Speeding Penalties in Singapore

Speeding in a vehicle is highly dangerous, and sticking to the limits is the safe and responsible thing to do. It will also help you to avoid prosecution, keep your record clean, and save money. Sadly, speeding remains a common offence in Singapore: the Traffic Police recorded 253,550 speeding violations in 2025, up 25.9% on the year before. Anyone can fall foul of speeding laws, so make sure you know the law to avoid speeding offences, and improve your road safety.

Speeding belongs to a category of offence known as “strict liability”. This means that as long as you are caught driving the vehicle over the speed limit, you will have committed the offence of speeding even if you didn’t intend to, or didn’t know what the limit was.

You will get demerit points added to your driving licence if you commit a speeding offence in Singapore. There’s the possibility of having to pay a fine or appear in court, and for more serious cases (or if the offence wasn’t your first) you could lose your licence.

However, in some situations you may be dealt with more leniently, depending on the circumstances. You may be charged with a lesser offence. For example, you may only be charged with speeding, rather than the additional offence of dangerous driving.

The Singapore Road Traffic Act governs road traffic offences. Section 63 applies to speeding, and states that it’s an offence for someone to drive a motor vehicle on a road at a speed above that road’s specified limit.

The speed limit depends on the type of road, the likely road users, and the area it is in (e.g. is it near a school or in a busy residential area?). Generally, speed limits are set between 30 km/h and 70 km/h.

What changed in 2025 and 2026

• Who counts as a “repeat offender” for speeding (from 12 June 2025). Under the Road Traffic (Miscellaneous Amendments) Act 2025, a past speeding record makes you a repeat offender for dangerous or careless driving only if you have at least two earlier convictions for speeding by more than 40 km/h, with at least two of them within the previous five years. The court can still treat any past speeding, including tickets you paid, as an aggravating factor.
• Higher speeding penalties from 1 January 2026. The Ministry of Home Affairs announced on 28 May 2025 that composition fines and demerit points for speeding would go up, and the higher penalties took effect on 1 January 2026. For a car, the lowest band (up to 20 km/h over the limit) went from $150 and 4 points to $200 and 6 points. The full table is set out below.
• Extra penalties in School Zones, Silver Zones and Friendly Streets. Speeding and certain other offences that endanger pedestrians in these zones now attract two additional demerit points and an extra $100 on the composition fine, capped at a total of $500.
• Early Payment Scheme from 1 January 2026. For locally registered vehicles, composition fines of $50 or more are reduced by $30 if you pay within 14 days of the date of the Notice of Traffic Offence. The 14 days are not extended.
• Tighter demerit points system from 1 January 2027 (announced, not yet in force). The Traffic Police announced on 31 July 2026 that the suspension threshold for experienced drivers will fall from 24 to 18 points, the first suspension will lengthen from 12 weeks to four months, and the Safe Driving Course is being withdrawn. We explain this further below.

Singapore Speed Limits

Speed limits on Singapore’s roads are set out in section 2 of the Road Traffic (Restriction of Speed on Roads) Notification. Limits for specific types of roads are laid out in schedules 1 to 6.

For instance, on some stretches of the West Coast Highway the limit is 30km/h, whereas for sections of the Admiralty Road it is 60km/h. It is 90km/h on sections of the Ayer Rajah Expressway. For expressways and tunnels you can expect limits of between 80km/h and 90km/h.

If the road is near a school, all motor vehicles should travel no more than 40km/h during school hours. This reduced limit is shown on electronic warning signs near the school which say, “school zone, 40km/h in effect when lights flash”.

In a silver zone (a specially designed area where elderly pedestrians are likely to be crossing the road) the limit is 30 or 40km/h.

Where you see no speed limits or warning signs, the limit is 50km/h.

Further speed limit restrictions

Different speed limits apply for different types and weights of vehicle. According to the Land Transport Authority, all cars, buses, coaches, light commercial vehicles (maximum of 15 passengers or 3.5 tonnes in weight) and motorbikes should travel at a maximum of 50km/h on normal roads.

The limit is 60km/h on expressways for buses and coaches, and 60-70km/h for light commercial vehicles. If you are driving a car or a motorbike on an expressway, you can drive up to 70 to 90km/h.

Tunnels have their own speed limits; for cars and motorbikes it is usually between 50 and 80km/h. For light commercial vehicles it is 50-70km/h, and for buses and coaches it is just 50-60km/h.

The fines given for exceeding the speed limit will vary, according to whether you are driving a heavy or light vehicle.

Speeding Penalties

If you are caught speeding, you will face one or more of the following penalties:

• Fines
• Demerit points on your record
• Prosecution
• Losing your licence or having it suspended

Fines

Fines, known as composition fines, are where you pay money to settle the offence and avoid being prosecuted in court. The size of the fine depends on how fast you were going, and in what vehicle.

You can check and pay composition fines through the Singapore Police Force’s e-services, or at an AXS machine.

It will be treated as a minor traffic offence if you only exceeded the limit by 40km/h or less. A composition fine will usually be offered, with no visit to court necessary. It will say on your ticket notice “offer of composition”. If you pay the fine, you will not be prosecuted in court for that offence.

Since 1 January 2026, composition fines for speeding range from $200 to $400 for light vehicles (such as cars, motorcycles and light goods vans), and from $250 to $500 for heavy vehicles, depending on how far over the limit you were.

Demerit Points

If you speed, you will also be given demerit points under the Driver Improvement Points System (DIPS). How fast you drove dictates the number of points. If you have committed a speeding offence, you’ll be notified of the number of points you’ll get and your demerit status. The current penalties, as published by the Singapore Police Force, are:

Before 1 January 2026, speeding points ranged from 4 (up to 20 km/h over) to 24 (more than 60 km/h over), and composition fines were $150 to $300 for light vehicles and $200 to $400 for heavy vehicles. If your offence was committed before that date, the old figures apply to it.

If the offence was committed in a School Zone, Silver Zone or Friendly Street, add two demerit points and $100 to the composition fine (up to a maximum fine of $500).

These points can be removed from your record.

Removing demerit points from your record

Points can be removed if no more have been accumulated within 12 months of the last offence.

Until recently, you could also sign up for a Safe Driving Course (SDC) and have 4 demerit points removed from your record upon successful completion of the course. The Traffic Police stopped issuing new SDC offer letters on 1 August 2026, and the course will be discontinued from 1 January 2027. If you have already received an offer letter, you must complete the course by 31 December 2026.

The eligibility rules for the SDC, for those who still hold an offer, were:

• Hold a valid driving licence,
• Not have an existing suspension record, though you may have between 8 and 23 points,
• Only have 4 to 11 points if you have an existing suspension record.

You could only sign up for 2 SDCs in any 10-year period.

You couldn’t complete an SDC if you’d already done one in the past year.

You did not qualify for an SDC if you were a probationary driver, or liable to have your licence suspended, or you had been disqualified by the court.

As well as demerit points, you must pay a fine, or face prosecution, depending on how much you were exceeding the limit by.

Suspension or revocation of a driving licence

The Deputy Commissioner of Police has the power to suspend or revoke someone’s licence under section 45 of the RTA, if they think it’s not in the public interest for that person to have a licence, or they aren’t competent to drive a vehicle. The points system was created in order to identify these kinds of drivers. Your status and previous record dictates whether you will be liable to have your licence suspended or revoked.

New drivers or those on probation

Probationary drivers, or those who haven’t had their licence for one year yet, will have it revoked if they get 13 or more points within that first year. The licence is then invalid, and the driver must apply to get it back and retake both their theory and practical tests. From 1 January 2027, the revocation threshold for probationary drivers falls to 12 points.

With the higher speeding points now in force, a probationary driver who is caught speeding by more than 30 km/h (12 points) is already one offence away from revocation, and one who speeds by more than 40 km/h (18 points) loses the licence outright.

Prosecution for serious offences

It is a serious offence to drive more than 40km/h over the speed limit. Drivers who do this will not have the option to pay fines. They must instead appear in court.

On conviction for speeding under section 63(4) of the Road Traffic Act, a first-time offender faces a fine of up to $1,000, imprisonment of up to three months, or both. The court may also disqualify you from driving. Repeat offenders face heavier penalties.

People who repeatedly drive this far over the speed limit may receive three times the punishment that the court would have imposed for a first-time offender, up to maximum of 10 years in prison.

Where speeding is accompanied by weaving, racing or driving that puts others at risk, the prosecution may instead bring a charge of dangerous driving, which carries far heavier penalties. See our article on dangerous or reckless driving in Singapore.

Non-probationary drivers

A driver who gets 24 or more points within 24 months, and hasn’t been suspended before, will face a first suspension of 12 weeks.

If the driver has a previous suspension record, they will face further suspension if they get 12 or more points in 12 consecutive months.

How long the suspension is for will depend on how many previous suspensions the driver has had:

• 24 weeks if this is their 2nd suspension
• 1 year if this is their 3rd suspension
• 2 years if this is their 4th suspension
• 3 years if they’ve had 5 or more suspensions.

The licence card itself must be handed to police during the suspension. For 1st or 2nd suspensions, the driver will get the card back at the end of the suspension. But a suspension of a year or more leads to the licence being revoked, so drivers being suspended for the 3rd time or more will not get their licence back. They must take all their tests again in order to resume driving with a licence.

Changes to suspension from 1 January 2027

Under the changes announced by the Traffic Police on 31 July 2026, which take effect on 1 January 2027:

• Experienced (non-probationary) drivers will be suspended at 18 points within 24 months, instead of 24
• A first suspension will last four months, instead of 12 weeks
• Second and later suspensions will also be longer
• Speeding by more than 50 km/h, and reckless or dangerous driving, will carry 18 points instead of 24, which still triggers a suspension on its own
• As a one-time adjustment, up to 6 points will be deducted on 1 January 2027 from the points held by experienced drivers on 31 December 2026 (up to 1 point for probationary drivers)

Reducing the suspension period

For drivers on their 1st or 2nd suspension, a successfully completed DIPS retraining course can currently reduce their suspension period.

For a first suspension, completing the retraining course currently brings the 12-week suspension down to 4 weeks, or 1 week where the offences were not accident-related. For 2nd suspensions, there is a 12-week balance period following retraining.

From 1 January 2027, the retraining course will only be available for a first suspension, and will reduce it from four months to six weeks. It will no longer shorten a second or later suspension.

How will a speeding offence affect your future?

Speeding offences aren’t registered under the Registration of Criminals Act, so you won’t get a criminal record because of them. However, if you’re convicted of causing death by dangerous or reckless driving whilst speeding, then that will appear on your criminal record. It can only be removed by completing 5 years of crime-free behaviour.

Demerit points are not permanent and if you drive with no further offences for one year, they are removed from your record.

As ordinary speeding offences aren’t put on your criminal record, you don’t need to tell your prospective employer of the offence when applying for jobs. But, if it was a serious offence which meant you were convicted in court, then you will have to declare that.

Speeding often comes alongside other offences. Our guide to common traffic offences in Singapore covers red-light running, mobile phone use and the rest, and if alcohol was involved, see our article on drink driving.

Common questions

How much is a speeding fine in Singapore in 2026? For a car or motorcycle, the composition fine is $200 (up to 20 km/h over), $300 (more than 20 and up to 30 km/h over) or $400 (more than 30 and up to 40 km/h over). Heavy vehicles pay $250, $400 or $500. Above 40 km/h over the limit, you will be charged in court instead.

How many demerit points do I get for speeding? Since 1 January 2026, 6 points for up to 20 km/h over, 8 for more than 20 and up to 30, 12 for more than 30 and up to 40, 18 for more than 40 and up to 50, and 24 for more than 50. Add two points in a School Zone, Silver Zone or Friendly Street.

Will I go to court for speeding? Yes, if you exceeded the limit by more than 40 km/h. You may also be charged in court if you do not pay the composition fine, if the speeding formed part of more serious driving, or if the Traffic Police decide not to offer composition.

Can I appeal a speeding ticket? You can submit an appeal to the Traffic Police, but it should be grounded in facts, such as the vehicle having been wrongly identified or someone else having been driving. Speed cameras can be wrong: in February 2026 the Traffic Police voided 1,523 tickets issued between 30 October and 8 December 2025 by three cameras on the KPE that had been set to the wrong speed limit. If you are being prosecuted in court, speak to a criminal defence lawyer before you plead.

Can I still remove demerit points with the Safe Driving Course? Only if you already received an offer letter before 1 August 2026, and you complete the course by 31 December 2026. The course is discontinued from 1 January 2027.

Remember that speeding is a serious and potentially life-threatening offence. You can seriously impact your daily life and future opportunities if you accumulate too many points, or lose your licence.