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| Our team is currently reviewing applications within 50 days |
We can only review fines issued by City of Melbourne.
We cannot review fines that have been paid, placed on a payment arrangement, registered with Fines Victoria or referred to Melbourne Magistrates’ Court.
You can apply only once for internal review of a fine.
Step 1. Check you have grounds for review
The law (Infringements Act 2006 External link) provides just five grounds for the review of a fine. If the reason you are asking for a review does not meet the criteria of one of the grounds below, your review will not be successful.
- Contrary to law: you believe that no offence occurred.
- Exceptional circumstances: you can show that unforeseen circumstances occurred that were outside your control, like a medical emergency or vehicle breakdown, and you have supporting evidence such as emergency hospital documentation, tow truck or mechanic’s invoices.
- Mistake of identity: you can show that we issued the fine to the wrong person or vehicle.
- Special circumstances: this is a defined term under law and specific grounds for review if you were experiencing serious issues like an addiction to drugs or alcohol, a mental illness or were homeless. You will need to show a link between your special circumstances and the offending behaviour. Before you apply, find out more about special circumstances.
- Person unaware: you can show that you only became aware of the fine in the last 14 days because we served the fine by post and you were overseas, changed your address or have evidence of mail theft.
If you do not have grounds for review, you have other options to deal with your fine.
Step 2. Check you are eligible to apply
You must be the person named on the fine to apply for review. Someone else can apply on your behalf if they have your written authority.
For parking fines, you must be either the registered owner of the vehicle or have been nominated by the owner.
The registered owner can nominate the driver responsible for the parking fine. The driver can then apply for review after the fine is reissued in their name.
For fines issued to a company (or company-owned vehicle), you must be the company director or authorised to act on behalf of the company and state this in your application.
Step 3. Before you apply for review
We place your fine on hold while we review it. Legislation allows us up to 90 days to complete a review.
Don’t pay the fine until you receive our decision. We can’t review paid fines.
We consider all available information including evidence collected by the issuing officer, circumstances and supporting documents provided by you or third parties, and any requirements under law.
When we reach a decision, we notify you of the review outcome in writing.
The possible outcomes include:
- withdrawing the fine and taking no further action
- replacing the fine with an official warning
- referring the matter to the Court
- confirming the fine.
If the fine is confirmed, you have several options to deal with your infringement.
If you need legal assistance, help finding a local community legal centre or further advice about your options in dealing with a fine, you can contact Victoria Legal Aid External link.
Step 4. Apply for review online
You must have grounds for review, be eligible to apply and have your supporting documents ready.
Parking fines
Request a review of your parking fine using our guided online form.
The form should take 5 to 20 minutes to complete. You will need to upload any supporting documents with your application.
Before considering what action to take, view the details of your fine and any photos taken.
Request a review of your parking fine External link
Litter, tobacco, public liquor consumption or local laws fines
Request a review of your litter, tobacco, liquor, food, road works or local laws fine using our guided online form.
The form should take 5 to 10 minutes to complete. You will need to upload any supporting documents with your application.
Request a review of your litter, tobacco or local laws fine External link
Domestic animal fines
Request a review of your domestic animal fine using our guided online form.
The form should take 5 to 10 minutes to complete. You will need to upload any supporting documents with your application.
The Lord Mayor and councillors cannot respond to correspondence about fines.
All applications must be in writing and directed to the Infringement Review Team.
The most convenient way to apply for review is via our online form.
Download a form
If you can't use our online form for fines and need an accessible document, you can complete and return one of the following forms:
Post us a letter
Your letter must include:
- your name and postal address (we’ll write back to you at this address)
- the infringement issue number
- your vehicle registration (for parking fines)
- an explanation of your grounds for review
- any relevant supporting documents.
Address your letter to:
Infringement Review Team
City of Melbourne
GPO Box 780
Melbourne 3001
Allow enough time for your letter to reach us. We may not accept applications received after the due date on your fine.
Other options to deal with your fine
If you don’t act before the due date on your fine, it will continue through the infringements process External link. You should act promptly to avoid further costs and enforcement action.
If you do not have grounds for review, or have already received a review outcome, your options to deal with your fine are:
- pay your fine to finalise the matter
- apply for a payment plan or extension
- elect to have the matter heard at court
- nominate another person as the driver responsible for a parking fine.
If you are eligible, you may also be able to undertake activities through a work and development permit with Fines Victoria External link.
Providing us with supporting documents
Please be aware that providing false or misleading documents is a separate offence under the Infringements Act 2006 and may lead to prosecution or referral to Victoria Police.
If your vehicle broke down, you’ll need to supply a:
- letter from a roadside assistance provider (showing the car registration, date, time and location of where it was repaired) or
mechanic’s invoice (detailing the work performed, date and time) or - receipt/invoice for parts that were purchased on the day if you fixed the problem yourself or
- towing invoice if the vehicle was towed (showing the car registration, date, time and location it was towed from).
This must be on official letterhead and include the company’s ABN and contact information. We’ll contact the provider to check the details.
We consider a medical emergency to be a severe injury or illness posing an immediate risk to a person’s life or long-term health.
If an emergency occurred, you’ll need to supply an official letter on letterhead from the hospital or treating doctor that confirms:
- you were involved in a medical emergency at the time the fine was issued, and
- how this prevented you from parking legally.
The medical facility may have a Patient Liaison Team that may be able to assist you with a letter that confirms what happened on the day. A medical certificate isn’t sufficient. If you were driving your passenger to the emergency department, we’ll consider a certificate of attendance from that department.
We consider that drivers should make allowances for common delays like doctors or appointments running behind schedule.
Sometimes, verifiable and unforeseen circumstances outside of your control can cause your vehicle to be illegally parked. For example, if your appointment led to an unexpected immediate hospital admission, or you required urgent testing like an MRI scan.
If an unexpected admission or urgent medical delay happened to you, you’ll need to supply an official letter on letterhead from the hospital or treating doctor, confirming:
- that the medical circumstances were unexpected, and
- how this prevented you from returning to your car.
The medical facility may have a Patient Liaison Team that may be able to assist you with a letter that confirms what happened on the day. A medical certificate isn’t sufficient.
Read our web page about supporting documents for special circumstances.
Privacy and collection statement
The City of Melbourne is committed to protecting your privacy.
When you contact us to request an infringement review we collect your personal information, including your name, postal address and vehicle registration (for parking fines). We require these details in order to fulfil our internal review responsibilities set out in the infringements legislation.
We also ask you to provide your telephone number and email address to expedite cases where we need to contact you to clarify the information provided or request further information.
Supporting documents are often required, and some of these may contain health or sensitive information. We securely store these documents in our system to refer to them only when reviewing your infringement/s.
Unless we need to verify your supporting documents, or are required or authorised by law, we will not disclose the information you provide to any other third parties.
Please contact the Infringement Review Team on 03 9658 9658 if you wish to access the personal information held by City of Melbourne. You can also read our full Privacy Policy.
