Can’t pay your fines in New Zealand, payment arrangements and what happens

Last updated 20 June 2026. This is general information, not legal advice.

A fine you cannot afford has a way of growing in the dark. Left alone it gathers extra costs, then enforcement action, and what started as a manageable amount becomes deductions from your pay or a clamp on your car. The good news is that the system is genuinely set up to let people pay fines off slowly, and to give relief where paying would cause real hardship, but only if you engage with it. Almost every bad outcome comes from ignoring a fine rather than from the fine itself.

This guide explains how to arrange to pay a fine you cannot manage in one go, what to do if you genuinely cannot pay at all, what happens if you do nothing, and the one thing you will not be sent to prison for. It is general information, not legal advice.

Infringement fines and court fines

It helps to know which kind of fine you have, because the path is slightly different.

An infringement fine is the kind you get for things like parking, speeding by camera, or an expired warrant, issued by a council, the police or another agency. You have a window, usually 28 days, to pay it or to challenge it. If you do nothing, it does not simply vanish. After a reminder, it is referred to the Ministry of Justice, a court cost of $55 is added, and it becomes enforceable as a court fine.

A court fine is one imposed by a court, including infringement fines that have been referred there. These are collected by the Ministry of Justice, which has a dedicated collections operation and a range of enforcement powers. Whichever you have, the same basic advice applies. Deal with it early, while you still have the most options, rather than after it has escalated.

The most important step

The single most useful thing you can do is contact the Ministry of Justice before enforcement starts and tell them you cannot pay it all at once. You can call them free on 0800 4 FINES, that is 0800 434 637, or contact them online.

This matters because the Ministry has wide power to give you more time and to set up a payment plan, and it is far more willing to work with someone who comes forward than someone it has to chase. Making contact and arranging payment also generally stops enforcement action proceeding while the arrangement is sorted out. People often avoid the call because they are embarrassed or afraid, but the staff deal with this every day, the conversation is practical, and it is the step that keeps you in control of how the fine is paid.

A payment arrangement you can afford

The standard solution is a payment arrangement, sometimes called a time to pay arrangement, where instead of paying the whole fine now you pay it off in regular instalments you can manage. The amount is meant to be realistic against your actual situation, not a figure that leaves you unable to pay rent or feed your family.

To set this up, you fill in a Statement of Means, which sets out your income and your essential outgoings so the Ministry can see what you can genuinely afford. Be honest and complete, because a realistic figure is one you can actually keep up, and an arrangement you stick to keeps the enforcement powers off the table. If your circumstances change and you can no longer manage the instalments, contact them again and ask to vary the arrangement rather than simply missing payments.

If you genuinely cannot pay

Sometimes even small instalments are beyond reach. There are still options, and they go further than just spreading the payments.

You can ask for the matter to go before the court and put your financial position to a judge or community magistrate, again using a Statement of Means. The court has real discretion here. It can give you more time, it can in some cases reduce or remit part of a fine where paying it would cause serious hardship, and it can allow the fine to be paid off through community work instead of money. These are not guaranteed, and reparation owed to a victim is treated more strictly than an ordinary fine, but the door is genuinely open for someone in real difficulty who asks rather than disappears.

If your fines are part of a wider debt problem, a free financial mentor can help you deal with the whole picture, including the fines, and prioritise what to pay. The MoneyTalks helpline on 0800 345 123 can connect you with one at no cost.

What happens if you ignore them

If you neither pay a fine nor arrange to, the Ministry of Justice has a series of enforcement powers, and it will use them. Any of the following can happen.

• Deductions from your income. An attachment order can require your employer, Work and Income, ACC or your pension provider to take money straight out of your wages, benefit or other payments to pay the fine.
• Your car clamped. Your vehicle can be clamped, and released only once you pay in full or make an arrangement.
• Property seized and sold. The court can seize your car or other property, which is normally sold if you do not arrange payment within a short period.
• Stopped at the border. The Ministry shares information with Customs, so unpaid fines of $1,000 or more, or any reparation, can flag when your passport is scanned, and you can be stopped at the airport, where you may have to pay before you travel.
• A driver licence consequence can follow for some traffic-related fines, alongside the steps above.

On top of the original fine, an enforcement fee, commonly $133, is added once the court takes action, so ignoring a fine reliably makes it bigger. Every one of these steps can be avoided by making contact and arranging to pay, which is why the call is worth making before any of this starts.

Can you go to prison for fines

This is the fear that keeps people awake, so it is worth being clear. You will not be sent to prison for an unpaid parking ticket, speeding fine or other infringement. These are civil debts to the Crown, enforced through the financial and property measures above, not through jail.

For serious court-imposed fines, the law does keep imprisonment as a last resort, but it sits at the very end of a long road. The court must first have tried or considered other enforcement, and substitutes such as community work are used well before anything like a custodial sentence, which only a judge can order and only where someone has the means to pay but wilfully refuses, rather than genuinely cannot. For an ordinary person who cannot afford their fines and engages with the process, prison is not a realistic outcome. The realistic outcomes are a payment arrangement, community work, or relief for hardship, which is exactly why engaging is so much better than hiding.

The takeaway

A fine you cannot pay is a manageable problem if you face it, and a growing one if you do not. Contact the Ministry of Justice early, set up a payment arrangement at an amount you can genuinely afford using a Statement of Means, and if even that is beyond you, ask the court for more time, a reduction for hardship, or community work instead. Ignoring fines only adds fees and triggers deductions, clamping and seizure, while you will not be jailed for an unpaid ticket. The whole system rewards the person who picks up the phone, so make the call before the fine makes the decisions for you.

Related guides

• A debt collector is chasing me in New Zealand, my rights
• How to get out of a parking ticket in New Zealand

Frequently asked questions

What happens if I cannot pay my fine in New Zealand

Contact the Ministry of Justice on 0800 4 FINES and arrange to pay it off over time in instalments you can afford. If even that is beyond you, you can ask the court to consider your circumstances and give you more time, reduce the fine for hardship, or let you do community work instead. The key is to engage early, because ignoring a fine leads to enforcement and extra fees.

Can I pay a fine in instalments

Yes. You can set up a payment arrangement, sometimes called a time to pay arrangement, to pay a fine off in regular instalments. You fill in a Statement of Means showing your income and outgoings so the amount is realistic. Sticking to the arrangement keeps the enforcement powers off the table, and you can ask to vary it if your circumstances change.

Can a fine be written off or reduced

In some cases. If paying would cause serious hardship, the court can give you more time, reduce or remit part of a fine, or allow it to be paid off through community work. It is decided on your individual circumstances using a Statement of Means, and it is not guaranteed. Reparation owed to a victim is treated more strictly and is harder to have reduced than an ordinary fine.

Can they take money from my wages or benefit for a fine

Yes, if you do not pay or arrange to pay. An attachment order can require your employer, Work and Income, ACC or your pension provider to deduct money from your wages, benefit or other payments to pay the fine. Setting up your own payment arrangement first lets you control the amount instead of having it imposed.

Can I be stopped at the airport for unpaid fines

Yes. The Ministry of Justice shares information with Customs, so unpaid fines of $1,000 or more, or any reparation, can raise an alert when your passport is scanned, and you can be stopped at the border, where you may need to pay before you are allowed to travel. Clearing your fines or having an arrangement in place well before you fly avoids this.

Can I go to prison for unpaid fines

Not for an infringement like a parking or speeding ticket. For serious court-imposed fines, imprisonment exists only as a last resort, after other enforcement and substitutes such as community work have been tried or considered, and generally only where someone can pay but wilfully refuses. For a person who genuinely cannot pay and engages with the process, prison is not a realistic outcome.

Does an unpaid fine cost more

Yes. An unpaid infringement that is referred to the Ministry of Justice has a $55 court cost added, and once the court takes enforcement action a further fee, commonly $133, is added on top. Ignoring a fine reliably makes it bigger, which is another reason to arrange payment before it escalates.

Have you sorted out fines you could not pay in New Zealand, through a payment arrangement or community work? Tell us how it went in the comments below.