How Nevada Demerit Points Work

Start here: when points appear

Points arrive only after a conviction. The court reports it, the DMV records the offense and scores it by seriousness, and a ticket still pending in court shows nothing yet.

Points and convictions are separate things. A year after the conviction the points expire; the conviction does not, and some violations stay visible for the full ten years of a ten year history after their points are gone.

Speeding, band by band

As of October 2026 the DMV table splits speeding into five bands. Older guides understate the low end. The DMV now scores 1 to 10 over at 2 points, no different from 11 to 20 over, and a prima facie violation (too fast for conditions) is another 2.

• Up to 10 over: 2 points
• 11 to 20 over: 2 points
• 21 to 30 over: 4 points
• 31 to 40 over: 4 points
• 41 or more over: 5 points

Other violations you are likely to meet

The heaviest values go to driving that puts others in danger. If your violation is not listed here, the DMV publishes its whole violation code list as a PDF.

• 8: reckless driving
• 6: careless driving; failing to give information or aid after a crash
• 4: following too close, failing to yield, ignoring a signal or stop sign, overtaking a stopped school bus
• 4: a second or later hand-held phone or texting offense
• 2: impeding traffic or going too slowly; not dimming headlights

If you reach 12

At 12 within a year, a six month suspension follows automatically. Getting reinstated after a suspension not tied to alcohol costs $75 on the October 2026 schedule, and a written test may be required.

DUI, or causing serious injury or death, never runs through the point system. Those go straight to suspension or revocation, and no traffic safety class touches them. Worked example: a driver convicted of careless driving (6) in March and of passing a stopped school bus (4) and going 15 over (2) in August reaches 12 before March's points expire.

Before you reach 12: the 3 point credit

A driver holding 3 to 11 points who completes a class at a DMV certified school loses 3 of them. It works once in any 12 months and only if you attend voluntarily; a class done under a plea deal with a court earns nothing.

No paperwork for you to send; the school handles it. Insurers can still see the ticket, because the conviction stays. And once you have hit 12, the suspension is set in motion and a class will not reverse it.

Tickets from other states

When a Nevada driver is convicted in another state, the offense shows on the Nevada record, yet per the DMV it carries no Nevada demerit points.

Visitors convicted here do not deal with the Nevada DMV at all. Their own state's licensing office decides what the conviction means back home, including any points or classes it offers.

Checking your record

The DMV offers a three year history and a ten year history, the second also listing every license withdrawal in that span, which you need when clearing a suspension. Order either online or at DMV kiosks around the state.

Courts and the DMV keep separate files. After a court lowers a charge in return for traffic school, check that your DMV history lists the reduced, zero point offense; if the original still appears, call the court.