The On-the-Spot Penalty Receipt and Its Delivery
When an administrative offence case is considered at the scene, the offender is handed a copy of the penalty receipt or of the decision on the spot; a refusal to accept is noted in the document, after which the copy is deemed delivered. Where the fine is paid at the scene, a receipt of the prescribed form is issued, which constitutes a strict financial accountability document.
If the case is not considered on the spot, information about the decision is sent by short text message or another technical means where contact data exist in the ministry system, and at the same time the copy is published on the official website of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. If the fine is not paid within 10 calendar days, the copy is mailed to the registration address; acceptance by an adult family member living with the addressee counts as delivery, and a marked refusal counts as delivery as well. Where postal delivery fails, the copy is published on the website and deemed delivered on the 30th day after publication; the same rules apply to electronic penalty receipts.
The 20 Percent Discount and How It Is Lost
If the offender pays the fine within 10 calendar days of receiving the information about the decision or receipt by text message and/or through the official website of the ministry, the amount of the fine is reduced by 20 percent. Failing to pay within that window forfeits the right to this discount.
One point deserves special emphasis: the discount does not extend to the execution of a decision adopted in connection with a complaint — that is, a fine that survives the review of your own complaint can no longer be paid at a discount. And no other percentage exists under this rule — no additional reduction of any size is added by the law. The choice — pay immediately or appeal — therefore has to be calculated precisely inside this 10-calendar-day window.
The 30-Day Payment Window and Its Suspension
The fine must be paid within 30 days of delivery of the copy of the decision or, for an on-the-spot fine, of delivery of the penalty receipt. Filing an appeal or a protest suspends the running of this period until delivery of the notice that the complaint or protest has been left without consideration, except in individual cases provided for by the Code. If the last day of the period falls on a weekend or a public holiday, the period ends on the next working day.
Where the on-scene fine is not paid, the case proceeds and the decision is then enforced in the manner provided by the Code. For a separate category of offences the Code sets an additional 30-day window, running after the expiry of the first one, for paying the fine and the surcharge together; missing it results in the fine being replaced with a suspension of the driving right.
Appeal to the Superior Organ and to the Court
A decision imposing a fine is appealed to a superior organ or official, whose decision is then challenged in court. The complaint is filed with the organ that issued the decision and is forwarded within 3 days to the organ competent to examine it; a complaint addressed to the Ministry of Internal Affairs may be submitted directly or remotely, and one addressed to a district court is filed directly with that court.
The appeal period is 10 days from delivery of the decision and can be restored where missed for a valid reason. No state duty is payable. The appellate court checks the admissibility of the complaint within 10 days of its receipt; it does not re-examine the facts, and the burden of proving the unlawfulness or the groundlessness of the decision or receipt rests on the appellant.
How a Lawyer Approaches a Penalty-Receipt Appeal
We verify the formal requirements applicable to the receipt, the lawfulness and the date of delivery, the correctness of the addressee, the classification of the offence and the amount of the fine. In drafting the complaint we explain why the decision is unlawful or unproven, and where necessary we also move to restore a missed deadline. In parallel we run the financial side of the analysis: whether the complaint succeeds or not, the 20 percent discount window and the 30-day payment period have to be planned together, not sequentially.
Frequently Asked Questions
Below are the questions we hear most often about on-the-spot fines.
When is a fine reduced by 20 percent?
When it is paid within 10 calendar days of receiving the information by text message or through the ministry website; the discount is forfeited if the window is missed.
Does the discount survive a complaint?
No — the discount does not extend to the execution of a decision adopted in connection with a complaint.
How long do I have to pay?
Within 30 days of delivery of the copy of the decision or of the penalty receipt; an appeal generally suspends the running of this period.
When must the complaint be filed?
Within 10 days of delivery of the decision; the period may be restored for a valid reason.
How We Help on Legal.ge
The lawyers of Legal.ge help you make the right call between paying with the discount and appealing, and then carry the appeal through: we check the lawfulness of the delivery, calculate every deadline, draft the complaint to the superior organ and to the court, and represent you throughout the process on Legal.ge.