Here's How Much You Could Get Fined For Illegal Window Tint
Whether you need added privacy, protection from harmful UV rays, wish to reduce glare, enhance aesthetic appeal, or you just want to improve interior cooling, you might feel tempted to tint your windows. However, you could be breaking some rules without realizing it. Window tinting in the U.S. is subject to strict legal Visible Light Transmission (VLT) limits, and failing to comply with the requirements can lead to huge fines and potentially even time behind bars as a deterrent.
Many states take excessively dark tints seriously because they affect your visibility as a driver as well as the ability of others to see into the vehicle. But the rules around the percentage of light you must allow through the tinted windows can differ depending on where you are. Similarly, how these laws are enforced and the amount that can be fined will depend on your location. For example, while the fine amount for non-compliance in Pennsylvania starts at around $110, first-time offenders could be cited with a $1,000 ticket in New Jersey.
Most states require law enforcement officers to issue a correctable or fix-it ticket when a violation occurs. This normally requires you to fix the illegal tinting that caused the citation in the first place. If you rectify the issue within the specified period of time, ask a police officer to sign off on the back of your ticket to acknowledge that the issue was sorted out by the listed deadline. Then, the ticket can be dismissed for a small fine. Failing to adjust the tint and process your ticket before the set deadline will lead to further penalties.
California has some of the lowest illegal tinting fines in the entire U.S.
Even the tiniest of expenses will seem like a burden in this economy, but drivers in California have it better than most. If you're facing an illegal tint penalty as a first offense, you might be let off with a fix-it ticket, which requires you to have the incorrectly tinted window adjusted to a more appropriate one. Usually, you have 20 days from the date the fix-it ticket was issued to correct the tint and provide evidence that this has been done to a police officer, who will then sign off on your ticket.
After that, you take the proof of correction to the court, where the ticket is typically dismissed for a fee around $25. However, if you fail to fix the tint on time, you may be subject to additional penalties and fines up to $325. The $25 dismissal fee is the same for individuals facing their first offense of illegal tinting in Arizona (although you could be charged up to $100). In Michigan, you'll be issued with a $125 fine and two points on your driving license, which will typically be waived for a $25 penalty if you rectify the issue early enough.
In states like Texas, the payment could be as low as $20, although the costs can add up to $1,000 if you fail to return the window to a compliant state. At the costlier end of illegal window tint in the U.S., New Jersey charges as high as $1,000 for a first offense and $5,000 for a repeated ticket. Elsewhere, the authorities in Georgia consider illegal tint a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $1,000 or jail time of up to one year.
What is the darkest legal tint in the U.S.?
The darkest tint you're allowed by law depends on the position of the window on your vehicle. Some states allow 5% tint on the back windows, meaning only 5 percent of light will pass through the window, with 95% of sunlight blocked out. At this level, you can't see through the windows at all. These states include Arkansas, California, Delaware, Iowa, Maine, Michigan, and Missouri. Others are Nevada, New Jersey, North Dakota, Ohio, Utah, and Vermont. Conversely, New York, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island require window films with 70% VLT for the backside windows.
The darkest you're allowed is a front-side window tint with a VLT of 20%, and this only affects those in New Mexico. In Montana and Washington, you can legally have a window as dark as 24% VLT. Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Texas are the next states that allow the darkest legal tint at 25% VLT. The lightest shade you can have is 70% VLT, and that applies if you're a resident of Alaska, California, Delaware, Iowa, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, or Washington, D.C. You cannot have a tint on your front-side window if you live in New Hampshire, New Jersey, or Vermont.
