To pay an Alabama traffic ticket, send the full amount on your citation to the court listed on the ticket before the court appearance date printed on the front. You can pay online through the Alabama Traffic Service Center, by phone, by mail with a cashier’s check or money order, or in person at the clerk’s office. The court is a municipal court if a city police officer wrote the ticket and a district court if a state trooper or sheriff’s deputy wrote it, and that distinction decides where your payment goes.
The Deadline That Actually Matters
Your deadline is the court appearance date on the front of the citation. There is no grace period after it. If a mailed check arrives the next day, you’ve missed it.1Tenth Judicial Circuit Court of Alabama. Traffic Court Costs
If you need more time, request an extension through the Alabama Traffic Service Center’s Online Traffic Resolution system before the appearance date passes.2Alabama Traffic Service Center. Alabama’s On-Line Traffic Payment System Waiting until the last day to mail payment is a bad bet. Pay online or in person if your date is close.
Find Your Ticket and the Right Court
Every Alabama law enforcement agency uses the same form, the Uniform Traffic Ticket and Complaint.3Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 12-12-53 – Requirement of Use of Uniform Traffic Ticket and Complaint The ticket number sits near the top right corner, and the form shows whether your case is in district or municipal court. The back has a Plea of Guilty/Waiver of Rights section where you sign and provide a mailing address. Signing and paying the fine counts as a guilty plea to the listed violation.
Lost the ticket? The Alacourt ACCESS portal lets you search by name or case number to pull your citation details.4Alacourt. Alacourt ACCESS You can also call the clerk of the court with jurisdiction over your case. The Alabama Administrative Office of Courts website links out to each county.5Alabama Administrative Office of Courts. Alabama Administrative Office of Courts
Pay Online
The Alabama Traffic Service Center at traffic.alacourt.gov handles district court tickets.6Alabama Traffic Service Center. Alabama Traffic Service Center Payments process through AlaPay.com, which adds a 4% service fee on top of your fine. Save or print the confirmation receipt once the transaction clears.
Municipal tickets written by city police may not appear in the state system. Those often have to go through the city’s own payment portal. Check the issuing agency named on your citation if the state site can’t find your case.
Pay by Phone
You can pay by credit or debit card over the phone using the Alabama Traffic Service Center’s toll-free line. It accepts the same cases as the online portal. Some municipal courts use a separate number, so check what’s printed on your citation or on the city court’s website before calling.
Pay by Mail
Mailed payments must be a cashier’s check or money order. Personal checks are returned, which can push you past your court date.7Covington County – Twenty-Second Circuit Court of Alabama. Covington County – Traffic Court Write your name and ticket number on the payment. Send it to the address on the citation and allow enough mail time for it to arrive before the appearance date.
Pay in Person
Clerk’s offices accept walk-in payments during business hours, generally 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM, Monday through Friday.8Shelby County Circuit Clerk. Shelby County Circuit Clerk You get an immediate receipt and the clerk files the Plea of Guilty/Waiver of Rights for you. Some offices close for lunch; call ahead if you’re driving in for it.
What You’ll Owe
Alabama ticket totals combine the base fine with mandatory court costs into a single amount. Figures vary by court and offense, but typical numbers include:
- Speeding 25 mph or less over the limit: around $189 to $1909Thirteenth Judicial Circuit Court of Alabama. Traffic Court Costs
- Speeding 26 mph or more over the limit: $209 or higher
- Driving 90 mph or above: up to around $370 in some jurisdictions1Tenth Judicial Circuit Court of Alabama. Traffic Court Costs
- Running a red light or stop sign: about $190
- Seatbelt violation: about $46
- Driving without a license: $245 or more
These are the amounts owed if you pay before the court date. Fines and costs can climb if you miss the date and end up before a judge.1Tenth Judicial Circuit Court of Alabama. Traffic Court Costs
Think Before You Pay: Defensive Driving School
Paying the fine is a guilty plea. Once the payment posts, the conviction goes on your record, adds points, and gets reported to insurers. If you want to avoid that, you have to act before you pay.
Alabama courts can dismiss a ticket if you complete a court-approved defensive driving course. Eligibility generally requires that you:
- Hold a current, non-CDL driver’s license
- Were cited for a minor moving violation such as speeding, running a red light, or improper lane change
- Have not used driving school to avoid a conviction in any jurisdiction within the last two years10Morgan County – Eighth Circuit Court of Alabama. Morgan County – Defensive Driving School Information
If the court approves, you get a return date, complete the course, and file your certificate with the clerk before that date. Court costs still apply even when the fine is waived, running around $202 in the courts that publish them.10Morgan County – Eighth Circuit Court of Alabama. Morgan County – Defensive Driving School Information Request this option through the clerk or the Online Traffic Resolution system before you pay anything.
If You Hold a CDL
Defensive driving school is not available to commercial driver’s license holders. Federal regulations prohibit states from masking, deferring, or diverting traffic convictions for CDL holders, and that applies whether the ticket came while you were driving a commercial vehicle or your personal car.11eCFR. 49 CFR 384.226 – Prohibition on Masking Convictions For a CDL holder, paying the fine is a conviction that goes on the commercial record. The only way to avoid that is to contest the ticket and win.
If You Miss the Deadline
Ignoring the ticket costs much more than the original fine. When you fail to pay or appear by the court date, three things can happen at once:
- An arrest warrant is issued for failure to appear
- The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency is notified to suspend your driver’s license
- Late fees are added to what you already owe12Alabama Traffic Service Center. Frequently Asked Questions
Clearing a suspension for an unpaid ticket means resolving the underlying case and paying a $100 reinstatement fee to the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency on top of what the court is owed. For alcohol-related suspensions the reinstatement fee is $275.13Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. Driver Records, Crash Reports, and Driver License Reinstatements
One boundary worth knowing: if the “court appearance required” box on your citation is checked, you cannot resolve the ticket by paying. You have to appear. Serious offenses such as DUI always require a court appearance and cannot be closed out online.