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An independent affiliate of NGC, Numismatic Conservation Services (NCS) was established in 2001 as the world's first professional coin conservation service. NCS conservation removes harmful surface contaminants, stabilizes a coin for long-term preservation and can dramatically improve a coin's eye appeal. After conservation by NCS, coins can be seamlessly transferred to NGC for grading.

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NCS conservation removes harmful surface contaminants and stabilizes a coin's surfaces. Coins with PVC and other types of residue, haze, encrustations, or unattractive or artificial toning are usually excellent candidates for NCS conservation. To learn more and see examples, click here.

For current NCS services and fees, please click the link below.

NCS Services & Fees >

NCS does not provide grade protection or any type of grade guarantee for coins submitted to NCS. NCS evaluates every coin in order to determine whether that coin will benefit from conservation. If NCS believes that the coin will not benefit from conservation, the coin will not be conserved and will be transferred directly to NGC for grading. PCGS-graded coins submitted for CrossOver will not be transferred to NGC in the event that they cannot be conserved.

In rare instances, NCS conservation may reveal additional issues that were previously hidden by residue or other surface contaminants. None of the techniques used by NCS will cause such issues. However, the submitter acknowledges that the conservation services provided by NCS may not prevent the coin from grading lower or receiving no grade by a coin -grading company.

NCS evaluates every coin submitted for NCS conservation services to determine whether it believes the coin will benefit from conservation. Special handling, detailed below, applies to submissions of NGC and PCGS-certified coins.

• If NCS believes that a coin will benefit from conservation, the coin will be conserved and then transferred to NGC for grading. Both the NCS conservation fees and NGC grading fees will apply.
• If NCS believes that a coin will not benefit from conservation, the coin will not be conserved. In this case, raw (not holdered) coins will be transferred to NGC for grading. There will be a $5 per coin NCS evaluation fee and the NGC grading fees will apply.
• If NCS believes that an NGC-certified coin will not benefit from conservation, the coin will not be conserved and will be left in its original holder and returned to the submitter. The NGC grading fees will be refunded less a $5 processing fee. There will be a $5 per coin NCS evaluation fee.
• If NCS believes that a PCGS-certified coin will not benefit from conservation, the coin will not be conserved. It will be transferred to NGC for CrossOver in its original holder. The full NGC grading fees will apply regardless of whether the coin is crossed or certified by NGC. There will be a $5 per coin NCS evaluation fee.
• *Please note that while NCS will attempt to accommodate special requests from submitters it can’t be responsible if any special requests are not fulfilled.

Submitting a coin to NCS for conservation does not mean that it will get a higher grade at NGC (i.e., be "upgraded"). NCS conservation will improve a coin's eye appeal and stabilize its surfaces. In some cases, coins may receive a higher grade at NGC after NCS conservation, but this is not guaranteed.

A copper coin's color can change naturally over time from red (noted as "RD" on the NGC certification label) to red brown ("RB") to brown ("BN"). This is an irreversible process and NCS conservation cannot change the BN, RB or RD designations assigned to copper coins.

You can contact NCS by calling or emailing NGC Customer Service. For our contact information, click here.

NCS conservation can help coins with unattractive toning, copper spots and other surface issues. Customers may submit a coin already certified by NGC for a service that includes NCS conservation and an NGC ReGrade (NCS+ReGrade). If NCS declines to conserve a particular coin under this combined service, then NGC will not perform the ReGrade. If the customer wants the NGC ReGrade regardless of the NCS determination, then the customer should write on their submission form: REGRADE REGARDLESS OF NCS DECISION.