Drink driving in Belgium: penalties, driving ban and defence

Drink driving in Belgium is one of the most common offences dealt with by the police courts (politierechtbank / tribunal de police). The consequences go beyond the fine: a driving ban (verval van het recht tot sturen / déchéance du droit de conduire), reinstatement tests and an alcohol interlock often weigh more heavily than the amount you have to pay. Since 1 September 2026, the penalty levels of the new Criminal Code (Strafwetboek / Code pénal) also apply. Below you will find exactly what the law provides and where the defence has room to manoeuvre.

The legal limits: when does drink driving become an offence?

• 0.22 mg/l of exhaled alveolar air (0.5 per mille in the blood) is the general limit. It also applies to novice drivers.
• 0.09 mg/l (0.2 per mille) applies to anyone driving a vehicle that requires a category C1, C, C1+E, C+E, D1, D, D1+E or D+E licence, and to anyone carrying passengers in a vehicle subject to the same medical requirements, such as a taxi (Article 34 § 3 of the Road Traffic Act — Wegverkeerswet / loi relative à la police de la circulation routière).
• From 0.35 mg/l (0.8 per mille), the heaviest penalty bracket applies: that of Article 34 § 2.

The test is carried out in two stages: a breath test and, if it is positive, a breath analysis (Articles 59 et seq. of the Road Traffic Act). In the cases provided for by law, a blood test may follow. To find out which limit applies to you, read our article on the drink-drive limit in Belgium.

Drink driving penalties in Belgium

Since 1 September 2026, the Road Traffic Act punishes alcohol offences with a penalty level of the new Criminal Code plus a specific fine. The amounts in the table are the actual amounts, including the statutory surcharge (opdeciemen / décimes additionnels), for offences committed on or after that date.

Between 0.22 and 0.35 mg/l

The law provides for a fine of €200 to €4,000 (Article 34 § 1). With the surcharge, that amounts to €250 to €5,000. In practice, the police offer an immediate collection (onmiddellijke inning / perception immédiate): since 1 July 2026 it amounts to €197 for a reading just above 0.5 per mille (previously €179), plus an administrative surcharge of €10.67. If you pay, the matter is as a rule closed.

From 0.35 mg/l

Here Article 34 § 2 provides for a fine of €1,600 to €16,000. Since 1 September 2026, the amounts in the Road Traffic Act are multiplied by 1.25 to reflect the surcharge, so the actual amount lies between €2,000 and €20,000, plus court costs. Both brackets are level 1 offences under the new Criminal Code: imprisonment is excluded and, instead of a fine, the judge may impose, among other things, a work penalty (werkstraf / peine de travail) of 20 to 120 hours or a probation penalty.

For offences committed before 1 September 2026, the rules in force at the time continue to apply, unless the new rules are more favourable (Article 2 of the Criminal Code). For those older offences, the actual fine from 0.35 mg/l was €1,600 to €16,000, or €2,000 to €20,000 for offences committed between 1 February and 31 August 2026.

From 0.35 mg/l, too, the police may still offer an immediate collection — since 1 July 2026, €462 from 0.35 to less than 0.44 mg/l and €636 from 0.44 to less than 0.50 mg/l, in each case plus the administrative surcharge — but from 0.50 mg/l the Royal Decree of 19 April 2014 no longer provides for an immediate collection, and for repeat offences or after an accident a summons (dagvaarding / citation) will as a rule follow. What to do next is explained in our article on receiving a summons to the police court.

The same penalties apply to anyone who intentionally refuses to take the breath test or the breath analysis, or intentionally refuses a blood test without a legitimate reason (Article 34 § 2, 3°). In other words, refusing is no way out: it is punished as if you had been driving above 0.8 per mille.

Reoffending within three years

Anyone who, within three years of a conviction for alcohol intoxication from 0.35 mg/l, refusal, drunkenness or drug driving, commits such an offence again faces a level 2 penalty — including imprisonment of six months to three years — and a fine of €4,000 to €50,000 (Article 36). A further repeat offence can lead to a level 3 penalty, with imprisonment of more than three and up to five years, and a fine of €8,000 to €100,000. For offences committed before 1 September 2026, a repeat offence carried a possible prison sentence of one month to two years.

Drunkenness is a different offence

Drunkenness or a similar state, caused for instance by drugs or medication, is punished separately under Article 35: a level 1 penalty with a fine of €2,000 to €20,000, together with a mandatory driving ban of at least one month and up to five years or permanently. Unlike alcohol intoxication, the judge must therefore impose a driving ban upon conviction, although he may suspend it (uitstel / sursis, Article 65 of the Criminal Code), provided that at least eight days are actually served (Article 41 of the Road Traffic Act). Drunkenness is established on the basis of outward signs, not of a measurement.

Your driving licence: three measures not to confuse

1. The temporary driving prohibition. Since 1 July 2026, anyone who tests positive may not drive for twelve hours, without exception. Previously, this ranged from two to twelve hours depending on the level of intoxication. You may only drive again once a new breath test or breath analysis shows less than 0.22 mg/l; otherwise the prohibition is extended by twelve hours (Article 60(5) of the Road Traffic Act).
2. Immediate withdrawal. In the cases listed in Article 55, the public prosecutor may immediately withdraw your licence for fifteen days (onmiddellijke intrekking / retrait immédiat); for alcohol, the law allows this from 0.35 mg/l. Under a circular issued by the Minister of Justice, public prosecutors throughout the country now apply a threshold of 0.35 mg/l (previously, as a rule, 0.50 mg/l). The prosecutor may ask the police court to extend the withdrawal by up to three months (Article 55bis). This is not a penalty but a provisional measure: read how to get your licence back after an immediate withdrawal.
3. The driving ban. This is the actual penalty, imposed by the judge, for eight days to five years (Article 38 § 1). How to avoid or limit it is explained in our article on avoiding a driving ban.

Reinstatement tests after drink driving

The judge may make the restoration of your right to drive subject to four tests (herstelexamens / examens de réintégration): a theory test, a practical test, a medical examination and a psychological examination (Article 38 § 3). Since 1 January 2026, he may also impose a specific training course, which can supplement or replace the theory or practical test.

In two cases, the judge has no choice:

• Reoffending. Anyone who, within three years of a previous conviction, again commits one of the more serious traffic offences must receive a driving ban of at least three months and all four reinstatement tests (Article 38 § 6). For a second repeat offence, the minimum becomes six months, and for a third, nine months.
• Novice drivers. Anyone who has held a category B licence for less than two years must receive a driving ban and at least the theory or practical test (Article 38 § 5).

How the tests work and what they cost is explained in our article on reinstatement tests after a driving ban.

The alcohol interlock

Upon a conviction under Article 34 § 2 (including alcohol intoxication from 0.35 mg/l), for drunkenness or for reoffending (Article 36), the judge may restrict the validity of your licence to vehicles fitted with an alcohol interlock (alcoholslot / éthylotest antidémarrage), for one to three years or permanently, provided that you follow the support programme (Article 37/1 § 1).

From 0.78 mg/l of exhaled air (1.8 per mille), the alcohol interlock is in principle mandatory: if the judge does not impose it, he must give express reasons. For reoffending after a conviction under Article 34 § 2, an interlock obligation already applies where each reading is at least 0.50 mg/l (1.2 per mille). Expect to pay around €3,600 to €4,000 for the whole programme.

Two points are often overlooked. The judge may, giving reasons, exclude certain vehicle categories from the restriction, and he may reduce the fine by the costs of installation, use and the support programme (Article 37/1 §§ 2 and 3). Driving without the required alcohol interlock is a separate offence, punishable by a level 2 penalty — including imprisonment of six months to three years — and a fine of €5,000 to €20,000 (Article 37/1 § 4). Read more in our article on the alcohol interlock in Belgium.

Drink driving defence: where we focus

A breath analysis is subject to strict formal requirements. We systematically check whether the device was type-approved and calibrated, whether you were informed of your right to a second analysis and to a counter-expertise, whether the blood sample was correctly taken and stored, and whether the findings in the police report are consistent. Each of these points can undermine the evidential value of the measurement.

If the result is established, the debate shifts to the penalty. Suspension of the pronouncement of sentence (opschorting / suspension du prononcé, Article 64 of the Criminal Code), a suspended sentence, including for the driving ban (Article 65), a work penalty or a conviction by declaration of guilt are real possibilities. The judge may also limit the driving ban to weekends or restrict it to certain vehicle categories, except where an alcohol interlock is imposed or reinstatement tests are required (Article 38 § 2bis and Article 45 of the Road Traffic Act). He may also take your financial capacity into account when setting the fine (Article 52 § 2 of the Criminal Code).

These options are only granted to those who request and substantiate them. If you depend on your licence for a living, it is best to prove it with documents: an employer’s certificate, payslips, an overview of your journeys. Read more about the more lenient penalties in our article on suspension, suspended sentences and work penalties.

Novex Advocaten can help

Send us your police report or summons, and you will quickly know which penalty is realistic and which arguments your case supports. We plead before the police courts of Brussels, Halle, Vilvoorde, Leuven and Aalst, in Dutch and French. We can also discuss your case with you in English or Arabic. Find out more about our approach on the page drink driving lawyer in Brussels.

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