SINGAPORE: From Jan 1, 2027, the maximum number of demerit points a motorist is allowed to accumulate within 24 months before being suspended will be reduced from 24 to 18.
For probationary motorists, the threshold within their 12-month probation period will be reduced from 13 demerit points to 12.
This is to make it easier for the Traffic Police (TP) to suspend irresponsible motorists and keep them off the roads longer.
Under the new regime, a non-probationary motorist who beats a red light (12 points) while speeding (six points) will be suspended immediately, as they would have accumulated the maximum 18 points.
As for probationary motorists, beating a red light or holding and using a mobile phone while driving (12 points) will also see their licences immediately revoked. This is intended to help shape responsible driving behaviour among new motorists at an early stage.
On July 31, the police announced the tightening of the Driver Improvement Points System (DIPS), commonly known as the demerit points system. It said the new measures were needed in light of the deteriorating road safety situation in Singapore.
Road fatalities reached a 10-year high with 149 deaths in 2025, compared with 141 in 2016.
Those suspended a second time will not be allowed to drive for six months, up from the current 24 weeks.
A third suspension will last two years, while any subsequent suspension will last five years.
The police also announced changes to the DIPS retraining course.
The voluntary one-and-a-half-day course is offered by the TP to suspended motorists, who can complete it to reduce their suspension periods. It is currently available to motorists suspended up to two times.
At present, motorists serving their first suspension who complete the course can have their suspension period reduced from 12 weeks to four weeks, or to one week if they were not involved in any accidents.
Those serving a second suspension can have their suspension period reduced from 24 weeks to 12 weeks.
From 2027, however, the DIPS retraining course will only be available to motorists facing their first suspension.
Upon completing the course, their suspension period will be reduced from four months to six weeks.
Motorists suspended for at least one year will lose their licences and must retake their driving tests.
The Safe Driving Course, which allows eligible motorists to expunge four demerit points if they complete it without being suspended, will be discontinued from 2027.
The police said the course, which lasts about four and a half hours, had a low take-up rate of only 15 per cent as of 2025.
Motorists who have already received offer letters for the course must complete it by Dec 31.
For violations committed before the new regime starts in 2027, non-probationary motorists will have up to six demerit points waived, while probationary motorists will have one point waived.
For example, a non-probationary motorist with four demerit points on Dec 31, 2026, will begin Jan 1, 2027, with no demerit points, as the four points would have been deducted during the adjustment.
The remaining two points may be used to offset another traffic offence only if it was committed before 2027.
The one-time adjustment will not apply to violations committed from 2027 onwards, and any unused deductions cannot be carried forward for future offences.
Fines will remain unchanged.
Second Minister for Home Affairs Sim Ann said the one-time deduction was introduced after vocational drivers and transport union leaders raised concerns about the potential impact of the revised regime on drivers’ livelihoods.
She said the adjustment would ensure motorists are not subjected to suspension or licence revocation solely because of the new rules.
“With road fatalities reaching a 10-year high, it is clear that we must do more to improve road safety,” she said.
Sim urged motorists to reset their driving habits and mindset ahead of 2027, and called on all road users, not just motorists, to help keep roads safe by obeying traffic rules.
Existing incentives for good driving behaviour will remain.
These include having demerit points removed from a motorist’s record if no traffic offences are committed within a 12-month period.
Previous driving suspensions will also be removed from a motorist’s record if no traffic offences are committed within 24 months from the end of the suspension, or from the start date of a new licence if the previous licence had been invalidated.
Motorists who maintain a clean record with no demerit points for at least three consecutive years will continue to be eligible for a Certificate of Merit, which provides a discount on motor insurance. – ST/ANN
