Legal tender refers to the forms of money that a country's government has declared must be accepted as payment for debts and obligations within that country. In most countries, legal tender consists of currency notes and coins. This means that if you owe someone money in that country, you can legally pay them with currency notes or coins, and they must accept it. Cheques, bank drafts, and money orders are not legal tender, which means that a person or business can refuse to accept them as payment.