By James Stevens, Director and Solicitor, Go To Court Lawyers. Last reviewed 10 April 2026.
Key points
- Full licence: 12 or more points for offences within 3 years means disqualification for 3 months (12 to 15 points), 4 months (16 to 19) or 5 months (20 or more).
- L and P plates: 4 or more points for offences while on L or P plates means 6 months' disqualification, and the licence is cancelled. On a probationary licence the limit is 2.
- Points count from the offence date and expire 3 years after it. A warning notice is due at 6 points. Interstate points count, and there are no double demerits.
- Speeding: 2 points for less than 10 km/h over, rising to 9 points and an automatic 6-month disqualification at 45 km/h or more over.
- Your options: full licence holders can choose a 12-month good behaviour option within 21 days; P-platers may have a Safer Driver Agreement or a Magistrates Court appeal; learners have neither. There is no work licence.
- Check your points free through mySAGOV, in a web browser rather than the app.
- For advice about a demerit notice, call 1800 577 015 at any hour: free general legal information, and a 60-minute consultation with a lawyer who practises in South Australia for a fixed $295.
In South Australia, a full licence holder who reaches 12 or more demerit points within 3 years is disqualified for 3, 4 or 5 months, and a learner or P-plater who reaches 4 or more is disqualified for 6 months with the licence cancelled; points expire 3 years after the offence, interstate points count and South Australia has no double demerits.
Checked on 23 October 2026 against the Motor Vehicles Act 1959, the Motor Vehicles Regulations 2025, the Road Traffic (Miscellaneous) Regulations 2014, SA.GOV.AU and the Legal Services Commission of South Australia.
The limits
| Licence | Points | Disqualification |
|---|---|---|
| Full licence | 12 to 15, for offences within 3 years | 3 months |
| Full licence | 16 to 19 | 4 months |
| Full licence | 20 or more | 5 months |
| Learner's permit or provisional (P1 or P2) licence | 4 or more, for offences while on L or P plates | 6 months, and the permit or licence is cancelled |
| Probationary licence | 2 or more | 6 months, and the licence is cancelled |
- A warning notice is due when you reach half the limit (6 points on a full licence). SA.GOV.AU says it is not sent to an interstate address, and a disqualification still applies if no warning was sent.
- A fresh start: when a full licence disqualification or good behaviour option starts, the points that brought you to 12 or more are wiped.
How points are counted
- The offence date counts: points apply from the date of the offence, not the date you pay, and expire 3 years after the offence date.
- When they are recorded: once the expiation is paid or the case is finalised in court.
- Camera offences: the notice goes to the registered owner. If someone else was driving, the owner can nominate them.
- Interstate offences count: points incurred under another state's or territory's demerit law are treated as if incurred in South Australia.
- Fewer points: a court that convicts you can order fewer or no points if satisfied, on sworn evidence, that the offence was trifling or there is another proper reason.
- Appealing the offence: appealing the conviction, or applying for a rehearing, puts the disqualification on hold until it is decided.
- No double demerits: South Australia does not use them.
Points and fees for common offences
| Offence | Points | Expiation fee |
|---|---|---|
| Speeding by less than 10 km/h | 2 | $215 |
| Speeding by 10 km/h or more but less than 20 | 3 | $484 |
| Speeding by 20 km/h or more but less than 30 | 5 | $987 |
| Speeding by 30 km/h or more but less than 45 | 7 | $1,793 |
| Speeding by 45 km/h or more (excessive speed) | 9, and an automatic 6-month disqualification | $2,018 |
| Using a mobile phone while driving | 3 | $592 |
| Driver not wearing a seatbelt | 3 | $463 |
| Failing to stop for a red light | 3 | $592 |
Fees are from the Road Traffic (Miscellaneous) Regulations 2014 (version of 25 September 2026); a victims of crime levy is added under separate regulations. For excessive speed, police may also clamp or impound the vehicle.
- Careless driving (driving without due care or attention): 3 points.
- Reckless or dangerous driving: 6 points.
- Drink driving (a prescribed concentration of alcohol): 4 points under 0.08, 5 from 0.08 to under 0.15, and 6 at 0.15 or more, plus the court or expiation penalty. See our page on drink driving charges in South Australia.
- No points: parking offences, driving an unregistered vehicle and driving without a valid licence.
The disqualification notice and your options
- The notice: the first notice is posted. Whether you take the disqualification or the good behaviour option, you must acknowledge it in person and pay a fee within 28 days of the issue date, at a Service SA centre or (for a first notice) an Australia Post outlet. If you don't, a second notice is issued, police or a sheriff's officer will try to serve it on you at the address on your licence, a higher fee applies, and you may not be able to do other transactions until it is paid.
- When it starts: 28 days after the day specified in the notice if you acknowledge it, or 28 days after it is served on you personally.
- Late notices: if, because of an administrative error, the Registrar has not given you the notice within 12 months of your becoming liable to it, it can no longer be given.
- Full licence, the good behaviour option: choose 12 months of good behaviour instead, within 21 days of the day in the notice (28 days with the Registrar's permission; SA.GOV.AU says 28 days from the issue date). Two or more points during the 12 months means disqualification for twice the original period, with no appeal and no second option.
- P-platers: a Safer Driver Agreement can replace the 6-month disqualification if you give notice within 21 days (28 with permission), unless the offence was a "serious disqualification offence" (such as an offence worth 4 or more points) or you had an agreement or a successful appeal in the last 5 years. If an agreement is not available, a P-plate or probationary driver can appeal to the Magistrates Court (Form 5A, on the CourtSA portal) on the ground of severe and unusual hardship, and the disqualification is put on hold while the appeal is pending.
- Learners have no agreement and no appeal.
- No work licence: there is no work or hardship licence for a demerit point disqualification; the options are the ones above.
Our page on licence suspension and disqualification in South Australia sets out the good behaviour option, Safer Driver Agreements and appeals in more detail.
Checking your points
- Online: log in to mySAGOV using a web browser (not the mobile app) and choose "Demerit point enquiry". There is no fee.
- By phone: Service SA, 13 10 84.
Driving while disqualified
Driving while your licence is disqualified or suspended for demerit points carries up to 12 months' jail for a first offence and 3 years for a later one, and police may clamp or impound the car for 28 days.
Free help in South Australia
| Service | Number | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Legal Services Commission Legal Helpline | 1300 366 424 | 9am to 4:30pm, Monday to Friday |
| Service SA (demerit notices, good behaviour option) | 13 10 84 | See SA.GOV.AU |
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 South Australia is a fixed $295, by phone, video or in person where the lawyer offers it. The lawyer can advise on the good behaviour option, a Safer Driver Agreement or a P-plate appeal, whether to contest an offence behind the points, and act for you on a charge of driving while disqualified. Requests are taken at any hour; how soon a lawyer can see you depends on who is available. Request a $295 consultation.
General information only, not legal advice. Updated 23 October 2026. Checked against the Motor Vehicles Act 1959 (version of 24 November 2025), the Motor Vehicles Regulations 2025 (version of 1 August 2026), the Road Traffic (Miscellaneous) Regulations 2014 (version of 25 September 2026), SA.GOV.AU's demerit disqualification, demerit point check and expiation payment pages, and the Legal Services Commission of South Australia's Law Handbook and Legal Helpline page, on 23 October 2026.