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Traffic points in Qatar: how they add up, licence suspension and getting your licence back
Some traffic violations add black points to your driving record as well as a fine. Reach 14 and your licence is suspended for three months, and each repeat comes sooner and lasts longer. How the points work, how to check them, how they drop off, and what to do if you are suspended.
Last reviewed: 13 October 2026
- First suspension
- 14 points: licence suspended for 3 months
- Repeat suspensions
- 12 points: 6 months, 10: 9 months, 8: 1 year, 6 (fifth time): licence withdrawn
- Points drop off
- After 12 months with no new violation, counted from your last one (check your record)
- Paying the fine
- Clears the money, not the points
Qatar's Traffic Law No. 19 of 2007 runs a black points system alongside traffic fines. Serious violations add points to the driver's record, such as running a red light or driving the wrong way, and the points add up. Reach 14 points and your licence is suspended for three months. Each later suspension starts at a lower total and lasts longer, until a fifth one means losing the licence altogether. Points are not the same as fines: paying a fine clears the money, not the points. This guide covers which violations carry points, how to keep track of yours in Metrash (the Ministry of Interior's app), how points drop off, and what to do if your licence is suspended. For checking, paying and objecting to the fines themselves, see the traffic fines guide.
Before you start
- The current Metrash app, activated with your QID (it replaced Metrash2 in March 2025)
- Your driving licence details and the plate number of every car registered in your name
- A simple note (paper or phone) of each violation with points: the date and how many points it carried
- If a violation looks wrong: photos, receipts or other evidence of where you or the car really were
- If you drive for work (company car, delivery, driver job): the contact in HR or fleet who handles traffic matters
- If your licence is suspended: a plan for getting to work and school without driving (metro, buses, taxis, lifts)
Step by step
Understand how points build up
Every driver starts at zero points. Some violations add points to your record on top of the fine, and the points add up. When the total reaches 14 for the first time, your licence is suspended for three months. The insurer QIC describes this as reaching 14 points within a year. Most minor violations carry no points at all, so it is a handful of serious ones that push people over the limit.
Know which violations carry the most points
Running a red light, or ignoring a traffic police officer's signal, carries 7 points. That is half your limit in one go. Driving the wrong way carries 6 points, and so does driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, which also goes to court. Published lists give speeding 1 to 4 points, depending on how far over the limit you were (from 30 km/h over up to 60 km/h over). Blocking a junction, not moving your car after a minor accident, parking in a disabled bay and other parking offences carry 3 points each. Two red lights in a year already make 14.
Check your points in Metrash
Open Metrash, go to Traffic and open your violations. Tap each violation to see its details. The points for that violation are shown on the violation record. We could not confirm a separate screen that shows your total, so add up the points yourself from the violations of the last 12 months. You can also look up violations on the MOI website (portal.moi.gov.qa) with your QID. If you are close to 14, slow down and take extra care until older points drop off.
Read guide: Metrash: registering and using Qatar's Ministry of Interior app →Work out when your points drop off
QIC and DohaGuides both say points stay on your record until 12 months have passed without any new violation. The clock starts again from your most recent violation. So if you get points in January and more in October, all of them stay until the following October, provided nothing new happens before then. Qatar Living warns that points do not simply fall off one by one on a rolling 12-month basis. We could not confirm this rule on an official MOI page, so if your total is close to 14, ask the Traffic Department.
Challenge a wrong violation before you pay
Points come with the violation, not with the payment. Paying a fine does not remove its points, and once you pay you can no longer object. If a violation with points is not yours, for example the wrong plate or a time when your car was elsewhere, use the objection service in Metrash straight away. Do it within days, because there is a time limit. The traffic fines guide explains how objections work and how to pay.
Read guide: Traffic fines in Qatar: check, pay, object, and avoid the travel ban →If you reach the limit, stop driving
When your points reach the limit, MOI's Traffic Department suspends your licence for the set period. Check your licence status in Metrash and follow any instructions you are given. You may be asked to hand in your licence at a traffic department. We could not confirm how the notice reaches you, so if you are near the limit, check Metrash regularly. From the start of the suspension, do not drive at all, not even for a short trip. The suspension covers every type of vehicle on that licence.
Never drive while suspended
Driving while your licence is suspended is a separate violation. Published lists give it a QAR 3,000 fine and 3 more points, and police can take further action. Your car insurance may not cover an accident while you are driving without a valid licence, which could leave you paying for all the damage yourself. If a lift would mean you drive 'just this once', take a taxi instead.
Plan the suspension period
Three months without driving is manageable with a plan. The Doha Metro, Karwa buses, taxis and ride-hailing apps cover most daily trips. If your job needs a licence, such as a driver, delivery rider or sales role with a company car, tell your employer early. Ask whether you can do other duties for now. If the car is in your name, keep its registration and insurance valid. Someone else can drive it if they hold a valid licence for that vehicle.
Read guide: Taxis and ride-hailing in Qatar: Karwa, Uber and other licensed apps →Get your licence back
When the suspension ends, check in Metrash that your licence shows as valid before you drive again. If you handed in your licence, collect it from the traffic department as instructed. Qatar Living says points can be cleared when a licence is suspended under the points system, so you start counting again. The next suspension comes sooner, though: at 12 points for 6 months, then 10 points for 9 months, then 8 points for a year. If your licence expired while it was suspended, renew it before driving.
Read guide: Renew your Qatar driving licence, or replace a lost or damaged one →Know what a fifth time means
If you reach 6 points after four earlier suspensions, your licence is withdrawn completely. It is not suspended any more. Gulf Times and DohaGuides describe a minimum wait of one year. After that, you must meet all the conditions for a new licence again and pass the tests, which usually means going back through a driving school. By then you have been suspended four times, so take the warning signs seriously long before this point.
Read guide: Get a Qatar driving licence →Keep your record clean with cameras in mind
Most violations in Qatar are caught by cameras and radars, not at a roadside stop, so you often hear about them later by SMS and in Metrash. Since September 2023, cameras have also caught drivers using a mobile phone or not wearing a seatbelt, with photos shown in Metrash. Published lists put those at QAR 500 with no points, but they still go on your record and count towards the travel ban if you leave them unpaid. Check Metrash every month so a run of points never surprises you.
What it costs
| Running a red light (published lists) | QAR 6,000 and 7 points |
| Driving the wrong way (published lists) | QAR 6,000 and 6 points |
| Driving while your licence is suspended (published lists) | QAR 3,000 and 3 points |
| Not moving your car after a minor accident with no injuries | QAR 1,000 and 3 points |
Official fees at the time of review. Fees change, so confirm before paying.
Common mistakes
- Thinking that paying a fine wipes its points. It clears the money only.
- Paying a violation you believe is wrong, then trying to object. Once paid, you cannot object.
- Not counting your points after a red light. One red light is 7 of your 14 points.
- Assuming points fall off one by one after a year. Any new violation restarts the 12-month clock for all of them.
- Driving 'just once' while suspended, which adds a QAR 3,000 fine, 3 more points and possible insurance problems.
- Forgetting that the next limit is lower. After a first suspension, 12 points is enough for a second one.
- Letting points build up on a company car without checking Metrash, then finding out when the licence is suspended.
Questions people ask
Does paying the fine remove the points?
No. The fine and the points are separate. Paying clears the money you owe (and stops the fine leading to a travel ban or prosecution), but the points stay on your record until they drop off or a suspension clears them.
How long do black points stay on my licence?
QIC and DohaGuides say points are cleared after 12 months with no new violation, counted from your most recent violation. A new violation with points restarts the clock. If you are close to 14, confirm your position with the Traffic Department, because we could not find the rule on an MOI page.
How can I see how many points I have?
Open Metrash, go to Traffic and look at your violations. Each violation's details show its points. Add up the points from the last 12 months. You can also check violations on the MOI website with your QID. If the numbers are unclear, a traffic department office can tell you your total.
Do mobile phone and seatbelt camera fines give points?
Published fine lists (DohaGuides, Marhaba) show QAR 500 for each with no points. They are still recorded against you and must be paid, and an unpaid fine stops you leaving Qatar. Check the details of your own violation in Metrash, because that is what counts.
What happens when I reach 14 points?
Your licence is suspended for three months the first time. You must not drive during that period, and you may be asked to hand in your licence at a traffic department. Later suspensions start at lower totals (12, then 10, then 8) and last longer.
Someone else was driving my car when the camera caught it. Who gets the points?
Camera violations are linked to the car, so they usually appear on the registered owner's record first. Metrash's 'Other Vehicle Violations' option lets someone pay a violation linked to another person's QID, but paying does not move points. If the points should go to another driver, talk to the Traffic Department quickly, before you pay. We could not confirm how transfers are handled.
Does renewing my licence or getting a new one clear my points?
No. Renewing your licence does not clear points; only the 12-month clean period or a suspension does. After a full withdrawal (the fifth time), you have to wait at least a year and pass the tests again before you get a new licence.
Official sources
- Qatar Living: traffic fines in Qatar, violations, costs and the points table (2026) ↗
- QIC: traffic violations in Qatar and how points expire ↗
- DohaGuides: Qatar traffic violation fines and points ↗
- Gulf Times: road safety in Qatar, provisions and penalties ↗
- Gulf Times: radars to detect mobile use and no seatbelt (2023) ↗
Always check the official source before acting. QatarSteps is independent and not a government website.