Fixed charge notices
The fixed charge notice is the Irish out-of-court route. The Road Traffic Act 2010 gives it a shape most people never see written down: a first period at the amount printed on the notice, a second period at a higher amount, and — only if a summons is served — a last chance before the court date. Each is a separate provision with its own clock.
The mechanism
What a fixed charge notice is
It is an offer to end the matter without a prosecution. The Road Traffic Act 2010 lets a member of the Garda Síochána serve a notice where they have reasonable grounds for believing a fixed charge offence is being or has been committed, and a prosecution cannot be instituted unless that notice has been served and the charge has gone unpaid.
- First period: 28 daysPay the amount printed on the notice. s. 36(2)(b)
- Second period: a further 28 daysThe amount rises by half. s. 36(2)(c)
- On a summons: until 7 days before the court dateDouble the original amount; paying discontinues the proceedings. s. 44(4)(b), s. 44(5)
Amounts
What each band becomes at each stage
← swipe to see the whole table →
| Schedule | What it covers | First period | Second period | On summons |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Traffic and parking offences – Act of 1994 and exceeding permitted weight | €200 | €300 | €400 |
| 2 | Driving offences under Road Traffic Acts | €160 | €240 | €320 |
| 3 | Offence under Act of 1994 | €150 | €225 | €300 |
| 4 | Driving offences under Road Traffic Acts | €120 | €180 | €240 |
| 5 | Traffic and parking offences under Road Traffic Acts | €80 | €120 | €160 |
| 6 | Traffic offences under Road Traffic Acts | €60 | €90 | €120 |
| 7 | Offences under Road Traffic Acts | €50 | €75 | €100 |
| 8 | Offences under Road Traffic Acts | €40 | €60 | €80 |
If you were not driving
Notices served on a registered owner
Where a notice is affixed to a vehicle or served on its registered owner and the owner was not driving at the time, the Act requires the owner to give the name and address of the person who was, within a period stated on the notice. That duty is separate from paying, and it exists whether or not the charge is paid.
One thing this site will not tell you
Whether payment can still be accepted after the second period closes is not stated in the consolidated text we can rely on: the wording that would settle it sits inside an amendment that has never been commenced, so it is not law. Rather than guess in either direction, this site does not claim a cut-off exists and does not claim one does not. If your notice is past the second period, the notice itself and the Fixed Charge Processing Office are the authority, not this page.