An avis de contravention is the French notice of a traffic offence, usually recorded by a speed or red-light camera, sometimes by a police officer's electronic ticket. It comes from the ANTAI (Agence nationale de traitement automatisé des infractions) and is sent to the holder of the car's registration. For a hire car, the rental company receives it, names you as the driver within its own 45 days, and the notice then comes to you — often weeks after the trip, sometimes with the company's handling fee.
The periods on the notice
- Reduced fine (amende minorée): within 15 days of the date the notice was sent, 30 days if you pay online. There is no reduction for parking offences.
- Standard fine (amende forfaitaire): within 45 days (60 days paid online).
- Contest it or name the driver: within the same 45 days, on antai.gouv.fr or with the form on the notice. Paying ends the case — you can no longer contest. To dispute the facts you usually pay a deposit (consignation) equal to the fine.
The periods run from the date of sending printed on the notice; if you live outside France, the law adds one month. Enter that date on this page and the site counts the last day.
If you do nothing: the amende majorée
An unpaid fine becomes an amende forfaitaire majorée, a higher fixed amount (€375 instead of €135 for a fourth-class offence). You can still file a réclamation with the prosecutor's officer — within three months when the notice came by registered letter, otherwise 30 days. After that the Treasury collects it like a debt.
Foreign cars, UK drivers, parking
For cars registered in the EU, France gets the keeper's address through the EU exchange of vehicle data. Since Brexit the exchange with the UK is limited, yet French fines still reach UK addresses — do not treat a notice as invalid for that reason. Parking in a paid street space is not a fine but a town's forfait post-stationnement (FPS), challenged by a review request to the town within one month.
Check before you pay
Fake ANTAI e-mails and text messages are common. Pay only on amendes.gouv.fr with the reference on the paper notice, never through a link in a message. A toll without barriers is a different letter: see free-flow tolls. A lawyer for fines and administrative penalties can check the notice and prepare a contestation in French within the period.
Prepared by Legal Help Tool. Last updated . General information, not legal advice.
