What if I cannot pay a court fine by the due date?

Any fine imposed by a court is payable within 28 days from (and including) the day on which the order was made [Fines Enforcement and Debt Recovery Act 2017 (SA) s 11(a)].

Where a victim of crime levy has been imposed on a person, the levy is payable within 28 days from (and including) the day on which the person was sentenced for the offence [s 11(b)].

Court fines are called pecuniary sums.

If you are unable to pay a court fine in full within the 28 day period you may, after paying, or agreeing to pay, the prescribed fee ($24.90 as at 1 July 2026) enter into an arrangement with the Chief Recovery Officer of the Fines Enforcement and Recovery Unit to pay the court fine by instalments over a period of no more than 12 months [Fines Enforcement and Debt Recovery Act 2017 (SA) s 15(1)(a); Fines Enforcement and Debt Recovery (Fees) Notice 2026 Schedule 1].

If you are unable to pay the prescribed fee due to financial hardship, the Chief Recovery Officer may determine that you are exempt from paying the fee [see Fines Enforcement and Debt Recovery Regulations 2018 (SA) reg 24].

Alternatively, you can enter into an arrangement to pay the court fine which includes:

See Fines Enforcement and Debt Recovery Act 2017 (SA) s 15(5).

If you do not have, and are not likely to have, the means to pay the court fine without you or your dependants suffering hardship, then the Chief Recovery Officer may agree for you to:

If you are an undischarged bankrupt or you have previously been the subject of an enforcement action, the Fines Enforcement and Recovery Officer may refuse to enter into an arrangement or may require you to provide security or obtain guarantees [s 15(8)].

If you fail to pay the court fine or fail to enter into an agreement with the Chief Recovery Officer within the allowed 28 day period, you will receive a reminder notice [s 18(1)].

If you fail to pay the court fine within 14 days of that reminder notice, additional fees will be added to the court fine which can significantly increase the amount owing [s 18(3a). A fee of $129* will be added to the total amount owing [see Fines Enforcement and Debt Recovery Regulations 2018 (SA) reg 11(1)].

If you fail to pay the court fine within a further 28 days after that 14 day period, an additional fee of $236* will be added to the total amount owing [see Fines Enforcement and Debt Recovery Regulations 2018 (SA) reg 11(2)]. This is in addition to the $129 fee that would already have been added to the court fine.

*Fees current as at 1 July 2026.

How are interstate unpaid court fines dealt with?

For information on interstate unpaid court fines, see Interstate court fines.