Speeding in Belgium: fines, driving bans and defence

If you are caught speeding in Belgium, you rarely know in advance what fine to expect. It depends not only on how many kilometres per hour you exceeded the limit by, but also on where it happened, on any previous convictions and on how long you have held your driving licence. Below you will find the rules as they apply today: the penalties for offences committed from 1 September 2026, the amounts for older offences and the room for a defence.

Speeding fine: on-the-spot payment or summons?

For minor excesses, authorised police officers offer an immediate collection (onmiddellijke inning / perception immédiate), in effect an on-the-spot fine. This is only possible for offences designated by the King, where the offence caused no damage to third parties and the driver agrees (Article 65 § 1 of the Road Traffic Act – Wegverkeerswet / loi relative à la police de la circulation routière). If you pay, the prosecution lapses and the case does not go to court, unless the public prosecutor’s office informs you within one month of payment that it will prosecute you nonetheless.

The amounts since 1 July 2026, each increased by an administrative surcharge of €10.67:

• In built-up areas, 30 km/h zones, school zones, shared zones (erf / zone de rencontre) and home zones (woonerf / zone résidentielle): €58 for the first 10 km/h over the limit; above that, €58 plus €12 for each additional kilometre per hour. If you exceed the limit by more than 30 km/h, an immediate collection is no longer possible (Article 7 of the Royal Decree of 19 April 2014).
• On all other roads: €58 for the first 10 km/h over the limit; above that, €58 plus €7 for each additional kilometre per hour. If you exceed the limit by more than 40 km/h, an immediate collection is no longer possible.

The amounts of immediate collections are adjusted regularly, most recently on 1 July 2026. The amount stated on the payment proposal you receive is decisive.

If you do not pay the immediate collection, the prosecutor’s office may propose a settlement (minnelijke schikking / transaction, Article 216bis of the Code of Criminal Procedure). If that is not paid either, the public prosecutor (procureur des Konings / procureur du Roi) may send you a payment order (bevel tot betalen / ordre de paiement): the amount is increased by 35% and must be paid within 30 days. You can appeal against that order to the police court (politierechtbank / tribunal de police) within 30 days (Article 65/1 of the Road Traffic Act).

The prosecutor’s office may also summon you straight away before the police court; for a large excess this is the rule, because only a judge can impose a driving ban. In the Flemish Region, municipalities that choose to do so can also deal with excesses of no more than 20 km/h on roads with a limit of 30 or 50 km/h through a municipal administrative sanction (Article 29quater of the Road Traffic Act).

Speeding fines in court since 1 September 2026

In court there is no fixed scale per band. Article 29 § 3 of the Road Traffic Act sets a single range for every speeding offence: since 1 September 2026 a level 1 penalty (straf van niveau 1 / peine de niveau 1), which means no prison sentence. The Act states a fine of €80 to €4,000, to be multiplied by 1.25 (the surcharge multiplier known as opdeciemen / décimes additionnels).

In other words, a speeding offence carries a fine of €100 to €5,000, plus court costs. Within that range, the size of the excess weighs heavily. A level 1 penalty also need not be a fine: the judge may instead opt for community service of 20 to 120 hours, a probation sentence of 6 to 12 months or a conviction by declaration of guilt (Article 36 of the new Criminal Code).

Offences committed before 1 September 2026

For older offences, the rules in force at the time continue to apply, unless the new rules are more favourable (Article 2 of the Criminal Code). The former Article 29 § 3 provided only for a fine, with base amounts of €10 to €500. The actual amount depends on the date of the offence:

Anyone summoned today for an offence committed last year therefore risks, in principle, a maximum of €4,000. It is worth having your lawyer check which rules are most favourable to you.

When does speeding lead to a driving ban?

• As a rule, a mandatory driving ban (verval van het recht tot sturen / déchéance du droit de conduire) of at least eight days and up to five years, for exceeding the limit by more than 40 km/h, or by more than 30 km/h in a built-up area, a 30 km/h zone, a school zone, a shared zone or a home zone (Article 29 § 3 of the Road Traffic Act). If the judge does not impose the ban, the judge must give reasons for that decision.
• Discretionary driving ban of eight days to five years, for exceeding the limit by more than 30 to 40 km/h, or by more than 20 to 30 km/h in the zones listed above (Article 38 § 1, 3°bis of the Road Traffic Act).

The driving ban is an additional penalty. The judge may suspend it (Article 65 of the Criminal Code), but at least eight days must actually be served (Article 41 of the Road Traffic Act). Where there are mitigating circumstances, the judge may also impose only the driving ban, without a fine or any other main penalty.

In addition, for speeding by more than 30 km/h, or by more than 20 km/h in a built-up area, a 30 km/h zone, a school zone, a shared zone or a home zone, the public prosecutor may order the immediate withdrawal of your driving licence (onmiddellijke intrekking / retrait immédiat) even before the hearing (Article 55 § 1, 5° of the Road Traffic Act). This is not a penalty but a provisional measure lasting 15 days in principle. At the request of the prosecution, the police court may extend the withdrawal by a maximum of three months (Article 55bis).

Young drivers

If you have held a category B driving licence for less than two years, the judge must, for an offence committed with a motor vehicle that can lead to a driving ban (other than, among others, a second-degree offence), also impose that ban. The judge must also make the restoration of your right to drive conditional on passing at least the theory test or the practical test (Article 38 § 5). An excess that would at most lead to a discretionary ban for an experienced driver therefore leads to a mandatory ban and a test for a young driver.

Repeat offences weigh heavily

Anyone who appears before the police judge again shortly after a previous conviction must expect a heavier penalty. In the event of a repeat offence within three years for one of the more serious traffic offences, the judge must also impose a driving ban of at least three months. Your right to drive is then only restored after the four reinstatement tests (herstelexamens / examens de réintégration): the medical examination, the psychological examination, the theory test and the practical test (Article 38 § 6). For a second repeat offence, the ban becomes at least six months, and for a third at least nine months.

Defending a speeding charge: where is the room for manoeuvre?

A speed camera reading or an average speed check may seem unassailable, but it is not. In a well-prepared case, we systematically check:

• The device. Every speed measuring device, whether operated by an officer or unmanned, must be type-approved and periodically calibrated. We request the calibration and approval certificate and check whether the correction margin was actually applied to the measured speed.
• Identification of the driver. If the driver was not identified, the law presumes that the holder of the number plate was driving (Article 67bis). That presumption is rebuttable: you may prove by any means that you were not at the wheel. For vehicles registered to a company, its representatives must state who was driving within fifteen days of the request for information being sent (Article 67ter); failure to do so exposes them to separate prosecution (Article 29ter).
• The procedure. Was the summons served on time and correctly? Is the prosecution not time-barred? Is the language of the proceedings correct?
• The factual context. An emergency, proven force majeure or unclear signage can put the offence in a different light.

What can be achieved if the facts are established?

Even then, the case is not lost. Belgian law gives the judge several ways to make the penalty bearable:

• Suspension of the pronouncement or a suspended sentence (opschorting van de uitspraak / suspension du prononcé; uitstel / sursis – Articles 64 and 65 of the Criminal Code), so that you do not end up with an effective conviction; if the driving ban is suspended, however, at least eight days must actually be served (Article 41 of the Road Traffic Act). Suspension of the pronouncement requires your consent.
• A fine tailored to your means. Where your financial situation is precarious, the judge may go below the statutory minimum and allow payment in instalments (Article 52 § 2 of the Criminal Code).
• Serving the driving ban at weekends and on public holidays (Article 38 § 2bis of the Road Traffic Act), so that you can keep working during the week.
• Limiting the ban to certain categories of vehicle (Article 45). The ban must, however, cover at least the category of vehicle with which the offence was committed. A driving ban that exempts only your work-related journeys does not exist under Belgian law.

Weekend bans and the limitation to certain vehicle categories are excluded when the judge orders reinstatement tests or imposes an alcohol interlock. None of these measures is automatic. They must be requested, reasoned and supported: payslips, an employer’s certificate, a statement on your family situation or proof of a completed course make the difference at the hearing. You can read more about these milder penalties in a separate article.

Novex Advocaten can help

Novex Advocaten pleads daily before the police courts of Brussels, Halle, Vilvoorde, Leuven and Aalst, in Dutch and in French. Consultations are also possible in English or in Arabic. Send us your police report or summons and you will receive a clear answer to the only two questions that really matter: what are you risking, and what can still be done? Find out more about how we work as speeding offence lawyers.

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