California Restitution Fines Under Penal Code 1202.4: Amounts and Enforcement

Every criminal conviction in California carries a mandatory state fine under Penal Code 1202.4, starting at $150 for a misdemeanor and $300 for a felony, on top of any separate order to repay a victim’s actual losses.¹ The fine goes to the state. The victim payment goes to the person harmed. Both are imposed at sentencing, and both can follow you long after jail, probation, or parole has ended.

What the State Restitution Fine Is

The fine under Penal Code 1202.4(b) is a payment to California’s Restitution Fund, which the California Victim Compensation Board uses to help crime victims and their families with losses like medical bills and lost income.² It applies whether or not anyone was directly harmed by your offense. A victimless crime still triggers it. Think of it as a debt to the state rather than compensation to a specific person.

California eliminated many criminal justice administrative fees in 2020 and 2021, but the restitution fine survived those reforms. It is still mandatory on every conviction.

How Much the Fine Will Be

The statutory range depends on the offense level:

Misdemeanor: $150 minimum, $1,000 maximum.
Felony: $300 minimum, $10,000 maximum.

The judge picks an amount within that range based on the seriousness of the offense.¹ For felonies, the statute offers an optional formula: the $300 minimum, multiplied by the number of years of imprisonment, multiplied by the number of felony counts. Four years on two felony counts, for example, produces a calculated fine of $2,400. Judges don’t have to use the formula, but many do.

There is no equivalent formula for misdemeanors. Most misdemeanor fines land at or near the $150 floor unless the circumstances push the judge higher. On multiple counts, the court can impose a separate fine on each.

The Companion Fine That Doubles If You Violate

Whenever the court imposes the state restitution fine, it must impose a second fine in the exact same amount at the same time. Which one depends on your sentence:

On probation, Penal Code 1202.44 adds a probation revocation restitution fine equal to the 1202.4(b) fine. It is suspended unless probation is revoked.³
On a prison sentence with parole or post-release community supervision, Penal Code 1202.45 adds a parole revocation restitution fine in the same amount, also suspended unless supervision is revoked.⁴

Finish probation or parole cleanly and the companion fine disappears. Get revoked and it activates, meaning you owe double the original fine. Judges cannot waive it without compelling and extraordinary reasons stated on the record.³

Direct Restitution to the Victim

Separate from the state fine, Penal Code 1202.4(f) requires the court to order full restitution to any victim who suffered an economic loss from your criminal conduct. The goal is to make the victim financially whole, and the court cannot consider your ability to pay when setting the amount.⁵

Compensable losses include replacement or repair of property, medical and dental care, mental health counseling, lost wages and profits, relocation expenses when the victim needs to move for safety, residential security upgrades in domestic violence and violent felony cases, vehicle or home modifications for a permanently disabled victim, and reasonable attorney’s fees and collection costs.¹ For certain sex offenses against minors, the court can also order restitution for noneconomic losses like psychological harm. Outside those specific offenses, victim restitution is limited to documented economic losses.

The prosecutor or victim typically presents bills, receipts, or estimates. You have the right to a hearing to contest the amount. If the full extent of the loss isn’t known at sentencing, the court keeps jurisdiction to set or modify the amount later under Penal Code 1202.46.⁶ A victim who discovers additional medical costs months after sentencing can come back and ask for more.

Interest at 10% Per Year

Victim restitution accrues interest at 10% per year from either the date of loss or the date of sentencing, whichever the court selects.¹ On a $15,000 restitution order, that adds $1,500 every year the balance goes unpaid. For anyone serving a long sentence who cannot make payments while incarcerated, the balance grows steadily in the background.

Can You Get the Fine Reduced?

A judge can only waive or reduce the state restitution fine upon finding compelling and extraordinary reasons and stating them on the record. The statute explicitly says that inability to pay is not a compelling and extraordinary reason to eliminate the fine.¹ As a practical matter, the fine goes in nearly every case. Financial hardship may convince a judge to set the fine at the statutory minimum rather than higher, but it almost never produces a full waiver.

If you ask for a hearing on the amount, the court looks at current income, bank accounts, future earning potential, employment history, and existing obligations like child support. A finding that you can only afford the minimum results in a fine at the floor and a payment schedule.

The Dueñas Argument

In 2019, a California Court of Appeal held in People v. Dueñas that due process requires a hearing on the defendant’s ability to pay before certain assessments are imposed, and that execution of the restitution fine must be stayed unless the prosecution proves the defendant can actually pay it.⁷ Other appellate courts have reached different conclusions, and the California Supreme Court has not issued a final ruling resolving the split. Defense attorneys still raise Dueñas regularly at sentencing. If ability to pay is a concern in your case, it is worth discussing with counsel.

What Happens If You Don’t Pay

Restitution obligations don’t quietly expire. California has several tools for collecting, and victims have their own enforcement rights.

Under Penal Code 1214, a victim restitution order is treated as a money judgment, which gives the victim the same collection tools as any civil creditor: wage garnishment, bank levies, access to financial records, and liens on real property through a recorded abstract of judgment.⁸ A recorded abstract attaches to your real estate, so the debt has to be paid before you can sell or refinance.

The federal Treasury Offset Program matches people who owe delinquent state debts with federal payments like tax refunds, and withholds the refund to pay the debt.⁹ California runs its own interagency intercept program through the Franchise Tax Board that can capture state tax refunds and lottery winnings for the same purpose. Unpaid restitution can cost you both state and federal refunds every year until the balance is cleared.

If you fall behind on a payment schedule, the court can refer the balance to a collections agency or the county’s revenue recovery department, and additional administrative costs may apply.

Bankruptcy Will Not Erase It

Filing bankruptcy does not wipe out criminal restitution. Federal law excepts restitution orders from discharge under both Chapter 7 and Chapter 13.¹⁰ Fines and penalties payable to a government unit are similarly protected. A California State Auditor report confirms this directly: restitution is not dischargeable in bankruptcy.⁵

Expungement Will Not Erase It Either

California now prevents courts from denying an expungement petition under Penal Code 1203.4 solely because restitution remains unpaid.¹¹ An unfulfilled restitution order cannot be used to find that you failed to meet probation conditions. That’s a meaningful change for anyone who has completed every other requirement but still carries a balance. The debt itself, though, survives expungement. It stays enforceable as a judgment regardless of whether the underlying conviction is dismissed.

1
California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1202.4
2
California Victim Compensation Board. Adult Restitution Fines Guide
3
California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1202.44
4
California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1202.45
5
California State Auditor. 2025-117 Victim Restitution
6
California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1202.46
7
Justia Law. People v. Dueñas
8
California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1214
9
Bureau of the Fiscal Service. Treasury Offset Program (TOP)
10
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 U.S. Code Chapter 5 – Creditors, the Debtor, and the Estate
11
California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1203.4