[3] All the notes of this series had Queen Elizabeth II on the front, and a watermark of Captain James Cook.

The change increased the life of the banknotes and also allowed new and improved security features to prevent counterfeiting.

The note was brighter in colour and featured the Māori translation of Reserve Bank (Te Putea Matua), and "New Zealand, Aotearoa" on the back.

[citation needed] New Zealand's banknotes incorporate many security features to prevent counterfeiting.

On the front of the banknote, the large number 10, the portrait and the words "Reserve Bank of New Zealand Te Pūtea Matua" are raised; on the back, the large number 10, the featured bird and the words "New Zealand" and "Aotearoa" are raised.

The Series 6 security features include that, when the note is shown to the light, a shadow image of Elizabeth II is displayed.

There is an image of a fern located above the see-through window, and the two sides should match perfectly when held up to the light.

[9] The Reserve Bank issued a special edition of the ten-dollar note in 1990 to commemorate 150 years since the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840.

It depicts instead a Māori waka on the front and the words, "The dawn of a new era lights the way for New Zealand's perpetual voyage of innovation and discovery".

On the back, it includes images of surfers, sky-divers, canoes and a mountain skier, along with the words "Celebrating New Zealand's free spirit & quest for adventure in the new millennium".

[10] It featured blue and purple colours with some yellow, and folding the note while looking through the transparent window reveals "Y2K".