How many demerit points is each offence in Ontario?
Between 2 and 7, depending on the offence. Ontario Regulation 339/94 sets the value for each one, and the points go on your record only once you are convicted.
Find your offence below. The chart groups the common point-carrying offences from the regulation’s demerit point table by value, with the legal wording turned into plain words.
| Offence | Points |
|---|---|
| Failing to remain at the scene of a collision | 7 |
| Failing to stop when signalled or asked to stop by a police officer | 7 |
| Careless driving | 6 |
| Racing, which includes stunt driving | 6 |
| Speeding 50 km/h or more over the limit | 6 |
| Failing to stop for a school bus | 6 |
| Handheld device or display screen, a second or later conviction within five years of the last one | 6 |
| Offence | Points |
|---|---|
| Bus or school bus driver failing to stop at a railway crossing | 5 |
| Speeding 30 to 49 km/h over the limit | 4 |
| Following too closely | 4 |
| Pedestrian crossover offence | 4 |
| Failing to yield to a pedestrian | 4 |
| Failing to obey a school crossing stop sign | 4 |
| Offence | Points |
|---|---|
| Speeding 16 to 29 km/h over the limit | 3 |
| Driving while holding or using a handheld device (first conviction) | 3 |
| Driving with a display screen visible to the driver (first conviction) | 3 |
| Failing to obey a stop sign, a signal light or a railway crossing signal | 3 |
| Failing to yield the right of way | 3 |
| Driving through, around or under a railway crossing barrier | 3 |
| Failing to obey a traffic control stop sign or slow sign, such as a construction paddle | 3 |
| Failing to obey the directions of a police officer | 3 |
| Driving on a closed road | 3 |
| Failing to report a collision | 3 |
| Improper passing | 3 |
| Improper driving where the road is divided into lanes | 3 |
| Crowding the driver’s seat | 3 |
| Driving the wrong way on a divided highway | 3 |
| Crossing a divided highway where no proper crossing is provided | 3 |
| Going the wrong way on a one-way street or highway | 3 |
| Opening a vehicle door improperly | 3 |
| Failing to stop or pull over for an emergency vehicle | 3 |
| Failing to slow down and pass with caution, or to move over a lane when safe, for a stopped emergency vehicle or tow truck with its lights flashing | 3 |
| Following a fire vehicle too closely | 3 |
| Vehicle equipped with or carrying a radar detector | 3 |
| Improper use of a high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lane | 3 |
| Offence | Points |
|---|---|
| Failing to signal | 2 |
| Improper right turn or improper left turn | 2 |
| Prohibited turn, including a turn banned by a municipal by-law | 2 |
| Backing up on a highway | 2 |
| Failing to share the road | 2 |
| Unnecessary slow driving | 2 |
| Failing to lower your high beams | 2 |
| Failing to obey a sign prescribed by regulation | 2 |
| Towing people on toboggans, bicycles, skis and the like | 2 |
| Driver not wearing a seat belt properly | 2 |
| Driving with a passenger under 16 who is not properly buckled in | 2 |
| Driving with a child, infant or toddler not secured in the required restraint | 2 |
| Failing to leave one metre when passing a cyclist | 2 |
Your total can come out lower than the chart suggests. If the court suspends your licence as part of the sentence, no points are recorded for that conviction, except for handheld device, display screen and racing or stunt convictions, which get their points either way.
For how the system works as a whole, see how Ontario demerit points work. For the exact words used on the record itself, the driving record glossary explains each term.
How many demerit points is a speeding ticket in Ontario?
Zero to 6, depending on how far over the limit you were: none for 1 to 15 km/h over, 3 for 16 to 29, 4 for 30 to 49, and 6 for 50 km/h or more.
| How far over the limit | Demerit points | What else to know |
|---|---|---|
| 1 to 15 km/h | 0 | Still a conviction with a fine, even with no points attached |
| 16 to 29 km/h | 3 | The same points as running a red light or a stop sign |
| 30 to 49 km/h | 4 | A novice driver faces at least a 30-day suspension on conviction |
| 50 km/h or more | 6 | The court can suspend your licence for up to 30 days on a first conviction, and the charge can be laid as stunt driving instead |
On a full licence, one ordinary speeding ticket rarely threatens your licence on its own. Two or three inside two years can, which is why the total matters more than any single ticket. The guides on speeding tickets and your driving record and stunt driving go further.
How many demerit points is careless driving in Ontario?
Six. The court can also fine you $400 to $2,000, jail you for up to six months, or both, and can suspend your licence for up to two years.
Several offences bring a fine, a suspension or even jail on top of the points. The table shows the main ones for fully licensed drivers.
Stunt driving, failing to stop for police and phone tickets
| Offence | Points | What can come with them |
|---|---|---|
| Careless driving | 6 | A fine of $400 to $2,000, up to six months in jail, or both. The court can suspend your licence for up to two years, and if it does, no points are recorded. |
| Stunt driving or racing | 6 | A 30-day roadside suspension and 14-day impoundment. On conviction, a fine of $2,000 to $10,000, up to six months in jail, or both, and a suspension of at least one year for a first conviction. The points are recorded even with a court suspension. |
| Failing to stop for police | 7 | A fine of $1,000 to $10,000, up to six months in jail, or both. If the court finds you wilfully kept fleeing, the penalties rise sharply: a fine of $5,000 to $25,000, 14 days to six months in jail, and a mandatory five-year licence suspension (at least 10 years if anyone was hurt or killed), which replaces the points. |
| Handheld device, first conviction | 3 | An automatic 3-day suspension and a $615 fine if settled out of court. |
| Handheld device, second conviction within five years | 6 | A 7-day suspension and a fine of up to $2,000. |
| Handheld device, third or later conviction within five years | 6 | A 30-day suspension and a fine of up to $3,000. |
Ontario also warns that a careless or stunt driving conviction can mean a substantial jump in insurance rates, or make a driver uninsurable. See careless driving and your record and distracted driving tickets for the full picture on each.
How many demerit points until your licence is suspended in Ontario?
Fifteen on a full licence, which brings a 30-day suspension. Nine on a G1, G2, M1 or M2, which brings a 60-day suspension. Warning letters start earlier: at 6 points on a full licence and 2 on a novice licence.
- 0 to 5 pointsNo letter yet
- 6 to 8 pointsWarning letter in the mail
- 9 to 14 pointsSecond warning, and you may be called to an interview
- 15 or more30-day suspension, then your total drops to 7
- 0 or 1 pointNo letter yet
- 2 to 5 pointsWarning letter in the mail
- 6 to 8 pointsSecond warning, and you may be called to an interview
- 9 or more60-day suspension, then your total drops to 4
If you are called to an interview and skip it, or fail to show why your licence should stay, it can be suspended before you reach 15 points (9 on a novice licence). A second demerit suspension, for an offence committed within two years after the first one ended, lasts six months.
Novice drivers carry a second rule on top of the points. A conviction for breaking a graduated licensing condition, or for any offence worth 4 or more points, brings a 30-day suspension the first time, 90 days the second, and cancellation of the novice licence the third. If you hold a full licence in one class and a novice one in another, such as a full G with an M2, the full-licence limits apply.
Say you get three tickets for 20 km/h over inside two years. At 3 points each, that is 9 points: a second warning and a possible interview on a full licence, and a 60-day suspension on a G2.
Counting along these bands only works if you know your real starting number. Get your 3-year driver record to read it directly. The guide on how to check your demerit points shows where it is printed and how to read it.
How long do demerit points stay on your record in Ontario?
Two years from the date of the offence, not the date you were convicted or paid.
Ontario counts up from zero: you gain points, you do not lose them from a starting balance. They arrive only when you are convicted, but they are dated back to the offence, and the thresholds count every offence committed within any two-year period. Here is how one ticket plays out.
The offence
Say you hold a full G licence and are stopped for 35 km/h over in March. Nothing goes on your record yet. A charge on its own carries no points.
The conviction
Paying the ticket counts as a guilty plea and a conviction. So does doing nothing: let the deadline on the ticket pass without choosing an option and a conviction can be entered without a hearing. Either way, 4 points land on your record, dated to March.
Two years after the offence
The 4 points stop counting in March two years later, however long the ticket took to resolve.
After the points expire
The conviction itself can still be listed. The 3-year driver record shows convictions from the past three years, so a conviction can stay on it after its points stop counting toward your total.
That last step is why a point total of zero is not the same as a clean record. Insurers and employers read the convictions too. See how long convictions stay on your record and what counts as a clean driving record.
Do out-of-province tickets add demerit points in Ontario?
Some do. A conviction for certain offences in another Canadian province or territory, New York or Michigan adds points to your Ontario record as if the offence had happened here.
The out-of-province offences that add Ontario points are:
- Speeding
- Failing to obey a stop sign
- Failing to obey a signal light
- Failing to stop for a school bus
- Racing
- Failing to remain at or return to the scene of a collision
- Careless driving
Criminal driving offences elsewhere, such as impaired driving, dangerous driving or driving while prohibited, lead to an Ontario suspension rather than points.
Points from those convictions count toward the same total printed on your Ontario drivers abstract, so a speeding ticket from a trip to Quebec or New York can push you toward a warning letter at home.
The details, including what to do about a ticket from a road trip, are in out-of-province and US tickets on your Ontario record.
Which tickets carry no demerit points in Ontario?
Camera tickets, parking tickets, unpaid 407 tolls and speeding 15 km/h or less over the limit carry no points.
Adds demerit points on conviction
- A speeding ticket from a police officer for 16 km/h or more over
- A red light or stop sign ticket handed to you by an officer
- A handheld phone conviction on a full licence
- A seat belt ticket as the driver
- Speeding or careless driving in another province, New York or Michigan
No demerit points
- Speeding 1 to 15 km/h over, though it is still a conviction
- Red light camera tickets, which go to the vehicle owner
- Speed camera tickets, which Ontario stopped issuing in November 2025 and which never carried points
- Parking tickets
- Unpaid Highway 407 tolls
- A charge that is withdrawn or ends without a conviction
Unpaid camera, parking and toll debts can still block your licence plate renewal. The guide on camera tickets, parking tickets and 407 tolls covers each one.
How do you find out how many demerit points you have?
Get your 3-year Ontario driver record. It prints your demerit point total alongside your convictions, suspensions and reinstatements. The online licence status check and the licence history show no points at all.
3-year driver record
- Your current demerit point total
- Convictions from the past three years, with their dates
- Suspensions, reinstatements and active fine suspensions
- Licence class, status and expiry date
Driver’s licence history
- Licence renewals, replacements and class changes
- No demerit point total
- No convictions or suspensions
Online licence status check
- One status result, such as Valid or Not Valid
- No points, convictions or licence class
Anyone with your licence number can order the 3-year record, so the total you see is the same one an insurer or employer sees. Better to read it first than to hear it from them.
At 12 points on a full licence, one more 3-point ticket brings a 30-day suspension. At 6 points on a G2, the same ticket brings 60 days. Order your driving abstract online and see which band you are in now. No account, no subscription.
Frequently asked questions
What is the highest number of demerit points for one offence in Ontario?
Seven, for failing to remain at the scene of a collision or failing to stop for police. Careless driving, stunt driving and speeding 50 km/h or more over are next, at 6.
How many points is running a red light or a stop sign in Ontario?
Three, when a police officer writes the ticket and you are convicted. A red light camera ticket is different: it goes to the vehicle owner and carries no demerit points.
How many demerit points is texting and driving in Ontario?
Three on a first conviction for a fully licensed driver, plus an automatic 3-day suspension. A second or later conviction within five years is 6 points. Novice drivers get no points; instead a first conviction brings a 30-day suspension, a second 90 days, and a third cancels the novice licence.
Does a seat belt ticket carry demerit points in Ontario?
Yes, 2 points for a driver not wearing a seat belt properly. Driving with a passenger under 16 who is not buckled in, or a child not secured in the required restraint, is also 2 points.
Do I get points for every ticket from the same traffic stop?
Usually not. If you are convicted of two or more offences from the same incident and the court does not suspend your licence, only the conviction carrying the most points is recorded.
Do I get demerit points if I fight the ticket and win?
No. Points are added only on conviction, so a charge that is withdrawn or ends with a not guilty finding adds none. A lawyer or paralegal can advise on a specific charge.
Do G1 and G2 drivers use the same demerit points chart?
Mostly the same values, but the limits are lower: a warning letter at 2 points and a 60-day suspension at 9. A novice conviction worth 4 or more points is recorded as zero, and handheld device or display screen convictions carry no points for novices at all; a novice suspension applies instead.
Sources: Point values, the two-year rule, warning letters, interviews, demerit suspensions and novice point thresholds come from Ontario Regulation 339/94 (Demerit Point System) under the Highway Traffic Act. Fines and court suspensions for careless driving, speeding, stunt driving, failing to stop for police and handheld devices come from the Highway Traffic Act (sections 78.1, 128, 130, 172 and 216) and Ontario Regulation 455/07. Paying or ignoring a ticket as a conviction follows the Provincial Offences Act. Novice escalating suspensions, out-of-province points and record contents follow the Ministry of Transportation’s published guidance.