Soon, police officers will no longer be able to accept cash as payment for fines; instead, they will have to accept cashless transfers or cards. The Ministry of the Interior of the Slovak Republic is preparing amendments to the law on administrative offenses that could completely eliminate cash payments accepted by police officers. The ministry expects that this step will improve police efficiency and facilitate the transition to modern digital solutions.
Changes in Operations
According to the ministry, the current system, which allows for the collection of money directly at the scene of an offense, involves a significant administrative burden in terms of record-keeping and subsequent accounting. Handling cash requires additional control mechanisms that lag behind the capabilities of modern information technology.
The draft bill proposes several important changes:
Elimination of cash: Police officers may lose the right to accept cash from citizens directly on the street or during traffic stops.
Unique identifier: All fines imposed as part of summary proceedings will be registered in the Ministry of Internal Affairs’ central information system under a special identification number.
Accurate Matching of Payments: The system is designed to ensure that payments are unambiguously linked to specific fines for violations, which will simplify data management and reduce errors in transfers.
What’s Next
Details of the upcoming changes were published by the state news agency TASR on the Správy STVR portal. The Ministry of the Interior plans to submit an official draft bill for interagency review as early as October. If approved, drivers and citizens will have to get used to paying fines exclusively by non-cash means.
