The Czech Points System: What Happens When You Break the Rules

Knowing and following the road rules of the country you’re driving in is a given, but it also means understanding what counts as an offence. Each country has its own system: different speed limits, alcohol tolerance, or ways of recording driver violations.

And while you should always drive safely and responsibly, sometimes you might “forget yourself”, speed a little, or glance at your phone. When police catch you, you could receive more than just a fine, something called a Point.

How Does the Points System Work?

The Czech Republic uses a points system to monitor violations of road traffic rules. Each offence has a clearly defined penalty, depending on how serious it is. You start with zero points, and they’re added to your record if you commit an offence. If several violations occur at the same time, only the most serious one is counted. 

You have a limit of twelve points. Once you reach this threshold, you temporarily lose your driving licence. If that happens, your licence is suspended for one year. After that, you can apply to get it back, but only after you pass a competence test, undergo a medical check, and complete a traffic-psychological evaluation.

Usually, these steps are available only in Czech, so you’ll likely need an interpreter. After your one-year suspension and successful retesting, you start again from zero.

Levels of Severity

Currently, offences are classified into three levels:

• Two points apply to less severe violations, such as minor speeding, driving without required professional qualifications, failing to stop before a pedestrian crossing, or parking in spaces reserved for disabled persons.
• Four points are assigned for offences like driving without a valid licence, leaving the scene of an accident, driving with a suspended licence, significant speeding (20 km/h over the limit in towns, 30 km/h outside them), using your phone while driving, or failing to yield. If you’re a foreign driver, driving in Czechia during a ban from your home country also falls into this category.
• Six points are imposed for the most serious violations, such as driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs above 0.3‰, refusing a test for alcohol or drugs, causing a serious accident, dangerous behaviour on motorways, or ignoring railway crossings. These can also mean steep fines (tens of thousands of crowns) and a driving ban from 6 to 36 months.

How to Get Your Points Back Down

There are two ways to get your points deducted from your record:

• If you have under eleven points (your licence hasn’t been suspended) and you do not commit any violation for twelve months, four points are automatically deducted from your record.
• You may also attend a special course designed for point deduction. After a successful completion, four points are deducted. The course takes place at an accredited driving centre (called a polygon in Czech). You’ll get a certificate that must be submitted to the authority within one month.

However, if you have committed a 6-point offence in the past year, you are not eligible to take the point deduction course.

Foreign Driving Licences

These rules apply to holders of Czech and foreign driving licences alike. The only difference is that foreign licences are not physically withdrawn under this system. Instead, they lose validity for driving within the Czech Republic for twelve months, and the authorities in your home country are informed.

If you lose your driving rights here and keep driving anyway, the Czech Police can confiscate your foreign licence too. Surprising? Maybe, but yes, it’s legally possible.

How to Check Your Points

You can check your current points balance easily in several ways:

• Online via the Citizen Portal (Czech digital identity), using your bank identity, eGovernment mobile key, or NIA ID. More information on that here. On the portal, you can view your driving licence details and the status of your points.
• You may also request a points statement in person at any CZECHPOINT office or at any driving license registry office. However, such printed statements often come with a small administrative fee.

If you don’t have a Czech digital identity, visiting a CzechPOINT office is the easiest option for you as a foreigner.

Stay Smart Behind the Wheel

As you can see, it really isn’t worth testing the system. Apart from a hefty fine, breaking the rules can mean multiple problems and even the loss of your right to drive here. So, watch your speedometer, keep your phone down, and read that message once you’re parked.