Fines
Fines—penalty infringement notices—are issued where we discover non-compliant or unlicensed work. If you've received a fine, make sure you pay on time, or decide on one of the alternative options if you don't agree. This will help you avoid further penalties which could affect your licence status.
Pay your fine
Send the full payment within 28 days after the date of issue of the Infringement Notice.
What if you can't pay by the due date?
You can make part payments, but only if your fine is more than $200.
To start the process, indicate on your notice that you want to pay in instalments. Send your notice and the first instalment of $60 (minimum fee) to us within 28 days after the date of issue.
The State Penalties Enforcement Registry (SPER), the authority responsible for enforcing unpaid Infringement Notices and court ordered monetary fines, will then contact you to set up your payment plan.
If you don't pay
We will notify SPER. They will enforce the fine and charge you an additional fee. For more information, please refer to SPER's website
Go to court (Magistrates Court)
If you choose a court hearing, we will withdraw the infringement notice. However, if the court finds you guilty, the amount you pay could be significantly more than your original fine.
For example:
- the maximum penalty for an offence might be $35,937, even though the infringement fine you received was $2,875
- the maximum penalty for an offence might be $179,685 for a company , even though the infringement notice you received was $2,875
You are responsible for getting your own legal advice. If you need any more information, visit the SPER website.
How does a fine affect my licence?
If you don't pay on time or follow your SPER payment plan, your licence could be cancelled or suspended. Additionally, any new licence application may be rejected.
Public record
Your public record on our online licence search will show details of your offences and demerit points. We remove this information after 5 years, and for demerit points, 3 years or when they stop having effect.
The fines and related demerit points will not show up automatically when the fine is issued.
The fines and related demerit points will only show up either after:
- the fine is paid in part or full
- the fine is unpaid the debt is registered with SPER
- the day you plead guilty in Court
- the day you are found guilty in Court.
Example
You breach the legislation in April 2020. A complaint is made to the QBCC in January of 2021. We determine that you have breached the legislation after carefully reviewing the complaint and all the related evidence.
Issue of infringement notice
The offence date is April 2020. You are issued an infringement on the 1st of March 2021 for that offence and are provided with 30 days to pay the infringement in part, full or elect for a court hearing.
Payment
You accept responsibility for the infringement and make a part payment towards the infringement on the 23rd of March 2021.
Record of infringement
The record of the infringement will stay on the public record until 22nd of March 2026 (5 years from when the part payment is made).
If the offence is a demerit point offence the demerit points will stay on the public record until 22nd of March 2024 (3 years from when the part payment is made).