The route finderDrivers and businesses
Contesting a French fine: which procedure for the notice you received
It all depends on the notice received. Against a fine notice (avis de contravention), you have 45 days to file a request for exemption or name the driver, online on the ANTAI website (Code of Criminal Procedure, article 529-2; Highway Code, article L121-6). Against an increased fixed fine, the route is a claim (réclamation). Paid street parking follows another circuit: the prior administrative appeal, within 1 month.
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Give the type of notice, its sending date and who was driving.
Example questions
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Which step for the notice you received?
Choose the document received, its sending date for a fixed-fine notice or its notification date for a parking charge, and the driver’s situation: the route finder gives the procedure, the authority to address, any deposit and the prudent deadline. The example is a speed camera notice sent on 2 September 2026, when someone else was driving.
Fictional example · fine route finder
Naming the driver, by 16 October 2026 at the latest.
Days left: to be calculated
Naming the driver
To send to the department named on the notice, online on the ANTAI website, by the online form or a registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt and the form attached to the notice.
article 529-2 of the Code of Criminal Procedure: 45 daysDeposit
No deposit: naming the driver or the supporting document is enough.
Next step
After 45 days without payment or request, the fine is increased automatically.
Notice sent, date printed on the document
Prudent deadline: article 529-2 of the Code of Criminal Procedure: 45 days
To go further: French licence points: your recovery date.
Time-limit origin: notification for the FPS; printed sending date for the fixed-fine notice. Paying the fixed fine ends the prosecution (Code of Criminal Procedure, article 529): it can no longer be contested afterwards.
Which procedure and which time limit for each notice?
Four documents open four different circuits: the fine notice is contested within 45 days, the increased fine by a claim, the parking charge by a prior appeal to the commune.
| Notice received | Step | Time limit | Deposit | Court if disputed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fine notice after a speed camera | Request for exemption or naming the driver | 45 days after sending | Yes to contest on the merits: the amount of the fine | Police court |
| Fine notice from an electronic report by an officer | Reasoned request for exemption | 45 days after sending | No | Police court |
| Increased fixed fine | Dedicated increased-fine guide | Check the dedicated guide | Depends on the grounds of the claim | Police court |
| Parking charge (forfait de post-stationnement) | Compulsory prior administrative appeal | 1 month after notification | No | Paid parking court |
The deposit is not a payment and removes no points (Code of Criminal Procedure, article 529-10); it is paid back if the case is dropped or you are acquitted (article 530-1).
Sources: CPP 529-2 et s. · C. route L121-6 · CGCT L2333-87
How do you name the driver or contest online?
This guide prepares a response to an initial notice. For an increased notice, use the dedicated increased-fine claim guide in French; from abroad, use the foreign-driver guide.
On the ANTAI website, the "name or contest online" route avoids the registered letter. For a speed camera, the request must otherwise go by registered letter with the form attached to the notice, together with proof of theft or sale, the driver’s signed naming or the deposit (Code of Criminal Procedure, article 529-10).
The naming gives the identity, address and licence reference of the person who was driving. A new notice is then issued in that person’s name, with any loss of points. According to ANTAI, a company head who was driving a company vehicle personally must name themselves before paying or contesting.
Sources: CPP 529-2 et s. · ANTAI
Must you pay or leave a deposit before contesting?
Do not pay if you contest: paying the fixed fine ends the prosecution (Code of Criminal Procedure, article 529), and it can no longer be contested. To contest a speed camera offence on the merits, however, you pay a deposit equal to the amount of the fine.
If the public prosecutor’s officer prosecutes and the police court convicts you, the fine imposed cannot be lower than the fixed amount (article 530-1). If the case is dropped or you are acquitted, the deposit is paid back to you.
Sources: CPP 529-2 et s. · C. pén. 131-13
How do you contest a parking charge?
The parking charge (forfait de post-stationnement) is not a criminal fine: it is contested by a compulsory prior administrative appeal, within the month following notification of the notice, by registered letter or by the electronic means shown on the notice, with a statement of the facts, a copy of the notice and of the registration certificate (General Code of Local Authorities, article R2333-120-13).
Without an answer within 1 month, or after a refusal, the paid parking court (Tribunal du stationnement payant) can be seized within a month of the decision, 2 months overseas, according to service-public.fr. The appeal does not stop the 3-month payment period, after which the charge is increased.
Sources: CGCT L2333-87 · Service-public F34440
How many notices does ANTAI send each year?
According to the ANTAI 2024 activity report, the agency sent 14.1 million initial fine notices from automated checks and 16.3 million parking charge notices.
- Initial fine notices from automated checks
- 14.1 million2024 · ANTAI, 2024 activity report
- Fine notices from electronic reports by officers
- 12.6 million2024 · ANTAI, 2024 activity report
- Parking charge payment notices
- 16.3 million2024 · ANTAI, 2024 activity report
- Share of contests and namings made online, that is 4.9 million
- 75.7%2024 · ANTAI, 2024 activity report
What does article 529-2 of the Code of Criminal Procedure say?
Article 529-2 is the text that opens the 45 days to pay or contest the fine notice, before the automatic increase.
Dans le délai prévu par l’article précédent, le contrevenant doit s’acquitter du montant de l’amende forfaitaire, à moins qu’il ne formule dans le même délai une requête tendant à son exonération auprès du service indiqué dans l’avis de contravention. Dans les cas prévus par les articles 529-10 et 529-12, cette requête doit être accompagnée de l’un des documents exigés par cet article. Cette requête est transmise au ministère public.
A défaut de paiement ou d’une requête présentée dans le délai de quarante-cinq jours, l’amende forfaitaire est majorée de plein droit et recouvrée au profit du Trésor public en vertu d’un titre rendu exécutoire par le ministère public.
In English, briefly (our summary, not an official translation): Within the time limit of the previous article, the offender must pay the fixed fine, unless within the same time limit they file a request for exemption with the department named on the notice; in the cases of articles 529-10 and 529-12, the request must come with one of the documents those articles require, and it is passed to the public prosecutor. Without payment or a request within forty-five days, the fixed fine is automatically increased and collected for the Treasury. The time limit of the previous article, article 529-1, is 45 days from the offence or, if the notice is sent afterwards, 45 days from its sending.
What has changed for contesting a French fine?
Three recent or scheduled changes affect naming the driver, parking and the articles themselves.
The paid parking disputes committee becomes the paid parking court (Tribunal du stationnement payant) (General Code of Local Authorities, article L2333-87, decree no. 2024-733 of 5 July 2024).
Source: CGCT L2333-87
Naming by the company covers every offence notice, and failing to name the driver is punished by a class 5 fine when the offence is a délit, against class 4 otherwise (Highway Code, article L121-6, law no. 2025-622 of 9 July 2025).
Source: C. route L121-6
Articles 529-2, 530 and following of the Code of Criminal Procedure will be repealed on this date by ordinance no. 2025-1091 of 19 November 2025, as part of the code’s new drafting. Until then, they apply.
Source: CPP 529-2 et s.
Which questions come up once the contest is sent?
What does a company risk if it does not name the driver?
Its legal representative commits a class 4 offence, or class 5 if the offence is a délit (Highway Code, article L121-6). According to ANTAI, an additional fixed fine, which can be increased, is then added to the initial fine.
Can you contest a fine already paid?
No. Paying the fixed fine ends the prosecution (Code of Criminal Procedure, article 529) and, for an offence carrying points, amounts to admitting it. To keep the option of contesting, do not pay and, for a speed camera, pay the deposit.
How long does the answer to a contest take?
The code sets no time limit. On the request, the public prosecutor’s officer can drop the case, refer it to the police court or declare the claim inadmissible if it gives no reasons or lacks the notice (Code of Criminal Procedure, article 530-1).
Can you contest a report drawn up by an officer?
Yes, by a reasoned request for exemption within 45 days, online on the ANTAI website or in writing. Except for a speed camera offence, no deposit is required; state the facts precisely and attach the evidence, such as a ticket, a photo or a witness statement.
Which texts is contesting a French fine based on?
- Code of Criminal Procedure, articles 529, 529-1, 529-2, 529-10, 530 and 530-1 (fixed fine)Légifrance, in French
- Highway Code, articles L121-3, L121-6 and L223-1 (holder’s liability, naming by the company, points)Légifrance, in French
- Criminal Code, article 131-13 (amounts of minor offences)Légifrance, in French
- General Code of Local Authorities, articles L2333-87 and R2333-120-13 (parking charge, prior appeal)Légifrance, in French
- Naming or contesting (Désignation ou contestation)National agency for automated offence processing (ANTAI), antai.gouv.fr, in French
- Parking charge for unpaid parking (fiche F34440)Service-public.fr, in French
- ANTAI 2024 activity reportNational agency for automated offence processing (ANTAI), in French
- The rules on naming the driver for businessesNational agency for automated offence processing (ANTAI), antai.gouv.fr, in French
Texts cited last checked: 24 September 2026