency of El Salvador
When importing and exporting currency, it should be noted that foreign currency can be imported and exported without restriction. However, the money must be declared if you want to cross the border with more than US $ 10,000.
In El Salvador, banknotes larger than US $ 20 are often not accepted, so it is advisable to get smaller notes when changing currency.