Altered Euro banknotes showing the images of prostitutes are being used to discourage Ukrainian women from getting caught up in the sex trade.

The images, which are otherwise almost indistinguishable from the genuine notes, have been produced as part of a campaign to prevent women from seeking to work illegally in the EU. They show under-dressed women leaning against the grand examples of European architecture printed on the currency's bills since its launch in 2002.

Messages warning about the real price of seeking blackmarket employment abroad are printed across the top of the “fake” notes.