A Portuguese traffic fine starts with an auto de contraordenação: a report of an offence by the police (PSP, GNR or a town's municipal police) or by a speed camera. The case is handled by the ANSR (Autoridade Nacional de Segurança Rodoviária), the national road-safety authority. You receive the notice on the spot or by post — for a hire car, after the rental company has given your details.
The 15 business days
- Pay the minimum of the fine within 15 business days of the notification (online on the ANSR's website or with the Multibanco reference on the notice). For a minor offence (leve) that closes the case.
- For a serious or very serious offence (grave, muito grave) paying does not close everything: the case goes on to decide the driving ban (inibição de conduzir), and you can still argue about the seriousness and the ban.
- Send a defence (defesa) within the period the notice gives — usually the same 15 business days — if you think the fine is wrong or someone else was driving.
Enter the day you received the notice on this page and the site counts the last day.
After the 15 days
You can still pay until the ANSR decides, but costs are added (at least €52.50). A fine of €210 or more can be paid in instalments — at least €50 each, over up to 12 months. An unpaid final fine is collected by enforcement, like a tax debt (execução fiscal).
Parking and tolls
Parking fines are often issued by the town hall or its parking company (in Lisbon, EMEL) — read who the sender is and the period on the ticket. An unpaid toll on an electronic motorway is a different letter: see a Portuguese toll fine. Pay only through the official channels on the notice, never through a link in a message. A lawyer for speeding fines can prepare a defence in Portuguese within the period.
Prepared by Legal Help Tool. Last updated . General information, not legal advice.
