Driving ban in Belgium: what it is and how to get your licence back

“Driving prohibition”, “withdrawal”, “driving ban”: in everyday conversation these words are used interchangeably, yet in Belgian law they mean three different things, each with its own duration, procedure and consequences. A driving ban in Belgium (verval van het recht tot sturen / déchéance du droit de conduire) is the most serious of the three: a penalty that only a judge can impose. Once you know the difference, you immediately know how serious your situation is and what can still be argued.

Three measures, three regimes

1. The temporary driving prohibition at the roadside (tijdelijk rijverbod / interdiction temporaire de conduire). A police measure which, since 1 July 2026, always lasts twelve hours, applied among other cases after a positive alcohol or drug test (Articles 60 and 61ter of the Road Traffic Act, Wegverkeerswet / loi relative à la police de la circulation routière). No penalty, no judge.
2. The immediate withdrawal of the driving licence (onmiddellijke intrekking / retrait immédiat), ordered by the public prosecutor’s office in the cases listed in Article 55, including serious alcohol intoxication, drunkenness or drugs, hit-and-run, a traffic accident causing death or an infringement of physical integrity of the second or third degree (integriteitsaantasting / atteinte à l’intégrité) through a serious lack of foresight or caution, and major speeding offences. It lasts fifteen days and may be extended by the police court (politierechtbank / tribunal de police) by no more than three months (Article 55bis). It is a provisional measure, not a penalty, and you can challenge it: see our page on the immediate withdrawal of the driving licence.
3. The driving ban. This is the actual penalty, imposed by the judge, as a rule the police court, usually alongside a fine or another main penalty.

When does a judge impose a driving ban?

Article 38 § 1 of the Road Traffic Act gives the judge this power in cases including alcohol intoxication, drug driving, a road accident causing death or injury through your fault, serious offences of the second and third degree, major speeding offences and driving without a valid licence. The ban then lasts from eight days to five years, and in the cases provided for by law it may be longer or permanent.

In a number of cases the judge has no choice and the driving ban is mandatory:

• for drunkenness (Article 35);
• for a serious offence of the fourth degree (Article 29 § 1);
• as a rule, for exceeding the speed limit by more than 40 km/h, or by more than 30 km/h in a built-up area, a zone 30, a school zone or a residential area (Article 29 § 3; if the judge does not impose the ban, he or she must give reasons for that decision);
• for hit-and-run causing injury or death (Article 33);
• for driving during an immediate withdrawal (Article 30 § 3) or despite a driving ban (Article 48);
• for causing death in traffic (Article 107 of the Criminal Code) combined with certain traffic offences, such as speeding, serious alcohol intoxication, drunkenness or drugs: at least three months and all four reinstatement tests (Article 38 § 2);
• for reoffending within three years with certain serious traffic offences (Article 38 § 6);
• for drivers who have held a category B licence for less than two years and commit an offence with a motor vehicle that can lead to a driving ban (except, among others, a second-degree offence); reinstatement then depends at least on passing the theory test or the practical test (Article 38 § 5).

There is also a driving ban for physical or mental unfitness (Article 42). This is not a penalty but a safety measure, which lasts until you prove that you are fit again; you may request a review at the earliest six months after the final judgment was pronounced (Article 44).

When does the driving ban start?

A driving ban imposed as a penalty is only enforced once the judgment is final. The public prosecutor then sends you a notification, and the ban starts on the fifth day after the day of that notification; Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays are not counted (Article 40). By that day you must hand in your driving licence at the court registry.

If you fail to do so, two things happen at once. The ban is automatically extended until you actually hand in your licence (Article 40). In addition, you commit a separate offence (Article 49/1): for offences committed on or after 1 September 2026, this is an offence of penalty level 1, for which the fine is EUR 2,000 to 20,000.

Driving during a driving ban: what are the risks?

Driving while the ban is running is a serious traffic offence (Article 48). For offences committed on or after 1 September 2026, you face a level 2 penalty (for example imprisonment of six months to three years or community service), a fine of EUR 5,000 to 20,000 and a new, mandatory driving ban of three months to five years or permanently. Where there are mitigating circumstances, the judge may drop down to a level 1 penalty; for repeat offences, level 3 is possible.

For offences committed before 1 September 2026, the penalties in force at the time continue to apply, unless the new rules are more favourable to you (Article 2 of the Criminal Code). See also our overview of the new Criminal Code for traffic offences.

How do you get your licence back after a driving ban?

When the ban ends, you normally collect your licence from the court registry. It is different where the judge has made the reinstatement of your right to drive conditional on reinstatement tests (herstelexamens / examens de réintégration). You must then first pass the tests imposed: one or more of a theory test, a practical test, a medical examination and a psychological examination (Article 38 § 3).

Since 1 January 2026 the judge may also impose a specific training course, which can supplement or replace certain tests. How this works and what it costs is explained on our page on reinstatement tests after a driving ban.

For reoffending within three years, all four tests are mandatory, together with a ban of at least three months. For a second repeat offence the minimum is six months, and for a third, nine months (Article 38 § 6).

What can be argued in court?

• The length. Even with a mandatory ban, the statutory minimum may be achievable if your situation is well documented. More strategies are set out in our article on how to avoid or limit a driving ban.
• Weekend enforcement. The judge may order that the ban is served only from Friday 8 p.m. to Sunday 8 p.m. and from 8 p.m. on the eve of a public holiday to 8 p.m. on that holiday (Article 38 § 2bis). The law sets no maximum duration for this, but excludes it where reinstatement tests, a training course or an alcohol interlock are imposed.
• Restriction to certain vehicle categories (Article 45), so that you can, for example, keep driving a vehicle in another category. This is excluded where reinstatement tests or an alcohol interlock are imposed.
• Suspension of the pronouncement or a suspended sentence (Articles 64 and 65 of the Criminal Code). With a suspension of the pronouncement (opschorting / suspension du prononcé) there is no conviction and therefore no driving ban; with a suspended sentence (uitstel / sursis) the ban can also be suspended, but at least eight days must actually be served (Article 41 of the Road Traffic Act). See the more lenient penalties before the police court.
• The alcohol interlock as an alternative to a long effective driving ban (alcoholslot / éthylotest antidémarrage); the judge may reduce the fine by its cost (Article 37/1). Read more about the alcohol interlock in Belgium.
• A fine tailored to your means. The judge takes your financial capacity into account and, if your financial situation is precarious, may go below the minimum or allow payment in instalments (Article 52 § 2 of the Criminal Code).

Novex Advocaten can help

Have you received a summons, or has your driving licence been withdrawn immediately? Have your file reviewed before the hearing: that is when the documents the judge will consider are set. Mr Mohamed Asfour, lawyer, defends drivers before the Brussels police court and the other police courts in the region. Also read what to do after receiving a summons to the police court.

Call 0484 99 22 72 or email asfour@novexadvocaten.be.