The new 12-sided 1 pound coin will enter circulation on 28 March. The round £1 will be legal tender alongside the new, more-secure coin until 15 October.
The public are being urged to use their current £1 coins or bank them before they lose their legal tender status, the government has said, BBC reports..
The government estimates around a third of the £1.3 billion worth of coins stored in piggy banks or saving jars around the UK are the current £1 style.
Some of those returned by the public will be melted down and used to make the 12-sided version. The new style was announced in the 2014 budget and has been billed by the Royal Mint as “the most secure coin in the world.”
Its introduction will come as a new set of coin designs are also brought into circulation, celebrating the achievements of Jane Austen and Sir Isaac Newton.
