Kentucky license points
12 points in 2 years
What the rule says happens: suspend or probate the driving privilege
. Applies to: Eighteen (18) years of age or older
suspend or probate the driving privilege of a person: (a) Eighteen (18) years of age or older who accumulates twelve (12) or more penalty points within a period of two (2) years; or (b) Under the age of eighteen (18) years who accumulates seven (7) or more penalty points within a period of two (2) years.
Points for each violation
| Violation, in Kentucky’s wording | Points |
|---|---|
Speeding fifteen (15) MPH or less over the limit | 3 |
Speeding sixteen (16) MPH or more, but less than twenty-six (26) MPH, over the limit | 6 |
10 mph or less over speed limit on limited access highway | 0 |
11-15 mph over speed limit on limited access highway | 3 |
Driving too fast for conditions | 3 |
Failure to stop violation (electric signal, railroad crossing, stop sign) | 3 |
Reckless driving | 4 |
Following too closely | 4 |
Failure to stop for church or school bus | 6 |
Texting while driving | 3 |
Improper passing | 5 |
Failure to yield | 3 |
Careless driving | 3 |
A combination of two (2) or more violations of motor vehicle laws in one (1) occurrence | 6 |
These are the lines we have. Kentucky’s full schedule is at the source links and may list more.
Sources for these lines, word for word
Speeding fifteen (15) MPH or less over the limit - three (3) penalty points, except as established in KRS 186.572
Speeding sixteen (16) MPH or more, but less than twenty-six (26) MPH, over the limit - six (6) penalty points
0 10 mph or less over speed limit on limited access highway
3 11-15 mph over speed limit on limited access highway
Driving too fast for conditions - three (3) penalty points
Failure to stop violation (electric signal, railroad crossing, stop sign) - three (3) penalty points
Reckless driving - four (4) penalty points
Following too closely - four (4) penalty points
Failure to stop for church or school bus, as established in KRS 189.990(5) - six (6) penalty points
Texting while driving - three (3) penalty points
Improper passing - five (5) penalty points
Failure to yield - three (3) penalty points
Careless driving - three (3) penalty points
A combination of two (2) or more violations of motor vehicle laws in one (1) occurrence - six (6) penalty points.
When points lead to a suspension or other action
| Points | Within | The rule’s wording | What happens | Applies to |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 | 2 years | see the rule | suspend or probate the driving privilege | Eighteen (18) years of age or older |
| 7 | 2 years | see the rule | suspend or probate the driving privilege | Under the age of eighteen (18) years |
| 6 | 2 years | see the rule | the Transportation Cabinet shall send a letter | eighteen (18) years of age or older |
| 4 | 2 years | see the rule | the Transportation Cabinet shall send a letter | under the age of eighteen (18) years |
Whether a rule means that many points or more, or more than that many, is in the rule’s own words below.
The rules, word for word
suspend or probate the driving privilege of a person: (a) Eighteen (18) years of age or older who accumulates twelve (12) or more penalty points within a period of two (2) years; or (b) Under the age of eighteen (18) years who accumulates seven (7) or more penalty points within a period of two (2) years.
If a person of eighteen (18) years of age or older accumulates six (6) or more penalty points within a two (2) year period, the Transportation Cabinet shall send a letter to the address shown on the driving history record advising the person of the number of penalty points on his or her driving history record.
If a person under the age of eighteen (18) years accumulates four (4) or more penalty points within a two (2) year period, the Transportation Cabinet shall send a letter to the address shown on the driving history record advising of the number of penalty points on his or her driving history record.
How long points last
Points assessed under the Kentucky Point System expire two (2) years from the date of conviction. However, the conviction entry remains on the driver's record for five (5) years from the conviction date.
Which date counts
What it means for a particular case is for the agency to say.
Points assessed under the Kentucky Point System expire two (2) years from the date of conviction. However, the conviction entry remains on the driver's record for five (5) years from the conviction date.
Tickets from other states
Penalty points shall be assessed or a driving privilege suspended for conviction of a motor vehicle law of any state for which penalty points are assigned pursuant to Section 4 of this administrative regulation, except a speeding violation in another state shall not be assessed penalty points.
The point system itself
This administrative regulation establishes an equitable driver license point system for a driver who violates a traffic law.
More from Kentucky’s rules
(a) Racing - ninety (90) days; (b) Speeding twenty-six (26) MPH or more over limit - ninety (90) days; or (c) Attempting to elude law enforcement officer by use of motor vehicle - ninety (90) days.
(a) No less than ninety (90) days but no more than six (6) months for the first accumulation; (b) One (1) year for the second accumulation; and (c) Two (2) years for an additional or subsequent accumulation within a two (2) year period.
The probation period used in lieu of suspension shall be double the length of the applicable suspension period.
Upon the accumulation of twelve (12) or more points against a driver age eighteen (18) or older or 7 points against a driver under age 18, the Transportation Cabinet conducts a hearing concerning the driver's privileges to operate a motor vehicle.
Failure to appear for the hearing results in a driving suspension for a period of six (6) months for the first such accumulation of twelve (12) points, one (1) year for the second such accumulation of twelve (12) points, and two (2) years for any subsequent accumulation of twelve (12) points within the two (2) year period.
After a hearing, the department may require the driver to be placed on "probation" in lieu of suspension and attend a driver improvement clinic (State Traffic School) approved by the Transportation Cabinet.
How nearby states compare
Side by side, not like for like. Read each state’s own rule before comparing two of them.
- Arkansas
14 points
A “Notice of Suspension/Hearing” will be sent to such person
Arkansas Driver Services Regulation 1993-9, 1-27-16-907 Assessment of points for specific convictions, read November 12, 2026
- Indiana
6 points
you must take the knowledge exam to renew your driver’s license
Indiana Driver's Manual, Chapter Five: Points, Suspension, and Insurance Requirements, read November 12, 2026
- Iowa
6 points
barred from operating a motor vehicle on the highways of this state
Iowa Administrative Code 761, Chapter 615, Sanctions, read November 12, 2026
Check a ticket in Kentucky
Total so far
Reference only, not legal or insurance advice. Confirm with the agency. Full statement.
What this adds up, and what it can’t say
- This is arithmetic on quoted values, and nothing else. It does not predict any outcome.
- The date a state counts from (the violation date or the conviction date) is as quoted. The calculator does not decide it: it uses the date entered for each line.
- Courts and agencies decide actual outcomes, under the full text of the law and the full driving record, which this page does not have.
- Insurance companies use their own separate systems. This calculator works out nothing about insurance.
- A printed figure is compared with a sum only where the same quoted passage prints a period. The comparison says below, equal to or above. Whether a passage means that figure or more, or more than that figure, is in the passage’s own words.
- How periods are counted here is this calculator’s own convention, not a rule from any source. Months and years are calendar months and years counted back from the date chosen. Where the earlier month is shorter, its last day is used. The day reached is the period’s first day, and a line dated on that first day is outside the period. A line dated on the date chosen is inside. For example, a period of one month ending March 31, 2026 has the first day February 28, 2026, so a line dated that day is not counted and a line dated the day after is. An agency may count differently.
- Nothing typed here leaves this page or is stored.
The checker has only the violations in the table above.