By James Stevens, Director and Solicitor, Go To Court Lawyers. Last reviewed 10 April 2026.
Key points
- A first offence means no earlier conviction under the drink-driving Act, ever: old convictions count with no time limit.
- 0.05 to under 0.1: a $426 infringement notice and 3 months off the road, or in court $426 to $2,130, up to 3 months' jail, or both, and 3 to 12 months.
- 0.1 to under 0.15: an $852 notice and 6 months, or in court $852 to $4,260, up to 6 months' jail, or both, and 6 to 18 months.
- 0.15 or more, driving under the influence or a refusal: court only, $1,065 to $6,390, up to 12 months' jail, or both, 12 to 36 months, and the interlock program.
- Special circumstances can bring the minimum down. A restricted licence may be possible under 0.15.
- For a lawyer, call 1800 577 015 at any hour: free general legal information, and a 60-minute consultation with a Tasmanian lawyer for a fixed $295.
In Tasmania, a first drink-driving offence always brings a disqualification, from 3 months on an infringement notice for a reading under 0.1 to 12 to 36 months for a reading of 0.15 or more, unless the court finds special circumstances.
Checked on 22 October 2026 against the Road Safety (Alcohol and Drugs) Act 1970 and its Regulations 2018, the Vehicle and Traffic Act 1999, the Sentencing Act 1997, the Monetary Penalties Enforcement Act 2005, the Government's penalty unit and interlock program pages, the Magistrates Court's restricted licence form and Tasmania Legal Aid.
First offence penalties
| Offence | Infringement notice | In court | Interlock? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zero-alcohol driver, under 0.05 | Not available | $426 to $2,130, up to 3 months' jail, or both; 3 to 12 months | No |
| 0.05 to under 0.1 | $426 and 3 months | $426 to $2,130, up to 3 months' jail, or both; 3 to 12 months | No |
| 0.1 to under 0.15 | $852 and 6 months | $852 to $4,260, up to 6 months' jail, or both; 6 to 18 months | No |
| 0.15 or more | Not available | $1,065 to $6,390, up to 12 months' jail, or both; 12 to 36 months | Yes |
| Driving under the influence, or a refusal | Not available | $1,065 to $6,390, up to 12 months' jail, or both; 12 to 36 months | Yes |
Fines in Tasmania are set in penalty units. The dollar figures on this page use $213 a unit, the value from 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027.
- The court must impose a fine within the range, jail up to the maximum, or both, and must disqualify you for a period within the range.
- Special circumstances: if you satisfy the court that there are special circumstances, it may impose a lower fine or a shorter disqualification than the minimum. The law sets no floor. Jail has no minimum.
- There is no third-offence tier: every offence after the first uses the second-offence column.
- Your licence: a disqualification of 4 months or less suspends it; a longer one cancels it.
- One occasion of driving counts as one conviction, even if you are convicted of more than one offence for it.
- Refusing the roadside breath test (as opposed to the breath analysis that follows) carries up to $2,130 or 6 months' jail, and the court may disqualify you for up to 3 years.
The infringement notice
- Police may give an infringement notice instead of charging you for a reading of 0.05 to under 0.15. It is their choice.
- 0.05 to under 0.1: 2 penalty units ($426) and 3 months' disqualification. 0.1 to under 0.15: 4 penalty units ($852) and 6 months' disqualification.
- Not available if you have ever been convicted of an offence under the drink-driving Act, or of manslaughter involving driving or a dangerous-driving offence, or if you were driving a prescribed vehicle (such as a bus or other passenger transport vehicle, a goods vehicle over 4.5 tonnes or a dangerous-goods vehicle). Whether a learner or P-plater can be given one is not clear from the regulations.
- Court only: 0.15 or more, driving under the influence, any refusal, and a zero-alcohol reading under 0.05.
- Electing court: you have 28 days from when the notice is served to lodge a notice of election to go to court, or to ask for the notice to be withdrawn. If you pay, or do nothing in that time, you are taken to have been convicted, and you are sent a notice of disqualification.
- A restricted licence can still be applied for after a disqualification by infringement notice, if you are eligible (see below).
On-the-spot disqualification
- Police may disqualify you on the spot (a road safety disqualification notice) if they believe on reasonable grounds that you drove under the influence; had a reading of 0.15 or more (0.07 or more if you do not hold a full licence, which includes learners and P-platers); refused a breath analysis or blood test; or committed what would be your second or later offence.
- How long: until the court deals with the charge, or until the minimum disqualification for that offence has passed, whichever comes first. For a first offence at 0.15 or more, driving under the influence or a refusal, that minimum is 12 months; for a learner or P-plater it is 3 months at 0.07 to under 0.1 and 6 months at 0.1 to under 0.15.
- Credit: the court must take the time you have served into account when it sentences you.
- Challenging it: you can appeal to the Magistrates Court on the ground that the notice will cause you severe and unusual hardship, or that there are other special circumstances, giving 14 days' written notice to the Commissioner of Police and a registrar. The court hearing the charge, or the Commissioner, can also cancel the notice.
- No restricted licence can be granted while the notice is running.
Restricted licences
- Tasmania has a restricted licence. If your licence is, or will be, suspended or cancelled for drink driving (by a court or by an infringement notice), you can ask the Magistrates Court for one.
- The test: that losing your licence would cause severe and unusual hardship to you or your dependants, which a restricted licence would relieve, and that granting it would not be contrary to the public interest. Alcohol dependency counts as contrary to the public interest, and the court may want a doctor's evidence.
- Not available if the reading was 0.15 or more; for driving under the influence; for refusing a breath analysis or blood test, or objecting to blood analysis; if you held a learner or provisional licence; if you were not licensed for the vehicle; if you were driving a prescribed vehicle; or if the offence was committed during, or within 3 years after, a disqualification under the drink-driving Act. In practice, that leaves full licence holders under 0.15 with no recent disqualification.
- How to apply: a written application in the form of a statutory declaration, served on the Registrar and the nearest Police Prosecutions office at least 7 days before the hearing. The court charges a filing fee.
- Conditions: the court sets the vehicles, days, hours and routes, and may require a log book; you must have no alcohol at all in your body when you drive. If it grants a restricted licence, the court may also extend the disqualification by up to the period still to run.
- Breaching it carries up to $8,520 or 6 months' jail, and $17,040 or 12 months for a later breach.
How earlier offences are counted
- No time limit: an earlier conviction for driving under the influence, driving over the limit, drug driving, or refusing or objecting to a test makes a new offence a second or later offence, however long ago it was.
- Other time windows: the interlock program looks at two offences in five years; the restricted licence bar at an offence within 3 years after a disqualification ends; and the zero-alcohol rule applies to anyone with 3 or more convictions under the Act from 3 occasions within 10 years.
- An infringement notice is not available to anyone with an earlier conviction under the drink-driving Act, however old.
No conviction recorded
The Sentencing Act 1997 lets a court deal with many offences without recording a conviction, weighing the offence, your character and your employment prospects, and such a finding is not a conviction for any purpose unless another law says so. But that power is subject to laws dealing specifically with an offence, and the drink-driving penalties bind "a court that convicts". Whether a drink-driving charge can end without a conviction, and whether the disqualification would then apply, is not settled by the sources checked for this page, so get advice before you rely on it.
More on what happens after a drink-driving charge, a first offence, mid range (0.1 to under 0.15) and high range in Tasmania, and the full drink driving penalties.
Free legal help in Tasmania
- Tasmania Legal Aid's Legal Help on 1300 366 611, Monday to Friday, 8:45am to 5pm.
- The duty lawyer at court: Tasmania Legal Aid says to ask reception staff to point you to the duty lawyer on the day.
- Interlock program questions: the Magistrates Court's restricted licence form gives 1300 135 513.
How Go To Court Lawyers can help
Our free line, 1800 577 015, answers at any hour. Jen, our AI legal information assistant, gives general legal information and takes your details; Jen is not a lawyer and does not give advice about your case. A 60-minute consultation with a lawyer who practises in Tasmania is a fixed $295, by phone, video or in person. The lawyer can advise whether to accept an infringement notice or go to court, whether there are special circumstances, and whether you qualify for a restricted licence. Requests are taken at any hour; how soon a lawyer can see you depends on who is available. Request a $295 consultation with a Tasmanian lawyer.
General information only, not legal advice. Updated 22 October 2026. Checked against the Road Safety (Alcohol and Drugs) Act 1970 (Tas), the Road Safety (Alcohol and Drugs) Regulations 2018 (shown on the official register as in force on 22 October 2026), the Vehicle and Traffic Act 1999, the Sentencing Act 1997, the Monetary Penalties Enforcement Act 2005, the Department of Justice's penalty units page (14 July 2026; $213 a unit), the Department of State Growth's Mandatory Alcohol Interlock Program page (21 July 2026), the Magistrates Court's restricted licence form (June 2024), Tasmania Legal Aid and Tasmania Police, on 22 October 2026.