A TAB charge in Minnesota is a simplified charging document that police use for minor offenses — most often traffic tickets, boating violations, and other low-level matters — and you resolve it either by paying the fine (which counts as a guilty plea) or by appearing in court to contest it by the date printed on the citation. It isn’t just a ticket in the casual sense; it’s a formal accusation authorized by Rule 17 of the Minnesota Rules of Criminal Procedure, and ignoring it has real consequences.1Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Court Rules – Rule 17 Indictment, Complaint and Tab Charge
The TAB method is used for petty misdemeanors and standard misdemeanors. A petty misdemeanor is not technically a crime under Minnesota law, carries a maximum fine of $300, and has no possibility of jail. A standard misdemeanor is a crime, punishable by up to 90 days in jail, a fine up to $1,000, or both.2Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 609.02 – Definitions The TAB label describes the paperwork, not the severity.
What Kinds of Offenses Come as a TAB Charge
Traffic violations make up most TAB charges: speeding, seatbelt violations, running a red light, equipment problems like a broken taillight, and improper lane changes. Most of these are petty misdemeanors unless something pushes them higher, such as speeding in a school or construction zone.
Boating infractions are the next common category. Not having enough life jackets aboard, failing to display navigation lights after sunset, improper registration, and no-wake zone violations can all generate a TAB charge during an enforcement stop on Minnesota’s waterways.
Some non-traffic petty misdemeanors come this way too, including minor public nuisance violations and public consumption of alcohol. One boundary worth noting: since Minnesota legalized recreational cannabis for adults 21 and older in 2023, possession up to two ounces of flower in public and two pounds at home is no longer an offense, so older references to “small amount of marijuana” TAB citations are outdated.3Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Statutes 342.09 – Personal Adult Use of Cannabis Exceeding those limits or using cannabis in prohibited locations can still result in charges.
Your Two Options and the Deadline
Your citation lists your response options and deadlines. You can pay the fine, or you can appear in court and contest it.
Paying is the fastest route, but read the fine print. Under Minnesota’s court rules, paying a fine to a violations bureau counts as a guilty plea. Before you pay, the citation must inform you that you are giving up your right to a trial, your right to counsel, the presumption of innocence, your right to confront witnesses, and your right to remain silent.4Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Court Rules – Rule 23 Petty Misdemeanors and Violations Bureaus Payment is usually available online through the Minnesota Judicial Branch website, by mail, or in person at the courthouse.
If you want to fight the charge, you need to appear in court by the date on the citation. At the arraignment you’ll be told what you’re charged with and asked to plead guilty or not guilty.
What Happens If You Ignore It
This is where people get into real trouble, and the consequences split depending on whether the charge is a petty misdemeanor or a misdemeanor.
For petty misdemeanors, ignoring the citation triggers an automatic guilty plea and conviction after 10 days. The court enters the conviction, imposes the fine plus applicable surcharges, and can refer the unpaid balance to collections.4Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Court Rules – Rule 23 Petty Misdemeanors and Violations Bureaus A traffic-related petty misdemeanor conviction then goes on your driving record. You can later move to withdraw the guilty plea, but you’ll need to give the court a reason.
For misdemeanor-level TAB charges, the stakes are higher. Minnesota’s uniform traffic ticket statute provides that failure to appear on a misdemeanor charge can result in an arrest warrant.5Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Statutes 169.99 – Uniform Traffic Ticket An outstanding warrant means you could be arrested during a future traffic stop or any other contact with law enforcement. Your driver’s license can become ineligible for renewal, and you may be blocked from registering your vehicle until the matter is cleared. Fines typically increase once past due.
What It Will Cost
Every TAB charge fine in Minnesota has two parts: the base fine and a mandatory $75 state surcharge under Minnesota Statute 357.021. The surcharge sits on top of the base fine, which is why totals run higher than people expect. The total for speeding 1 to 10 mph over the limit is $125, with that $75 surcharge built in.6Itasca County, MN. Common Violation Fine Amounts Faster speeds carry progressively steeper fines, and some counties add court fees.
For petty misdemeanors, the total fine including surcharges cannot exceed $300.2Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Code 609.02 – Definitions Standard misdemeanor fines can reach $1,000. Jail does not apply to petty misdemeanors at all. For misdemeanors, up to 90 days is technically possible, though jail is rare for a routine traffic misdemeanor handled as a TAB charge.
Effects on Your License and Insurance
Minnesota does not use a point system. The state tracks each conviction on your driving record, and the Department of Public Safety reviews the pattern. After the state sends a warning letter, a conviction for four traffic offenses within 12 months results in a 30-day license suspension. Five offenses within 12 months brings a 90-day suspension.7Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Rules 7409.2200 – Habitual Violators The warning letter is a prerequisite for the 30-day suspension, so the first three convictions don’t trigger it, but they put you on the state’s radar.
Insurance is the cost most people underestimate. A moving-violation conviction gives your insurer grounds to reclassify your risk, and the surcharge tends to stay for about three years. The amount varies by insurer and prior history, but a premium hike of 20% or more after a single speeding ticket is common. Over three years, that can easily exceed the fine itself.
Contesting a TAB Charge in Court
If you plead not guilty to a petty misdemeanor, your case goes to a bench trial before a judge. There is no right to a jury trial for petty misdemeanors in Minnesota.4Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Court Rules – Rule 23 Petty Misdemeanors and Violations Bureaus The judge hears the evidence and, if you’re convicted, sets the fine.8Minnesota House of Representatives. Traffic Citations For misdemeanor TAB charges, jury trial rights do apply.
One important wrinkle: when a prosecutor certifies a misdemeanor down to a petty misdemeanor, you lose the right to a public defender along with the jury trial right.4Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Court Rules – Rule 23 Petty Misdemeanors and Violations Bureaus Public defenders are available for misdemeanor charges if you meet income eligibility rules, but not for petty misdemeanors. If you’re contesting a petty misdemeanor, you either represent yourself or hire a private attorney.
Whether contesting is worth it depends on the specifics. If the officer clocked you at 7 over and you were doing the limit, fighting it may be worthwhile. If you’re mainly trying to keep a moving violation off your record to protect your insurance, negotiating with the prosecutor for a non-moving violation like a parking infraction can sometimes do the job. A traffic attorney who knows the local prosecutors can usually tell you quickly whether that kind of deal is realistic in your county.
Does It Go on Your Record, and Can You Clear It?
Petty misdemeanors are not crimes under Minnesota law, so they don’t create a criminal record in the traditional sense. They do appear on public court records, which means a background check that searches court records can turn them up. A misdemeanor TAB charge is different: a misdemeanor is a crime, the conviction goes on your criminal record, and it must be disclosed when you’re asked about criminal history.
Minnesota has an automatic expungement process for qualifying offenses. For both petty misdemeanors and misdemeanors, the waiting period is two years after you’ve completed your sentence, meaning the fine is paid in full and any other conditions satisfied.9Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Statutes Chapter 609A – Expungement To qualify, you can’t have new convictions (other than petty misdemeanors) during the waiting period, and you can’t have pending charges when the waiting period ends.
There’s a big exception: traffic violations related to the operation or parking of motor vehicles are excluded from automatic expungement, even when they’re petty misdemeanors.9Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Minnesota Statutes Chapter 609A – Expungement Your speeding ticket conviction won’t be sealed automatically. You can still petition the court for expungement of traffic violations, but you’ll have to file paperwork and appear before a judge, and the court has discretion to grant or deny. Non-traffic petty misdemeanors, like a minor public nuisance violation, do qualify for the automatic process. Some misdemeanors are also excluded from automatic expungement, including DWI, domestic assault, violations of protective orders, and fifth-degree assault; for those, the petition route is the only option.