The fine has your name on it, but you weren’t behind the wheel — your partner parked the car, a mate borrowed it, or an employee had the ute that day. In NSW the fix is a nomination: you formally name the person who was responsible, Revenue NSW cancels your fine, and a fresh one lands in their letterbox instead. This guide covers how to do it, the deadlines, and the traps, current as at 30 July 2026.
This is general information, not legal advice. If you’re out of time or the situation is messy, call LawAccess NSW on 1300 888 529.
Why the fine came to you at all
Camera-detected offences and parking fines in NSW are owner-onus: the penalty notice goes to the registered operator of the vehicle, regardless of who was driving. As NSW Government puts it, “as the registered vehicle owner, you’re responsible for any offence incurred in your vehicle until the responsible driver is nominated.”
For parking specifically, the Road Transport Act 2013 (s 185) says the responsible person isn’t liable if they properly name the person who was in charge of the vehicle at the time — and a statutory declaration doing so is treated as evidence of exactly that. So nominating isn’t a favour Revenue NSW does you; it’s a right built into the system.
The flip side: you can’t get out of a fine by vaguely insisting “it wasn’t me.” You have to name a real, identifiable person — or the fine stays yours.
When you can nominate
- You weren’t driving (or in charge of) the vehicle at the time of the offence.
- You’d sold the vehicle before the offence date — you nominate the buyer, with the disposal details.
- It’s a company vehicle — an authorised person from the company must nominate the driver; for camera-detected offences this is a legal requirement, not an option (Service NSW).
When you can’t: if the fine was handed to you in person by an officer who stopped you, there’s nothing to nominate — the issue of who was responsible was settled on the spot.
The deadlines
| Situation | Time limit |
|---|---|
| Fine not yet paid | By the due date on the penalty notice |
| Reminder notice received | By the due date on the reminder |
| Fine already paid | Up to 90 days from when the fine was served |
| Later than that | Revenue NSW can refuse — get legal advice |
The paid-fine window and the refusal risk are per Legal Aid NSW. Practical translation: do it the week the fine arrives, not the week it’s due.
What you need about the other person
Revenue NSW won’t transfer a fine on a first name and a shrug. You need their:
- full name
- address
- date of birth
- driver licence number and the state or country that issued it — or passport number and country of issue if you’re nominating an international driver.
If naming the person is going to be awkward — it’s your flatmate, your teenager, your ex — decide now, because there’s no halfway option.
Option 1 — nominate online via myPenalty
The fast path. Go to myPenalty with your penalty notice number and the offence date, choose to nominate, and enter the driver’s details. You can log back in to track progress. Revenue NSW may still ask you to back the nomination with a statutory declaration if something needs verifying — that’s normal, not a rejection.
Option 2 — statutory declaration by post
The paper path, and the one to use if Revenue NSW specifically requests it:
- Complete a statutory declaration naming the person who was driving or in charge of the vehicle, including all the identifying details above. Legal Aid NSW publishes instructions and a sample form.
- Have it witnessed by an authorised witness — a Justice of the Peace or a solicitor. Unwitnessed declarations are invalid.
- Post it to Revenue NSW, PO Box 786, Strawberry Hills NSW 2012. Keep a copy.
What happens next
If the nomination is accepted, per Legal Aid NSW: your fine is cancelled, a new penalty notice goes to the person you named, any payment you made is refunded, and any demerit points come off your record (parking fines carry no demerits anyway, but for camera offences this matters).
If it’s rejected, Revenue NSW writes to you with reasons and may invite a fresh nomination if there’s still time. The fine remains yours meanwhile — so don’t let the due date slide past while you argue, or you’ll start the overdue-fine escalation on top of everything else.
Don’t even think about a false nomination
Every so often someone decides the smart move is nominating their cousin overseas, or a mate willing to “take the points.” It is genuinely one of the worst ideas in NSW traffic law:
- Revenue NSW can issue additional fines and restrictions on your driver licence for false or misleading nominations (NSW Government).
- A false statutory declaration is a criminal offence under section 25 of the Oaths Act 1900, carrying up to 5 years’ imprisonment.
- People do get prosecuted — false-nomination schemes are exactly what reviewers are trained to spot, and being nominated falsely is itself a review ground, so your nominee can (and will) push it straight back.
A $200 parking fine is never worth a criminal record.
What this guide doesn’t cover
- Other states. Each state runs its own nomination process and forms; this is NSW only.
- Statutory declarations for court. If a matter goes to court, different declaration requirements apply — get advice.
- Disputing the fine itself. Nomination transfers a fine; it doesn’t challenge it. If the fine is simply wrong, request a review instead — and if you need wording, use our appeal letter templates.
Of course, the cleanest outcome is nobody in the household getting the fine in the first place. Chalked is a crowdsourced parking-ranger warning app for Sydney — whoever’s got the car gets pinged when rangers are spotted nearby, and moves it before the ticket lands. Grab it on the App Store or Google Play.
If the fine is yours but money is the problem, see Revenue NSW payment plans. For what an ignored fine turns into, see what happens if you don’t pay.
This is general information, not legal advice. For serious or complex matters, contact LawAccess NSW on 1300 888 529.