Pay or challenge a traffic fine

What you'll usually need

Tick things off as you gather them. Your ticks are saved on this phone only.

• Your driving licence
• Your vehicle's licence and registration details. Keep the registered owner's details up to date, because camera fines are sent to the registered owner
• A phone, to get camera fine messages and to photograph your ticket or receipt
• The ticket, notice or offence details when you go to pay
• The officer's name or force number, the place and the time, if you want to complain

Send this list to yourself

Steps

1. If police stop you, stay calm and ask which offence they say you committed.
2. Check the amount. Police can only take a fine at the roadside for minor offences, Levels 1 to 3 of the standard scale. The most they can take is Level 3, US$30. More serious offences go to court.
3. You don't have to pay on the spot. Police can ask you to pay, but they cannot force you. You can pay later at a police station, or say you want to go to court.
4. Always get an official receipt. Officers must give you an official Z69J receipt for every payment. Don't pay anyone who won't give you one.
5. If you think you did nothing wrong, choose court. Tell the officer you want the case to go before a magistrate.
6. If a camera caught you, the registered owner gets a phone message with a link to the offence and a video. You have 7 days to respond and then 7 more days to pay. Or you can choose to go to court.
7. Check camera fines only on the official site, paymyfines.gov.zw, the ZRP Ticketing Platform. In Harare you can also get help and pay at Harare Central, Warren Park, Avondale, Milton Park, Marlborough, Mabelreign, Mbare and Chitungwiza police stations.
8. Report an officer who demands a bribe or forces you to pay. Call the ZRP National Complaints Desk on Call 0242 703631 or WhatsApp WhatsApp 0712 800 197. You can also report to the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission through its online form.
9. For serious police misconduct, such as assault, you can complain in writing to the Zimbabwe Independent Complaints Commission (ZICC) within three years.

Good to know

• The standard scale of fines (Statutory Instrument 14A of 2023): Level 1 is US$5, Level 2 is US$15 and Level 3 is US$30. Only a court can fine you at a higher level, up to Level 14 (US$5,000). Fines are set in US dollars, and you can pay them in local currency at the official rate.
• Forcing you to pay at a roadblock is illegal: the High Court said so in Makunura v Minister of Home Affairs (2017).
• ZRP says it has not hired any agents to collect fines, in person or online. In June 2025 it warned that messages asking people to pay fines online were fake.
• Since October 2026, traffic cameras have been running at about 20 places in central Harare. Other cities may follow. They catch offences such as running red lights, driving against traffic, speeding, using a phone while driving and not wearing a seatbelt.
• In October 2025, ZRP said roadblocks must be approved by Police General Headquarters. They are meant to be 30 to 50 km apart, except during national events or emergencies. If a roadblock looks suspicious or is too close to another, report it to the National Complaints Desk.
• Police sometimes take a vehicle that is unroadworthy or has no number plates. You usually get it back once you pay the fine and fix the problem. Ask for a receipt for anything they take.