Speeding fine and points in France: the exact calculation

What the calculator does, step by step

The calculation follows the order in which the French authorities process a speeding offence. First, the speed measured by the device is reduced by the technical margin set by the order of 4 June 2009 on speed measuring devices. The result is rounded down to the whole number, a choice we state on the method page because the order says nothing about rounding. Next, the recorded speed is compared with the limit to give the excess. Finally, that excess is placed in the matching band of article R413-14, or, from 50 km/h over, under article L413-1, which makes it a criminal offence.

Each result shows the recorded speed, the class of the offence, the three possible fine amounts, the points taken, the suspension a court can order and the time after which the points come back. Everything runs in your browser: nothing you type is sent anywhere, and the page address keeps your figures so you can share them.

The camera margin

The margin depends on the device, not on the road. A fixed camera, a tower camera or an average-speed system deducts 5 km/h while the measured speed is under 100 km/h, then 5 % of the measured speed. A camera in an unmarked car that is moving doubles the margin: 10 km/h, then 10 %. In practice, 137 km/h measured on a motorway by a fixed camera becomes 130 km/h recorded, while the same reading taken on the move gives 123 km/h.

Each type of device, from the laser gun to the roadworks camera, is covered on the camera margin page, and the average-speed camera, which works out a mean speed over several kilometres, has a page of its own.

The 2026 speeding penalty scale

The table below gives, for each band of recorded excess, the three fine amounts (reduced, standard, increased), the points taken and the suspension a court may order. The class of the offence, and so the price, only changes between limits for less than 20 km/h over: class 3 above 50 km/h, class 4 at 50 km/h or below. From 20 km/h over, every road is class 4.

The amounts come from article R49-9 of the Code of Criminal Procedure; the bands and points from article R413-14 of the Highway Code. The full table of every offence, speeding included, is on the fines and points table.

The measured speed at which each step is reached

The scale works in recorded speed; drivers think in what the speedometer showed or what the notice gives as the measurement. The next table does the conversion for a fixed camera: for each common limit, the measured speed from which you lose one, two, three or four points, then the one that tips you into a criminal offence.

On an 80 km/h road, the most common limit among the fixed cameras in the official file, the first point is lost at 90 km/h measured and the criminal threshold is 137 km/h. On a motorway the percentage margin pushes every step up: it takes 143 km/h measured to lose a point. The limits themselves, which drop in the rain and for new drivers, are on the French speed limits page.

Fifty km/h over: a criminal offence the first time

Until 28 December 2025, driving 50 km/h over the limit was a class 5 minor offence that only became criminal on a repeat. Decree no. 2025-1269 of 22 December 2025 abolished that minor offence: since 29 December 2025, article L413-1 punishes a first offence with 3 months in prison and a fine of up to €3,750. The prosecutor can offer a fixed criminal penalty of €300 (€250 if paid quickly, €600 if late). The offence takes 6 points, half the licence, and goes on the criminal record.

The additional penalties are heavy: suspension for up to 3 years, a ban on driving some vehicles for up to 5 years, cancellation of the licence with a ban on retaking it for up to 3 years, and confiscation of the car, compulsory on a repeat. A driver who is stopped can have the licence held on the spot. The details are on the excessive speeding page.

Paying or disputing: the dates that change the price

The same offence can cost €90, €135 or €375 depending on when you pay. The reduced amount is open for 15 days after the notice is sent, 30 if you pay online; the standard amount until day 45; after that, the Treasury sends an increased fine notice. Paying, even the reduced amount, counts as admitting the offence, and the points are then taken.

Disputing only makes sense with a reason: you were not driving, the plate was cloned, the car had been sold, or the sign was missing. The request goes within 45 days to the public prosecutor’s officer, with a deposit equal to the standard fine. How to do it and what to enclose is on the page on disputing a fine; a notice that has already been increased, which still keeps a 20 % reduction if paid quickly, has its own page.

Points: what is taken and when it comes back

A French licence holds 12 points, except during the probationary period, which starts at 6 points and gains 2 points for each year without an offence (3 after accompanied driving). Under article L223-6 of the Highway Code, a point taken for a small excess comes back after six months without a new offence; other deductions are wiped together after two years without an offence, or three years if a class 4 offence or a criminal offence was committed. At zero points the licence is invalid and the test must be retaken after six months.

A voluntary road safety course gives back up to 4 points, without going over the maximum, once in any one-year period. It becomes compulsory for a new driver who loses 3 points or more at once. Your balance on a given date is worked out on the points balance page, and the course rules are on the points recovery course page. This site sells no course and recommends none.

Fixed cameras: where they are and which limit they enforce

The French Interior Ministry publishes the list of fixed cameras on data.gouv.fr under the Open Licence. The file of 30 December 2025, read again on 21 October 2026, lists 3,309 cameras, including 1,492 tower cameras and 496 red-light cameras. We matched each one to its commune and département from its coordinates; 2 cameras on the coast could not be matched. The next table splits the speed cameras by the limit they enforce.

With 952 devices, 80 km/h roads have the most cameras, ahead of 659 on 90 km/h roads and 494 in built-up areas. Red-light and level-crossing cameras have no limit, since they penalise crossing a line. The list of cameras by département gives, for each one, the measured speed that costs a point.

Other driving offences

Speeding is not the only offence that costs points. Running a red light or a stop sign takes four points, a hand-held phone and an unfastened seat belt three, and drink-driving six from 0.5 g per litre of blood. Parking only costs points when it is dangerous; the other cases are on the parking fine page. Drivers with a car registered outside France will find what applies to them on the foreign driver page.

Why this calculator

This site works out your exact penalty, recorded speed after the camera margin, reduced, standard or increased fine, points and the criminal offence from 50 km/h over, up to date with the law of 18 August 2026, where the best-ranked pages give a table to read yourself between adverts for paid courses. It is published by Radif Partners, with no link to the authorities and no adverts for lawyers, driving schools or insurers. The legal texts are checked at every update of the site and the camera file is reloaded every week; the About page explains who we are and how to report a mistake.