Australians have been warned to check their cash after businesses in two tourist hotspots reported counterfeit $50 notes to police.
The counterfeit notes were delivered to stores in Merimbula and Eden on the New South Wales south coast on Wednesday.
Both towns have had an influx of national and international visitors during the Christmas and New Year period.
New South Wales Police arrived to inspect the cash and found the clear panel on the notes was defective.
Officers are now trying to trace the source of the notes, a police spokesman said.
It comes after police issued a separate warning in August about counterfeit notes circulating in Tasmania.
Counterfeit $100 notes were found in Hobart and the neighboring suburbs of Glenorchy and Bellerive.
But the notes had several key details that could be easily spotted, including a black plastic window, rather than a clear one.
New South Wales Police arrived to inspect the cash and found the clear panel on the notes was defective, prompting an investigation.