Queensland doubles drug driving penalties from December
The Queensland Attorney-General announced a suite of laws doubling penalties for drink and drug driving, expected to take effect on 1 December 2026. Two bills were introduced to parliament; this tracker will update when they pass.
What doubles: fines and licence disqualification periods for drug driving, alongside longer minimum disqualification periods and expanded mandatory imprisonment for repeat serious offenders. The maximum penalty for motor vehicle offences causing death or grievous bodily harm rises from 16 to 25 years imprisonment.
Medicinal cannabis patients: the Queensland government has doubled down on its zero-tolerance approach — THC presence remains an offence regardless of prescription, and no NSW-style registration scheme has been proposed. An expert quoted by the ABC criticised the zero-tolerance setting for medical users. Penalties for presence offences, already among the nation's stiffest, are what double from December.
Also in the package: methamphetamine detected in the system of a dangerous driving offender becomes a circumstance of aggravation without the prosecution needing to prove it affected the driving.
For the law as it stands today, see our Queensland page — penalty amounts current at the page's verification date are stated there, and we will re-verify them when the December changes commence.
Update (17 September 2026): the Transport and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2026 has now passed Parliament — see our newer post for the exact figures that apply from 1 December 2026.