Who is on the money in Canada?

$5: Sir Wilfrid Laurier. $10: Viola Desmond, civil rights figure. $20: The monarch. $50: William Lyon Mackenzie King. $100: Sir Robert Borden.

Are Canada's banknotes polymer or paper?

Polymer. Polymer notes last two to three times as long as paper ones and survive a washing machine.

Why was the $1,000 withdrawn?

Withdrawn at the request of law enforcement, who argued it was used almost exclusively for money laundering. (2000.)

What is on the money in Canada?

The money in Canada

Canadian dollar (CAD, $)

5 denominations in issue · Polymer

Canada moved fully to polymer between 2011 and 2013. The vertical $10 carrying Viola Desmond, issued in 2018, made her the first Canadian woman on a regular circulating note — she was arrested in 1946 for sitting in the whites-only section of a Nova Scotia cinema and was pardoned posthumously in 2010. Canadian notes carry a tactile feature of raised dots for blind users, in a system devised with the Canadian National Institute for the Blind.

Who and what is on each note

Note	Who or what is on it
$5	Sir Wilfrid Laurier
$10	Viola Desmond, civil rights figure
$20	The monarch
$50	William Lyon Mackenzie King
$100	Sir Robert Borden

The unusual part

Canadian notes are all the same size but carry raised tactile dots — a different solution to the same problem the US has not solved.

Notes that were withdrawn

Note	When	Why
$1,000	2000	Withdrawn at the request of law enforcement, who argued it was used almost exclusively for money laundering.

The practical facts

Currency: Canadian dollar — ISO code CAD, symbol $
Printed on: Polymer
Survives a wash?: Yes. Polymer notes come out of a washing machine intact.
Can a blind person tell them apart?: Not by size. Every denomination is the same size, so it depends on whatever tactile feature the issuer has added.
Highest note in issue: $100 — Sir Robert Borden

This page describes the notes rather than showing them. Reproducing a banknote image is restricted in most jurisdictions, and the restrictions differ between them.

Common questions

Who is on the money in Canada?: $5: Sir Wilfrid Laurier. $10: Viola Desmond, civil rights figure. $20: The monarch. $50: William Lyon Mackenzie King. $100: Sir Robert Borden.
Are Canada's banknotes polymer or paper?: Polymer. Polymer notes last two to three times as long as paper ones and survive a washing machine.
Why was the $1,000 withdrawn?: Withdrawn at the request of law enforcement, who argued it was used almost exclusively for money laundering. (2000.)

Canada Capital, area, population and currency
The flag of Canada Colours, symbols and lookalikes
The money in United States US dollar
The money in Eurozone Euro
The money in United Kingdom Pound sterling
The money in India Indian rupee
The money in Japan Japanese yen
The money in Zimbabwe Zimbabwean dollar
The money in Australia Australian dollar
The money in China Renminbi
The money in Switzerland Swiss franc
The money in South Africa South African rand

Sources

Official vendor product documentation — At One Place

How these figures are compiled and checked