Fine notices

If you do not want to request a review of a fine and you can pay it, then it is best to pay by the due date to avoid an overdue fine notice and additional costs. Once a fine has been paid in full the matter is finalised and no further recovery action occurs.

Paying the fine does not mean that you are admitting that you are guilty, however some traffic matters will stay on your record once you have paid the fine. These can be brought up in court later if you are being sentenced for other driving offences. If you pay either a fine notice or fine reminder notice you are accepting responsibility for the fine. If the offence incurs demerit points with Transport for NSW, these will be applied once payment is made. This will happen if payment is made in part or in full. 

You can set up a payment plan to pay over a longer period on your fine or overdue fine. It's best to set up the payment plan or have the fine added to an existing payment plan before the due date on the fine reminder notice to avoid any extra costs. If an overdue fine has been issued, you can still have a payment plan.

To set up a payment plan for a fine or overdue fine go to Set up a payment plan | NSW Government.

You can also choose to have your repayments deducted from your Centrelink payment by choosing Centrepay as your payment method.

If you believe a fine should not have been issued to you or your personal situation or circumstances resulted in you receiving the fine, in certain circumstances you can ask for it to be reviewed. You can make a request for a review of a fine or an overdue fine at any time except if  the fine has been paid in full and no fine reminder has been issued, then the request for review must be made within 60 days from the date the fine was issued.

To request a review of your fine, go to: https://www.nsw.gov.au/money-and-taxes/fines-and-fees/fines/request-a-review . To apply online, you’ll need to enter the fine notice number and the date of the offence.  If you’ve lost your fine and are unable to log in, contact Revenue NSW on 1300 138 118.

You can also request a review via post.  You will need to provide proof of identification such as your address, date of birth or driver licence number. 

You can submit documents in writing to:

Revenue NSW
PO Box 786
Strawberry Hills 2012

Make sure you request a review before the due date on the fine notice to avoid further costs or action.

Revenue NSW will tell you about the outcome of your review in writing via email or a letter including what options you will have to finalise if unsuccessful.

Read more about the documents Revenue NSW will accept as supporting evidence on the Review Assist page.

If you believe there are special circumstances in your case, or you want to ask for leniency, you can request a review of your fine. You can apply online or you can complete a form and send it to Revenue NSW. You must add supporting documents if you are asking to have the fine notice withdrawn. Read more on the Revenue NSW website: www.revenue.nsw.gov.au/fines-and-fees/request-a-review

The Revenue NSW Review Assist Guide explains what evidence you need to provide when you ask for this type of review.

Revenue NSW will review the fine if:

• there was a medical emergency. For example, taking someone who needs urgent medical attention to a hospital
• the offence was committed because you feared for your safety
• there was a mechanical breakdown. For example, your car was parked in a no parking zone, or
• you have had a good driving record for the last 10 years.

Revenue NSW will not consider applications for leniency for some more serious offences, where safety is an issue, for example:

• Excessive speeding. This means speeding more than 20 km/h over the limit.
• Using a mobile phone while driving.
• Ignoring RailCorp safety notices.
• Demerit point offences in school zones.
• Proceeding through a red light.

If Revenue NSW does not withdraw the fine, they will tell you in writing and will also send you a new fine reminder notice. Further time will be given to pay the fine or make a court election.

If you own the vehicle involved but were not driving or in control of it at the time of the offence, you can fill out and submit an online nomination to let Revenue NSW know who was driving the vehicle, or who owns it.

The form can be completed online through the Revenue NSW website

You can nominate another driver at any time, even after the overdue fine has been issued and as long as Revenue NSW has enough time to transfer the fine to the correct driver. When you submit the details online to Revenue NSW the fine should be withdrawn and a new fine notice issued in the name of the nominated driver.

It is a criminal offence to provide false or misleading information on a nomination. There are significant penalties for this offence including fines.

You can’t use the nomination process if you were given an on-the-spot fine by a police officer, a rail transit officer or another authorised government officer.

Self-nomination as a driver

You can nominate yourself as the person in charge of a vehicle at the time an offence for which a fine notice has been issued. You can let Revenue NSW know your details by sending a Statutory Declaration to Revenue NSW with the your details and the details of the offence.

As well as friends and family, phone, gas and electricity suppliers, and anyone else who sends bills or money to you, you need to let the following agencies know when you change your address:

Transport for NSW

After you have lived at a new address for 14 days fill in the application online at:
www.service.nsw.gov.au/transaction/change-address-and-contact-details-driver-licence-vehicle-registration-or-other-road
Tel: 132 213
Visit a Service NSW office.

Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) and New South Wales Electoral Commission (NSWEC)

After you have lived at a new address for 28 days:
Fill in an electoral enrolment form and send it to your Divisional AEC office or scan it and email it to info@aec.gov.au. You can get the forms and prepaid envelopes from an AEC office, the NSWEC, post offices, or your state or federal MP’s office, or from:
www.aec.gov.au
AEC Tel: 132 326
NSWEC Tel: 135 736

And because we all forget to tell someone, we can also do this:

Australia Post

Before you move to a new address:
Fill in and lodge an Application to Redirect Mail at any Australia Post outlet. You can also download the form from the Australia Post website.
Tel: 137 678

Note: If you have sold or given away a vehicle, it is your responsibility to notify Transport for NSW. Make sure you get the new owner’s full name and driver licence number. If you do not do this, you could be held responsible for penalty notices incurred after you have disposed of the vehicle. You can complete a notice of disposal online if the buyer is a NSW resident with a NSW driver licence or download the form

Call LawAccess NSW on 1300 888 529 for free legal help if you get a penalty notice after selling a motor vehicle.

You can elect to go to court if you:

• believe you are not guilty, or
• believe the fine is too harsh.

Before making a court election, you may wish to consider ask for a review of the fine (see above), as it is a lot simpler than going to court and you will still be able to make a court election if the review is unsuccessful, provided you make the court election before the penalty reminder notice due date. To go to court you can apply online or fill out a court election form. Find the form here www.revenue.nsw.gov.au/fines-and-fees/go-to-court and send it to Revenue NSW. 

You should apply to go to court before the due date on your fine reminder notice.

Court election after your fine is overdue

If the due date on the fine reminder notice has passed, you will need to wait until you receive an overdue fine from Revenue NSW. You can apply to have an overdue fine listed in court however you will need to prove that you were prevented from paying or managing your fine before the due date – this is called hindrance. You will need to supply supporting evidence, such as medical or travel documents.

When an overdue fine is issued, any demerit points will remain on your licence until your court election is processed

When Revenue NSW receives the court election form, they will send you a court attendance notice telling you when to go to court.

If your court election for an overdue fine is NOT successful you have the right to appeal to the Local Court. You have 28 days from the date of Revenue NSW’s decision to send in your application to the Local Court and there is an application fee for each overdue fine you are appealing. The Registrar of the Local Court may waive this fee if you ask for this when submitting your form.

To appeal a Revenue NSW decision to the Local Court you need to:

• use a general ‘application notice to the Local Court’ form available online. You can download this form in PDF to fill out by hand or Word to fill out on your computer.
• you can find this form here – www.localcourt.nsw.gov.au [ES1] – click on the Forms and fees button and you will find the form under the heading Applications to the court, called Application Notice to the Local Court - General.
• on the form in the orders sought section you need to write ‘Appeal against refusal application by Commissioner, Section 50 Fines Act’
• submit the form with the Revenue NSW letter stating that they refused your request to court elect your fine to your Local Court Registry
• you can request for the fee to be waived at this time also
• the Registry will give you a court attendance notice with all the details you need to turn up to court

if your application to allow you to court elect your fine is successful, you will get another court attendance notice to take your case to court. You will then get the opportunity to have your say.

if your application is unsuccessful, Revenue NSW will be notified and you will be issued with a new overdue  for payment of the fine.

It’s a good idea to get legal advice before you do any of this. The maximum fine a court can give you may be higher than the amount in the fine notice, and the court can order you to pay some court costs as well. A lawyer can help you decide if this is the right option for you.

For free legal information contact LawAccess NSW on 1300 888 529. LawAccess NSW can refer you to your closest free legal service.

You can also visit your local public library or go online to www.legalanswers.sl.nsw.gov.au to find plain English legal information about fines.

This process applies to fine notices only. For information on appealing a court fine see Factsheet 3.

If you are under 18 years of age, homeless, experiencing serious financial hardship, mental illness, intellectual disability or cognitive impairment or have a serious addiction, you may be eligible to pay off your fine through a WDO. A WDO means you do an approved activity with a WDO sponsor organisation or health practitioner to pay off all or part of your fines, such as unpaid work, education and personal development courses, counselling or treatment programs.