2 Liri

Malta's 1986 note series marked the transition away from the earlier Lira designs introduced at independence, with De La Rue retaining the print contract they had held through multiple Maltese issues. The 2 Liri denomination sat at a practical mid-range value during a period when Malta's economy was still largely insulated from the European monetary pressures that would eventually push the island toward Euro adoption in 2008.

The security thread on this issue is a plain unprinted type — later Maltese series would adopt windowed threads as standard.