Demerit Points in Ontario: The Complete 2026 Guide
The full chart, what each offence costs you, and why G1/G2 drivers have almost zero margin for error.
Greeny Your G1 Companion
Published May 26, 2026 ยท 12 min read
Ontario's demerit point system tracks driving offences on your record. Accumulate enough and you lose your licence. The problem? Most new drivers don't know how the system actually works until they're already in trouble.
If you hold a G1 or G2 licence, the thresholds are significantly lower than for fully licensed drivers. A single speeding ticket can trigger an automatic suspension. This guide covers every offence, every point value, and exactly what happens at each stage.
What Are Demerit Points?
Demerit points are penalties the Ontario Ministry of Transportation (MTO) adds to your driving record when you're convicted of certain traffic offences under the Highway Traffic Act. They are tracked separately from fines and exist to flag repeat offenders.
The most common misconception: you do not start with 15 points and lose them. Every driver starts at zero. Points are added when you're convicted, and your licence is at risk once you accumulate enough.
Common myth
"You start with 15 demerit points and they get taken away." Wrong. You start at 0 and points are added. Fully licensed drivers face suspension at 15+. Novice G1/G2 drivers face suspension at just 9.
The Complete Ontario Demerit Point Chart
Every offence under the Highway Traffic Act that carries demerit points, grouped from most severe to least. Source: Ontario.ca and Ontario Regulation 339/94.
| Points | Offence |
|---|---|
| 7 | Failing to remain at the scene of a collision |
| Failing to stop when signalled or requested by a police officer | |
| 6 | Careless driving |
| Racing or contest on a highway | |
| Speeding 50 km/h or more over the limit | |
| Failing to stop for a school bus with lights flashing | |
| Exceeding the speed limit by 50 km/h or more in a community safety zone | |
| Hand-held device while driving (second or subsequent offence) | |
| 4 | Speeding 30 to 49 km/h over the limit |
| Following too closely (tailgating) | |
| Failing to stop at a pedestrian crossover | |
| 3 | Speeding 16 to 29 km/h over the limit |
| Hand-held device while driving (first offence) | |
| Failing to yield the right-of-way | |
| Failing to obey a stop sign, traffic signal, or traffic control sign | |
| Driving the wrong way on a divided road | |
| Improper passing | |
| Driving through or around a railway crossing barrier | |
| Failing to report a collision to police | |
| Crossing a double solid yellow line to pass (Chad's Law) | |
| 2 | Improper right or left turn |
| Failing to signal | |
| Unnecessary slow driving | |
| Backing on a highway | |
| Driver failing to wear a seat belt | |
| Failing to secure a passenger under 16 | |
| Improper opening of a vehicle door | |
| Failing to share the road | |
| Failing to lower headlight beam | |
| Crowding the driver's seat | |
| Driving on a closed highway | |
| Prohibited turns |
Worth noting
Speeding 1 to 15 km/h over the limit carries 0 demerit points (fine only). And impaired driving carries 0 demerit points because it falls under the Criminal Code, not the Highway Traffic Act. It results in a criminal record and automatic licence suspension instead.
Speeding and Demerit Points in Ontario
Speeding is the most common demerit point offence for new drivers. The points scale based on how far over the limit you were going:
| Speed Over Limit | Points |
|---|---|
| 1 to 15 km/h over | 0 |
| 16 to 29 km/h over | 3 |
| 30 to 49 km/h over | 4 |
| 50+ km/h over | 6 |
Going 50 or more over the limit is where it gets serious. That can trigger stunt driving charges: an immediate 14-day vehicle impoundment, a 30-day roadside licence suspension, fines up to $10,000, and potential jail time, all on top of the 6 demerit points.
How Many Points Before You Lose Your Licence
The consequences depend on your licence class. Novice drivers (G1 and G2) face much lower thresholds than fully licensed drivers.
| Points | Full G Licence | Novice (G1/G2) |
|---|---|---|
| 2 to 5 | Warning letter | Warning letter |
| 6 to 8 | Warning letter | May be suspended |
| 9 to 14 | Driver Improvement Interview ($50) | Suspended 60 days |
| 15+ | Suspended 30 days | Already suspended at 9 |
G1/G2 Escalating Sanctions
Separate from the point total above, novice drivers also face automatic penalties for every individual conviction that carries demerit points. This is the part most people miss:
- 1st offence: 30-day licence suspension
- 2nd offence: 90-day licence suspension
- 3rd offence: Licence cancelled. You are removed from graduated licensing entirely and have to start over from scratch.
This means a single speeding ticket (even one that only carries 3 demerit points) triggers a 30-day suspension for a G1 or G2 driver. A second ticket at any time during your novice period makes it 90 days. A third cancels your licence entirely. The demerit point total doesn't matter for these sanctions. Each individual conviction counts. If you're preparing for your G1 written test, our free G1 practice test covers these rules.
Real-World Scenarios for G2 Drivers
Here is what actually happens when a novice driver gets caught. These are not hypothetical. Instructors see students deal with these situations regularly.
Scenario
School Zone Speeding
You're a G2 driver doing 52 in a 30 zone near a school.
One more conviction and your next suspension is 90 days.
Scenario
Highway Speeding
You're a G2 driver caught doing 85 in a 50 zone.
At 4 points you're nearly halfway to the novice suspension threshold of 9.
Scenario
Texting While Driving
You're a G2 driver caught texting at a red light.
A second distracted driving offence jumps to 6 demerit points, up to $2,000 fine, and a 7-day suspension.
Do Demerit Points Affect Insurance?
Not directly. This is one of the most misunderstood parts of the system.
Demerit points are tracked by the MTO as a licence management tool. Insurance companies do not see your demerit point total. What they see are the convictions on your driving abstract.
When you pay a traffic ticket, you are pleading guilty. That creates a conviction on your record that stays visible for 3 years. That conviction is what your insurer uses to adjust your premiums. Even a single minor conviction (like speeding 16 to 29 over) can raise your premiums by 10% to 25%. Major convictions like careless driving or stunt driving can lead to policy cancellation. Completing an MTO-approved BDE course gets you an insurance discount that helps offset this.
The key distinction: demerit points expire after 2 years but convictions stay on your abstract for 3 years. So even after your points disappear, insurance companies can still see the conviction for another full year.
How Long Do Demerit Points Last?
Demerit points stay on your record for 2 years from the date of the offence (not the date you were convicted or paid the ticket). After 2 years they are automatically removed. No action required.
Convictions stay on your driving abstract for 3 years. So your timeline after a ticket looks like this:
- Day 1: Offence date. Points added to your MTO record, conviction recorded on your abstract.
- Year 2: Demerit points removed automatically.
- Year 3: Conviction drops off your driving abstract. Insurance impact ends at next renewal.
What Happens After a Suspension
Your licence does not reinstate itself automatically after a demerit point suspension. Here is what you need to do:
- Pay the reinstatement fee. It costs $281 to get your licence back after a demerit point suspension.
- Pass a re-examination if required. The MTO may require you to retake your vision, written, or road test. This is at their discretion. If you need to brush up, private lessons are the fastest way to get road-ready again.
- Understand that your points are reduced, not cleared. After reinstatement, your total drops to 7 (fully licensed) or 4 (novice). Those remaining points still expire 2 years from the original offence dates.
- Watch the 6-month window. If you accumulate enough points to trigger another suspension within 6 months of reinstatement, you lose your licence again.
How to Check Your Demerit Points
You can check your current demerit point total through ServiceOntario:
The uncertified record is enough for personal use. The certified version is only needed for court or legal purposes.
Do Demerit Points Transfer Between Provinces?
Yes. Under the Canadian Driver License Compact (CDLC), traffic convictions from most other provinces are reported back to Ontario and added to your driving record. If you get a speeding ticket in Alberta, it shows up on your Ontario abstract with the corresponding demerit points.
The main exceptions are Quebec and some territories, which do not fully participate in the compact. A ticket in Quebec will generally not transfer demerit points to your Ontario record (though the conviction itself may still appear).
If you drive across the border, New York and Michigan have reciprocal agreements with Ontario. A traffic conviction in either state can result in demerit points on your Ontario record. Other U.S. states are not covered.
This matters for G1 and G2 drivers especially. The escalating sanctions system applies regardless of where the offence occurred. A speeding ticket picked up in Manitoba triggers the same 30-day novice suspension as one in Mississauga.
What Changed in 2025 and 2026
Chad's Law (Bill 79)
Makes it illegal to cross a double solid yellow line to pass another vehicle. Carries a $400 fine and 3 demerit points on conviction. Named after a Northern Ontario resident killed by a vehicle crossing the centre line to pass.
Regulation 281/25: No double punishment
If a conviction already results in a licence suspension, demerit points are no longer also recorded for that offence. Exception: distracted driving and racing/stunt driving offences still receive both the suspension and the demerit points.
National handheld device ban (July 2025)
A federal ban on all handheld devices while driving took effect across Canada. Ontario's existing distracted driving laws already covered this, but the nationwide framework harmonized enforcement.
Build the Habits That Keep Points Off Your Record
A BDE certificate gets you an insurance discount and lets you take your G2 road test 4 months earlier. Greenhorn's course is MTO-approved and runs online + in-car across the GTA.
