Drug driving lawyer in Brussels: saliva test, blood analysis and your defence

A positive saliva test at a police check does not mean that you have already been convicted. Between the test and the judgment come a laboratory analysis, often the immediate withdrawal of your driving licence and a summons to the police court (politierechtbank / tribunal de police), and each of those stages offers room for a defence. Novex Advocaten, traffic law lawyer in Brussels, acts as your drug driving lawyer before the police courts of Brussels, Halle, Vilvoorde, Leuven and Aalst.

Drug driving: which substances and which thresholds?

Article 37bis of the Road Traffic Act (Wegverkeerswet / loi relative à la police de la circulation routière) penalises driving a vehicle after using cannabis (THC), amphetamine, MDMA, morphine or heroin, and cocaine. An Act of 25 May 2026 also adds ketamine, but this change only enters into force on a date to be set by the King; moreover, the saliva test cannot yet detect it. For each substance, a statutory threshold applies in saliva and in blood. Below that threshold there is no offence under Article 37bis; once the analysis reaches the threshold, there is no need to prove that you were actually impaired.

Medicines as such are not on the list in Article 37bis. However, driving under the influence of medicines or other substances that impair your ability to drive can be prosecuted as driving while intoxicated or in a comparable state (Article 35 of the Road Traffic Act). That is a level 1 offence, carrying a fine of 2,000 to 20,000 euros and a mandatory driving ban (verval van het recht tot sturen / déchéance du droit de conduire) of at least one month. See also our article on your rights after a positive saliva test.

Penalties for drug driving since 1 September 2026

The new Criminal Code (Strafwetboek / Code pénal) expresses penalties as penalty levels. Level 1 excludes imprisonment: the court chooses between a fine, community service (werkstraf / peine de travail) of 20 to 120 hours, a probation sentence of 6 to 12 months, confiscation or a conviction by declaration of guilt (veroordeling bij schuldigverklaring / condamnation par déclaration de culpabilité).

Level 2 allows imprisonment of 6 months to 3 years. Instead, the court may also impose electronic monitoring of one month to one year, community service of more than 120 up to 300 hours, a probation sentence of more than 12 up to 24 months or a conviction by declaration of guilt, and, where there are mitigating circumstances, a level 1 penalty. The fines in the table are the actual amounts, including the statutory surcharges (opdeciemen / décimes additionnels).

For offences committed before 1 September 2026, the former text of the Road Traffic Act applies. A first offence carried no prison sentence, but a fine of 200 to 2,000 euros, increased by the surcharges: × 8 for offences up to 31 January 2026 (1,600 to 16,000 euros) and × 10 for offences from 1 February 2026 (2,000 to 20,000 euros). A prison sentence of one month to two years was only possible for reoffending within three years. Where the criminal law changes, the court applies the more lenient rules (Article 2 of the Criminal Code); see also what the new Criminal Code changes for traffic offences.

What happens after a positive saliva test?

1. Saliva test. The police first carry out a saliva test, usually after outward signs of drug use or during a systematic check. A positive test leads to a temporary driving ban of 12 hours.
2. Sample and analysis. After a positive test, a saliva or blood sample is taken and analysed by an accredited laboratory. Only an analysis that reaches the statutory threshold proves the offence; the police report is then sent to the public prosecutor’s office (parket / parquet).
3. Immediate withdrawal. The public prosecutor’s office can, often shortly after the check, have your licence withdrawn immediately for 15 days (onmiddellijke intrekking / retrait immédiat, Article 55 of the Road Traffic Act). The police court can extend that period by a maximum of three months (Article 55bis). Read our article on the immediate withdrawal of a driving licence.
4. Summons. The public prosecutor may in some cases propose a settlement (minnelijke schikking / transaction), but for drug driving a summons (dagvaarding / citation) to the police court usually follows. The summons states the place, date and time of the hearing and the charge. See also our articles on settlements in traffic cases and what to do after a summons to the police court.

Our approach: the chain of evidence and the sentence

We first check the chain of evidence. Was there a lawful basis for the saliva test, was the sample taken and stored in accordance with the rules, is the laboratory accredited, was the threshold actually reached, and were you given the opportunity of a counter-analysis, that is a second saliva analysis at your own expense (Article 62ter of the Road Traffic Act)? Not every irregularity leads to the exclusion of evidence, but a missing or defective link can undermine the prosecution.

On sentencing, we ask for the lowest possible level 1 penalty: a conviction by declaration of guilt, a fine that takes account of your means, community service, a suspension of the pronouncement (opschorting / suspension du prononcé) or a suspended sentence (uitstel / sursis), including for the driving ban. We argue for a driving ban that lasts no longer than necessary and without tests that the law does not require. Since 1 January 2026, the court can also make reinstatement of the right to drive conditional on a specific training course, in addition to or instead of tests (Article 38, § 3, 5° of the Road Traffic Act). If you have reoffended, we ask the court to accept mitigating circumstances so that it can impose a level 1 penalty.

Where a cannabis test shows a value just above the threshold, we argue on the facts, the measured value and the circumstances of use. See also suspension and suspended sentences in traffic law and your rights during a police check.

In practice: timing, hearing and appeal

The laboratory analysis often takes several weeks. During that period, you can ask the public prosecutor to return your licence; if the prosecutor asks the police court to extend the withdrawal, you can defend yourself there. At the hearing, your lawyer can generally represent you, unless the court orders you to appear in person: read do you have to appear in person before the police court?

The judgment usually follows a few weeks after the hearing. An appeal can be lodged within thirty days of the judgment, before the criminal court (correctionele rechtbank / tribunal correctionnel); against a judgment by default, you can lodge an objection (verzet / opposition). See also how the police court works and objection or appeal against a police court judgment.

Which police courts do we appear before?

Novex Advocaten appears before the police court of Brussels (Dutch-speaking and French-speaking), the police court of Halle, the police court of Vilvoorde, the police court of Leuven and the police court of Aalst.

Contact

Positive saliva test, licence withdrawn or summoned to court? Call 0484 99 22 72, email asfour@novexadvocaten.be or use the contact form. You can also read beforehand what a traffic law lawyer costs.