No, ₹500 notes aren't going anywhere—PIB busts viral ATM rumor

India Jan 02, 2026

A WhatsApp forward recently freaked people out by claiming that ₹500 notes would vanish from most ATMs by March this year, urging everyone to ditch their cash.
But the government's PIB Fact Check team has called this out as totally false—₹500 notes are still good to use and accepted everywhere.

So, what actually happened?

Turns out, the confusion started because of an RBI circular asking banks to make sure more ATMs have smaller notes like ₹100 or ₹200 available.
The goal? Just easier access to change—not phasing out ₹500s.

Official word: No need to panic

Finance Minister Pankaj Chaudhary told Parliament there are no plans to stop supplying ₹500 notes.
So, you can chill—your money is safe and those rumors can be ignored.