fierce_kali I'm also disappointed with some of the answers you have received. But I am delighted that you're going to visit Northern Ireland. It is a beautiful place with fantastic people.
WHBM offers good advice. BTW, I hope you are settling into your university life in Edinburgh. Have you found and good Mexican food yet?
Originally Posted by SMF UA 1K
Northern Ireland notes, however, are not legal tender in England and Scotland.
Correct, in a roundabout way. It is very hard to spend Northern Ireland notes outside Northern Ireland. One could be forgiven for getting it wrong - most people here get mixed up, too. If
fierce_kali does end up with NI notes and finds them being turned away in Edinburgh, they can be exchanged at any bank. For the sake of argument, here is an explanation on 'legal tender':
Legal tender in England and Wales
Bank of England notes are the only banknotes that are legal tender in England and Wales. United Kingdom coinage is legal tender, but not in unlimited amounts for coins below £1.
Scottish and Northern Ireland banknotes, and Jersey, Guernsey and Manx coinage and banknotes are not legal tender in England and Wales. However, they are not illegal under English law and creditors and traders may accept them if they so choose.
Legal tender in Scotland
A less restrictive definition of legal tender exists in Scotland. Scottish banks retain their historic right to issue their own banknotes, but no banknotes are legal tender in Scotland (not even Scottish notes). Scottish case law establishes that a creditor cannot refuse any reasonable offer to settle a debt - thus, in Scotland an offer to pay a debt in any form of sterling, or even foreign currency, cannot unreasonably be refused merely on the technicality of settlement not being offered in legal tender.
The reality is far different from the legal position; as a rule of thumb, notes from outside their 'home' part of the UK are often refused by cab drivers and small traders.