Socketed Sterling

Socketed Sterling
Whats the currency in gibraltar? And what is it worth compared to pounds sterling?

Also are the plug sockets there standard european?

The currency in Gibraltar IS Pounds Sterling.
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You will find a number of people *wrongly* saying the currency is ‘Gibraltar Pounds’.

They say this because they do not understand the difference between issues of currency (i.e.the bank notes and coins themselves) and currencies themselves. There is no such currency as the Gibraltar Pound.

The Government of Gibraltar issues Pounds Sterling bank notes and coins. And it is only GoG issued notes and coins that someone in Gibraltar is technically legally obliged to accept (i.e. they must).

However, Bank of England issued pound notes and UK coins are *universally* accepted *everywhere* in Gibraltar and they are totally intermixed with the the Government of Gibraltar issued ones.

The GoG issued coins are the same size as the UK coins, but with different reverse designs. The GoG notes are different designs completely from the BoE issued ones. But the key point is they are TOTALLY intermixed, you can pay in either and will usually get your change in a mix.

This is because they are exactly the same currency, and 5 pounds is 5 pounds, etc.

What you will have problems with in Gibraltar are pound notes issued by the Scottish banks, and also pound notes and coins issued by Jersey, Guernsey, Isle of Man etc. This is similar to the situation in say Jersey where they will accept a UK coin or bank of England note, but not a Gibraltar note or coin etc.

WARNING: Be aware of a scam by UK airport bureau de change (money converters) offering to change UK notes and coins for Gibraltar issued ones – they usually ask for 10%!!! for doing this. This is a complete scam. They will lie to people and say that only GoG issued ones are accepted. This is completely untrue. In Gibraltar the BoE notes and UK coins are fine – and totally intermixed.

They will often refer to GIP as a currency called the Gibraltar Pound. This is not true. GIP is an ‘internal bank stock control code’ – used to identify stocks of Gibraltar issued notes separately, but they are the same currency – they are both issues of the pound sterling.

When you are leaving Gibraltar, the Gibraltar airport departure lounge shops will always assist you by only giving you change in the BoE notes and UK coins, as you will naturally have trouble with them in the UK. Also shops will usually happily assist you by swapping them in the till if you are about to leave Gibraltar and still have local issues.

However any decent UK bank should allow you to pay them into your account without any fee.
Also, most shops and restaurants in Gibraltar will readily accept Euros as a benefit to tourists. The rate is not usually that bad, but there is of course still a slight % charge – as they are handling a foreign currency.

Pay in pounds if you have them, and they can be UK or Gibraltar ones!

Some shops and taxis will also accept US dollars, but there will be a worse rate attached, because it is a very foreign currency.

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Plug sockets are 3 square pin type (BS 1363) which is the same type used in the UK, Ireland, Malta, Cyprus, Malaysia, Singapore and many other places.
Many hotel rooms will have pin adaptors for guests arriving with 2 pin europe style plugs.

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