The most noticeable change in the design of the banknote is the light shades of green, peach and blue added to the background of the bill. It is planned that in the future banknotes of different denominations will differ in color, which will make them easier to recognize. US Treasury Secretary John Snow said that in 2004-2005 the introduction of new 50- and 100-dollar bills is planned, which will also have a light colored background.
The size of the new bills remains the same, they retain the same but slightly enlarged portrait of Andrew Jackson on the front and the image of the White House on the back of the banknote. The new banknotes will also feature symbols of freedom: the 20-dollar banknote will have a blue eagle background image, as well as an eagle and a shield in metallic green to the right of the portrait.
The new banknotes retain three main security elements introduced in the late 1990s. First, these are watermarks - blurred contour images repeating the portrait. They are visible when held up to the light from both sides of the bill. Second, a security thread vertically embedded in the bill, on which the words USA twenty and a small flag are visible. The thread can be seen from both sides when held up to the light. And the third element is printing ink that changes color depending on the viewing angle. Thus, the number 20 in the lower right corner of the front side of the bill changes color from copper to green.
The first banknotes of the new design will appear worldwide in October 2003.
As the chairman of the US Federal Reserve Board Alan Greenspan noted, both old and new dollars will be in circulation and their value will be the same. However, the average lifespan of a 20-dollar bill is about two years. Thus, old bills will disappear from circulation after a few years.