Red-light fines in Italy
One of the few violations where the system's photograph and the notice describe the same instant — here is what each of them has to contain.
Full table
Red light
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| Offence | Minimum | Maximum | Points | Suspension | Consequences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Driving on through a red signal | € 167 | € 665 | 6 points | — | Penalty and points· Grade II |
- In force as of
- 1 January 2021
- Source
- CdS art. 146 co. 3
Paying it
How it is paid
Payable
Within 5 days
- In force as of
- 1 January 2021
- Source
- CdS art. 202
What we found
The amounts are bounded by a decree that is due
Change pending
Art. 195 co. 3 CdS; L. 197/2022 art. 1 co. 497, as amended by D.L. 31 December 2025 no. 200 art. 9 co. 1
In brief
One article, one corridor, and a camera that saw one instant
Driving on when the signal or an officer requires you to stop is charged under art. 146 co. 3. The corridor is from € 167 to € 665, the payable figure is € 167, and it costs 6 points on an Italian licence. It is one of the heavier point values in the ordinary conduct catalogue, and heavier than most drivers assume for what feels like a single moment of hesitation.
A repeat matters here more than the amount does. Where the same driver breaches co. 3 again inside the window art. 146 co. 3-bis sets, that comma adds an accessory suspension of the licence — and the moment an accessory suspension is in play, the further reduction for paying early is gone, because suspension is one of the two exclusions art. 202 co. 1 names.
Note what art. 146 does NOT distinguish. There is no separate, lighter charge for entering on amber and clearing the junction late, and no separate heavier one for a junction with a camera. The article describes the conduct; the enforcement method changes only how the notice reaches you.
- from € 167 to € 665Statutory corridor
- € 167Payable
- 6 pointsPoints
How it works
What a t-red notice has to contain
Red-light enforcement in Italy is largely automatic, through the systems generally called «t-red». Because the offence is detected by an approved device rather than contested at the roadside, it falls inside the art. 201 co. 1-bis cases where immediate contestation is not required, and the notice is served afterwards by post.
That produces the sequence a foreign driver finds strange: a drive in spring, a letter in autumn, and a deadline that runs from the letter rather than from the drive. The date on the notice you need is the date of service or of roadside contestation — «data di notificazione» or «data di contestazione» — and only one of the two applies to your case.
Where the vehicle was hired or is registered to someone else, the notice goes to the party the register names, and art. 196 makes that party jointly liable for the sum. If they identify you as the driver, the points follow you; if they do not, art. 126-bis co. 2 provides a separate penalty for failing to supply the driver's details without a documented reason.
In detail
Paying it, and the window you actually have
The payable figure is the corridor's floor, € 167, and the window is 60 days from service. Inside the first 5 days the further 30% applies — on a first offence under this article, where no accessory suspension has been ordered, that reduction is available, which is not true of many of the other rows on this site.
Payment from outside Italy is the part most often asked about, and the honest answer is that the route depends on which body issued the notice. A comune police force, the Polizia Stradale and the Carabinieri do not all use the same collection channel. The notice itself names the payment references — the notice number, the enforcement body and the account or pagoPA reference — and those are the only correct instructions for that specific notice.
What we can tell you generally: for non-cash payments, timeliness is measured on the date the administration's account is credited, with 2 days of latitude beyond the deadline for that credit to arrive. If you are sending money internationally, start early enough that an intermediary bank cannot cost you the window.
What happens if you simply do not pay
CdS art. 203 co. 3 · art. 206
How an Italian fine is enforced against a foreign resident is outside our sources
Directive (EU) 2015/413 and its Italian implementing legislation — not sourced here
Draft in progress: the long-form text of this page is still being written.
Next step
Start from the number on your notice
The calculator shows the art. 345 reduction step by step, then the band, then the payable figure and the deadlines.