Is there a penalty for having an expired driver's license?
Fine for expired driver's license
Good afternoon, dear reader.
This article will talk about the fine for an expired driver's license in 2020. Theoretically, this fine can be received by any driver who did not notice the expiration date of his driver’s license in time and did not make a timely replacement.
In addition, a fine can also be imposed on the owner of the car who transferred control to a person who has an expired license. Let's take a closer look at these penalties:
Expired driver's licenses in 2019
First of all, let's look at Article 28 of the Federal Law “On Road Safety”:
Article 28. Grounds for termination or suspension of the right to drive vehicles
1. The grounds for termination of the right to drive vehicles are:
- expiration of the driver's license;
Please note that expiration of a driver's license means that the driver automatically loses the right to drive vehicles.
After replacing the driver's license, the driver regains this right.
Fine for driving with an expired license
If the driver does not notice in time that his license has expired and gets behind the wheel, he will receive a fine for driving with an expired license (Article 12.7 of the Administrative Code):
1. Driving a vehicle by a driver who does not have the right to drive a vehicle (except for training driving) -
shall entail the imposition of an administrative fine in the amount of five thousand to fifteen thousand rubles.
Thus, the fine for using an expired license for a driver is 5,000 - 15,000 rubles .
Penalty for transferring control to a person with expired rights
Article 12.7 of the Code of Administrative Offenses also provides for punishment for the owner of a car who has transferred control to a driver who obviously has an expired driver’s license:
3. Transferring control of a vehicle to a person who obviously does not have the right to drive a vehicle (except for training driving) or is deprived of such a right -
shall entail the imposition of an administrative fine in the amount of thirty thousand rubles .
The fine for transferring control to a person with expired rights is more serious - 30,000 rubles .
At this point I would like to draw attention to the word “knowingly”. It means that a fine will be imposed only if the owner of the car knew in advance that the driver’s license was expired.
For example, let the owner of the car Alexander transfer control to the driver Sergey on January 1, 2019. At the same time, he issues a power of attorney for 1 year. Sergey's rights are valid until July 1, 2019. If Sergei is stopped after July 1 with an expired license, then there will be no claims against Alexander, because he handed over the car long before the license became expired.
One more example. Andrey gives the car to Ivan, whose driver’s license expired in mid-2018. Andrey does not check Ivan's license, so he does not know that it is expired. In this case, the traffic police (and the court) may have doubts that Andrey did not know about his expired license. Therefore, a fine may be imposed.
In practice, I recommend in any case checking the driver’s license of the person you trust to drive the car. Moreover, you need to check not only its validity period, but also its authenticity using the traffic police database.
Penalty for replacing an expired driver's license
Quite often you can encounter a situation where a driver turns to the traffic police to replace an expired driver’s license. In this case, no fine is provided . If the driver did not drive with an expired license, there will be no fine.
It does not matter how long after the driver’s license expired he contacted the traffic police for a replacement. Many drivers still change their licenses obtained during the Soviet era and this does not cause any fines or problems.
In conclusion, I would like to note that in 2019, the fines for driving with an expired license are quite impressive. Therefore, I recommend checking the expiration date of your certificate right now. Just in case.
Penalty for expired licenses
A driver's license remains valid for a certain period. The end of the validity period of the certificate is a specific date. However, many drivers overlook this day, although it is indicated in the document. As a result, the driver's license becomes expired. Simply put, invalid.
If a citizen with such a document gets behind the wheel, he becomes an offender. This is the same as driving a car without a driver's license at all.
How long is a driver's license valid for?
According to general rules, the certificate is valid for 10 years. But the validity of an international driver’s license is only 3 years. But not all drivers require an international license, and citizens are more interested in problems related to the validity of Russian driving documents. It is the driver who is supposed to monitor the validity of his license.
For your information. It is believed that the car owner spends no more than one day to replace the license (this does not include the time of collecting the package of documents). But this is in theory. Traffic police officers sometimes conduct a more detailed check of documents, and the procedure for replacing a certificate is delayed for up to 2 months. Most often, the verification process is delayed if the certificate is obtained in another region. It is better to solve the problem in advance. Advance notification to the traffic police is permitted by law.
Procedure for replacing an expired ID
All required documents should be collected; a standard list is proposed. And yet, it won’t be superfluous to go to “your” traffic police department to clarify this issue in more detail.
- To receive a new certificate to replace the old one, you must submit:
- an existing driver's license that is about to expire;
- passport (other identity document);
- copy of ID;
- confirmation of registration of the place of residence (stay).
- You should write an application, a standard template is offered. Usually drivers write it directly to the traffic police.
- You must obtain a medical certificate confirming that the driver can drive a vehicle of the designated category. Certificate form - No. 083/U-89. You will also need a copy of it. This copy may need to be certified at the request of the inspector. In addition, he has the right to demand a copy of the license of the medical institution that issued the certificate.
- It will be necessary to obtain confirmation of the fact that the citizen was not deprived of the right to drive the car. You can obtain a certificate from the traffic police department where the license replacement is issued. However, you should stock up on the certificate in advance.
- You need to confirm that the state fee has been paid - submit a receipt.
- A driver's license can be obtained using an automated method. In another case, you will need to additionally submit 3 photos (matte, size 3x4).
Important! Don't delay paying fines. You should make sure that there are no debts. To obtain information, it is enough to use the appropriate Internet resource, there are many of them.
At what point after the expiration of the validity period of the previous document should you start drawing up a new one?
There are no specific requirements here by law, except for one thing: you cannot drive with an expired license! For this serious offense, fairly stringent punitive measures are provided.
Penalty for driving with an expired license
If some other violations of generally accepted rules may result in a warning, then for driving with an invalid license there are no concessions from traffic inspectors.
In Part 1 of Art. 12.7 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation specifies penalties for such an offense. This is a fine, its size is from 5 thousand rubles. up to 15 thousand rubles.
However, this article does not mention the punishment specifically for using an expired certificate. To understand this nuance of the legislation, you will need to study Part 1 of Art. 28 of Law No. 196-FZ of December 10, 1995 (last edition of December 27, 2018). This article states that a driver loses the right to drive if his driver's license has expired. Applying Article 12.7 of the Administrative Code, traffic police officers base their decisions on the provisions of Art. 28 of another law.
What should a driver do with an expired license?
You can offer the car owner two pieces of advice. They do not protect against punishment, but help mitigate it.
Advice one. The driver knows that his license is expired. He gets behind the wheel, but is forced to stop at the request of the traffic inspector. It is recommended to declare that the rights were forgotten at home. Then the traffic police inspector:
- or issue a warning;
- or fined only 500 rubles.
That is, the punishment will follow according to the terms of Art. 12.3 (part 2).
Tip two. Drivers need to be responsible, not ignore traffic rules, and obey the laws. You need to keep track of when the document expires in order to replace it in a timely manner. This applies to obtaining both a new license and a registration certificate; maintenance should be carried out in a timely manner; Before leaving, you need to check if your documents are forgotten at home or somewhere else.
What is the fine if the driver is not included in the insurance in 2019, read here.
Video: What is the penalty for expired rights:
Amount of fine for driving with an expired license
Expired licenses are grounds for administrative penalties to be applied to the driver. The violator will have to pay a fine. Traveling with an expired driver's license is equivalent to driving a car without a driver's license. Therefore, you should monitor the validity period of your rights and change them in time.
Is it possible to drive on roads with an expired license?
Rights are expired if the date indicated in clause 4b has passed. If a motorist with such documents is stopped by a traffic police inspector, then events will develop according to the following scenario:
- Due to the lack of a valid driver's license, a report will be issued against the motorist.
- The inspector will call a tow truck, and the car will be taken to a special parking lot. Transportation and parking services for vehicles will have to be paid by the owner of the car. The amount to be paid increases every day.
- A citizen with an expired driver's license faces penalties. Their value is tied to the days the document is overdue.
- At the next stage, the car owner needs to exchange his expired license or get a new one.
- With a new license, the driver can pick up the car from a special parking lot.
Some motorists, in order to minimize financial losses from a fine, do not present expired driving documents to the traffic police officer. When asked to show their license, drivers report that the document was forgotten at home.
The penalty for this offense is 500 rubles, and the driver can also get off with a verbal warning.
In this case, as evidence of vehicle ownership, you should present a passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation, a motor vehicle policy and a vehicle registration certificate. This technique may work if the inspector does not start checking documents using the internal traffic police database.
How long can you drive with an expired license?
You cannot drive with an expired license; You don’t have to change your license, but you are prohibited from driving a car. In the absence of payment of the imposed fine, the obligation to withhold the required amount of money from the debtor passes to the FSSP specialists. They will write off funds from an account at a banking organization or deduct them from earnings.
If the license is overdue for a couple of days, then there is a chance to avoid a significant penalty. The fine for an expired license will be small, and the driver will be given a verbal warning.
When is a fine applied for an expired driver's license?
In accordance with Part 1 of Art. 28 of the Federal Law of the Russian Federation “On Road Traffic Safety”, after the expiration of the last day of validity of the license, it is considered expired. An administrative fine for an expired license can be applied to a motorist if he was caught driving a vehicle by a traffic police officer.
If the period of validity of the driver's license has expired, but the vehicle was not driven, then there are no grounds for imposing penalties. A citizen can live for a very long time with an expired license, but he cannot drive a car.
There are other reasons why rights are invalidated:
- the driver was deprived of his license;
- the appearance and diagnosis during a medical examination of diseases that were not previously identified and which prohibit driving a car;
- replacement of personal information.
If the replacement of a national driver's license is overdue, then international driver's documents are also considered invalid.
The period for using national rights is 10 years. An international standard holder's license is valid for 3 years.
Punishment for expired rights
Driving a car with an expired license is equivalent to driving a vehicle without a license. Such an offense is punishable in accordance with Art. 12.7 Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation. Penalties are applied to the violator, and the vehicle is towed to the impound lot.
The amount of the fine for an expired driver's license depends on the period of delay and the circumstances under which the offense was established. If a car owner with an expired license was involved in an accident or was stopped while intoxicated, then the amount of the penalty will be significant. In addition, the driver will be suspended from driving by court order for an extended period of time.
Fine for expired driving license
The fine for an expired license ranges from 5 to 15 thousand rubles. If control of a vehicle is transferred to a citizen who does not have a license or has been deprived of it, then the car owner will have to transfer a large amount to the country’s budget.
Additional financial losses
As noted above, the amount of the fine for an expired driver’s license depends on the circumstances of the detention of the car and the period of use of the outdated driver’s license. But the owner of the vehicle may suffer additional financial losses:
- The arrival of a tow truck will cost around 1.5 to 2.5 thousand rubles.
- Transporting the car will cost 200 rubles.
- The violator will not have to pay for the first day that the car is in the special parking lot. In the future, the owner of the car will be charged daily. Its size may vary depending on the subject of residence. On average, over the next 2 days the cost of 1 hour of parking will cost 40 rubles. Then the price increases significantly and can reach 1 thousand rubles. for passenger cars and trucks up to 3.5 tons.
To save money, the car owner must repay the debt within 20 days after the fine is issued. In this case, the discount on paying the fine will be 50%, and when replacing rights at State Services - 30%. If the money is not transferred within 70 days, the amount of the penalty increases by 2 times.
How to pay
There are several ways to pay off debt to the state:
- through a banking organization;
- by sending an SMS message if the smartphone is connected to the corresponding service;
- using web resources: Internet banking, State Services system, electronic wallets, traffic police web service.
If the debtor does not pay off his obligations within 2 years, the fine will be written off. The limitation period for traffic police sanctions is 24 months.
How to avoid impound parking
It is possible to protect vehicles from being evacuated to a special parking lot if the driver’s license has expired. If the owner of the car has a citizen who was in the passenger’s seat at the time of the stop, he will be able to drive the car to the right place. He can also continue driving to his destination.
Will a fine be imposed if the driver comes to the traffic police to replace the document?
If the driver expires his license, but is not caught driving a car, then when he appears at the traffic police, he will not have to pay a fine. If it is possible not to use the car, then it is not necessary to clearly monitor the validity period of the license. You can start replacing them after the 10-year period has expired.
Replacing an expired driver's license
If there is no opportunity to refuse to travel by car, then you should start processing a new document in advance. You will not need to pass any exams to obtain a new license. It is enough to submit the documentation package and receive a new driver's license. Such a service will cost the car enthusiast 2 thousand rubles. This amount will have to be transferred to the state. You can begin the procedure for registering new rights in advance, for example, 5-6 months.
In addition to the traffic police, you can apply for a driving license through:
- system of government electronic services;
- MFC (the waiting period for a new document can be up to 7 days).
To exchange rights, you need to prepare the following documents:
- passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation;
- old rights;
- receipt for payment of state tax;
- a certificate from a medical institution (its validity period is 12 months).
An application form for the exchange of rights is issued by a government agency. To obtain a certificate from a medical institution, you will need to visit a narcologist and a psychiatrist. If the car owner is registered in a city where there is a medical institution that issues such certificates, then it can independently make inquiries to specialists. You won't have to see doctors.
To send a request for new rights from home, you should use the State Services portal. Car enthusiasts who choose the electronic method of submitting an application will be able to take advantage of a 30% discount. The state fee will be 1,400 rubles. The user will need to create a verified account. To do this, you can contact the MFC.
To submit an application through State Services you will need:
- follow the link https://www.gosuslugi.ru/10056/2;
- a page will be displayed on which the user can familiarize himself with the procedure for obtaining the service;
- on the right side of the screen, click “Get a service”;
- the section with the electronic application form will load;
- the citizen’s personal data and information from the passport will be filled in automatically, as they were indicated during registration;
- in point 3 you will need to enter the user’s address data;
- the next paragraph should indicate the line “Expiration”;
- in paragraph 5 you need to enter data from the medical certificate and indicate the permitted category of transport;
- Next, the details of the driver’s license and their category are indicated;
- in paragraph 7 you must indicate the address where the driver’s document will be issued and the date/time of the appointment;
- Next, the user needs to check the box in the window to learn about the procedure for submitting an application and click “Submit.”
Within 24 hours, a notification will be sent to the user’s personal section about the acceptance of the application and the opportunity to pay the state fee with a 30% discount. For payment, you can use bank plastic or an electronic wallet.
The functionality of the portal allows you to print a receipt for the transfer of money. It will need to be attached to the package of documentation that will be submitted to the traffic police to obtain a license.
An electronic queue number will be sent to the car enthusiast’s personal section. On the day indicated in the application, the citizen should appear at the traffic police department a little earlier than the appointed time.
To receive a coupon in the terminal, you must enter the number that was sent to the personal section of the State Services. The waiting time for an appointment will depend on the workload of workers. In most cases, it does not exceed 30 minutes from the designated time when generating the application. The papers should be handed over to an authorized employee who will take a photo of the driver for a new document. Ready licenses will be issued on the day of application.
Fines for transferring your steering wheel to other persons with an expired driver's license
Punishment for this act is provided for in Part 3 of Art. 12.7 Code of Administrative Offences. The fine for driving with an expired third-party license will be 30 thousand rubles. Moreover, the obligation to pay is imposed on the owner of the car.
An owner who knowingly knew that he was allowing a citizen without a license to drive can be held accountable. This situation is very common, since car owners often create trust documents for their relatives and friends.
If the car was transferred under a lease agreement to another person before the expiration of the license period, then penalties will not be imposed on the owner of the car. The landlord is not required to monitor the validity period of the tenant's license. Responsibility in this case is imposed on the citizen driving the car. He is responsible for his actions.
To avoid problems, car owners are advised to:
- Pay attention to the validity period of the license and specify in detail in the agreement the rights and obligations of the parties to the transaction if the car is rented for a long period of time.
- For short-term rentals, carefully study the driver's license and check whether the driver's license has expired or not.
If the car owner leased the car to a citizen who does not have a license, then it is possible to avoid paying a financial penalty. The owner of the car should legally correctly state his position in court, then all responsibility will fall on the lessee.
Fines when replacing rights
Nobody wants to pay extra money when exchanging a driver’s license, so car owners are concerned about whether they will be fined if they fail to replace their driver’s license in a timely manner, and whether they will change their license if there are unpaid fines at the traffic police. Mandatory payments include payment of the state fee (2000 rubles) and a medical certificate (1500-2500 rubles), if you change the certificate after the expiration date or upon initial receipt.
Late replacement of a driver's license
When a driver changed his last name or expired his driver’s license due to expiration and untimely contacted the traffic police for an exchange, he will not be able to be charged with a fine due to the absence of an administrative violation. , there will be no punishment at the State Traffic Inspectorate .
But if you drive a car or other vehicle with an expired license, as well as lately entered data about the owner (when changing your last name, first name or patronymic), you will be punished by a fine of 5 to 15 thousand rubles when meeting with a traffic police inspector. The situation is regulated by Article 12.7 Part 1 of the Code of Administrative Offenses. The amount is quite large, so it is better to replace your license in advance if you cannot live without a car for a day.
If your driver's license is lost or stolen, the fine will be 500 rubles in accordance with clause 12.3 of the Administrative Code, since your driver's license is still listed in the traffic police database and no one has revoked their legitimacy. Only driving a vehicle with missing documents can be incriminated.
Will your license be changed if there are unpaid traffic fines?
There is no provision in the legislation of the Russian Federation prohibiting the replacement of a driving license if the driver has not paid fines for previous violations. If you have received a refusal to exchange your driver's license, you can request written confirmation of the incident from an MREO employee and contact higher authorities to resolve disagreements. Rest assured - the actions of the traffic police officers, in this case, are illegal
Replacement of rights can be refused only for a limited number of reasons:
- If there are blots and corrections in the documents;
- The date is incorrectly indicated or the validity period of the documents provided has expired (the old license does not count);
- The traffic police database contains information about the deprivation of the applicant’s right to drive a vehicle;
- Providing knowingly false information;
- Providing an incomplete list of documents to replace the certificate;
- If the applicant is wanted by government agencies;
- Lack of information about payment of state duty
Everyone decides for themselves whether they need to pay fines when replacing their license, but their presence will not be able to free up the hands of the traffic police officers and refuse to exchange your driver’s license. Separately, I would like to note that debt collection can only be carried out by a specialized unit of bailiffs. The rest is the initiative of officials; if you are faced with such a situation, request a written refusal and contact the head of the State Traffic Inspectorate with it. The law is on your side and you have every right to exchange your driving license with unpaid fines
What is the penalty for driving with an expired license?
What is the penalty for expired licenses? Is it possible to pay a fine at a discount? How and when do I need to change my driver’s license? What documents will be required and where to apply? The answers follow.
Amount of fine
In accordance with the traffic rules established by Government Decree No. 1090, driving a motor vehicle is possible if the driver has a certain package of documents, which includes:
- vehicle registration certificate. It should be taken into account that, in accordance with current legislation, registration of a car must be done within 10 days after purchasing or acquiring the car in another way (inheritance, donation, leasing, etc.). During the specified period, instead of a registration certificate, law enforcement officers can be provided with a vehicle passport (PTS)
- driver's license. The document must have an open category corresponding to the type of vehicle
- compulsory motor insurance policy (OSAGO)
The absence of any document specified in the presented list is an administrative offense.
The type and amount of punishment for violations related to the use of motor transport are regulated by Chapter 12 of the Code of Administrative Offenses (CAO). What is the penalty for driving a car with an expired license?
For driving with an expired document
In accordance with Part 2 of Article 12.3 of the Administrative Code, driving a motor vehicle by a driver who does not have a driver’s license (the document was left at home, at work, etc.) is punishable by:
- a warning if the offense did not result in an accident and no people or property were injured
- a fine of 500 rubles
The choice of punishment is made by the traffic inspector independently.
An expired driver's license has no legal force. It is believed that operating a vehicle with an expired license is equivalent to driving a vehicle without a driver’s license.
If the license is expired or the driver does not have a document at all, or is also deprived of the corresponding right by the judicial authorities and the period of punishment has not expired, then the punishment is determined in accordance with Article 12.7 of the Administrative Code and is:
Expired license and drunk driving
If during an inspection it is revealed that the driver is driving not only with an expired license, but also while drunk, then the following punishment will be imposed on the violator (Article 12.8 of the Administrative Code):
- If the offense did not lead to acts punishable under the Criminal Code:
- administrative arrest for 10-15 days
- fine of 30,000 rubles
- If driving while drunk causes minor harm to the health of the injured party (a short-term illness with minor loss of ability to work is considered mild):
- fine 2,500-5,000 rubles
- deprivation of rights for 1 – 1.5 years
- If the damage is of moderate severity (a non-dangerous but long-term illness or less than 1/3 loss of ability to work), then
- fine 10,000-25,000 rubles
- deprivation of rights for 1.5-2 years
- Causing grievous bodily harm through negligence (Article 118 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation):
- fine up to 80,000 rubles
- compulsory work for up to 480 hours
- correctional labor for a period of up to 2 years
- restriction of freedom for up to 3 years
- arrest up to 6 months
- Causing grievous harm intentionally and in a generally dangerous manner (which is often recognized by the court when driving without a license and while intoxicated):
- imprisonment for up to 10 years.
In addition to the above punishment, a car driven by a person while intoxicated will be detained and placed in a impound lot, which will lead to additional expenses for payment:
- evacuation services
- car security services at a specialized parking lot
It should be noted that the permissible dose of alcohol in exhaled air is 0.16 ppm, and in the blood – 0.35 ppm. This means that if the test result does not exceed the established standards, then administrative punishment cannot be applied to the driver.
Transfer of control to a driver with a valid license
It is also a violation of traffic rules to transfer the right to drive a motor vehicle to a person with an expired license. In accordance with Article 12.8 of the Administrative Code, the penalty for these actions is a fine of 30,000 rubles.
How to behave if you are stopped with an expired driver's license
Traffic police officers can check the driver’s documents, including licenses, at stationary points or in any other place.
After stopping the car, the inspector must:
- introduce himself
- indicate the reason for stopping
- state the requirement to provide documents for verification
The driver is obliged to hand over the required documents. Refusal to grant a license is considered illegal and can lead to the removal of the driver from driving and the detention of both the vehicle and the citizen until all circumstances on the issue in question are fully clarified.
Thus, it will not be possible to hide the fact of an expired driver’s license. Rudeness, failure to provide documents and other unauthorized actions can lead to more serious consequences.
Discount on fine payment
In accordance with paragraph 1.3 of Article 32.2 of the Administrative Code, the fine imposed under Articles 12.7, 12.8 and 12.24 (causing harm of mild and moderate severity) during the first 20 days after the decision on the violation can be paid with a discount of 50%.
You can make payment in any way most convenient for the driver:
- through the bank
- through ATMs and terminals
- online on the websites of payment systems (Qiwi, Yandex. Money and so on)
- online through your bank account
- via Russian Post and so on
Validity period of driver's license
When determining the penalty for an expired license, it is important to know where the validity period of the document is indicated and how long it is.
In accordance with current legislation:
- national licenses are issued for a period of 10 years
- international laws can be valid for no longer than the validity period of the national document
The date of receipt of the driver's license and the date until which the document will be valid are indicated on the front side in sections 4 a and 4 b, respectively.
How long in advance do I need to apply for a replacement?
Registration units of the State Traffic Safety Inspectorate are responsible for replacing driver's licenses. To carry out the operation you will need to prepare:
- expired rights
- passport
- medical certificate of permission to drive
- receipt for payment of state duty
There is no penalty for expired rights when replacing a document. Administrative punishment can be imposed only if it is revealed that the driver was driving a vehicle with an expired document.
The basis for replacing a driver's license is a written application that can be submitted:
- in person at the registration office of the traffic police
- through the multifunctional center
- online on the State Services website
It is better to submit an application for a change of license in advance (1-2 weeks before the specified deadline), since there may be a queue at the traffic police for a week or more.
How long does it take to get a license?
The replacement process, without waiting in line to see a specialist, takes no more than 1-2 hours. During the specified time, the following actions are performed:
- verification of the submitted documents and data specified in the application
- verification of receipt of state duty
- photography (taking ID photos)
- document production and lamination
- issuance of a new driver's license
If you submit documents to replace your license through the State Services portal, the time to receive a new document may be reduced to 20-30 minutes, since the information provided by the driver is checked in advance, before the invoice for payment of the state duty is issued.
If you change your driver's license through the multifunctional center, the procedure is carried out in 2 visits:
- submitting documents and taking photos
- obtaining a completed certificate
Moreover, it will take 5 working days to produce and send the license.