---
title: "Daytime running lights outside the city: what Ukraine's traffic rules require and whether the 510-hryvnia fine for not having them is lawful"
description: "In Ukraine, daytime running lights or the low beam are mandatory outside populated areas during daylight hours. A lawyer pointed to a conflict in the classification of the 510-hryvnia fine."
date: 2026-09-24T16:32:01.000Z
lang: en
url: https://xab.info/en/posts/daytime-running-lights-fine-ukraine
tags: [ukraine, traffic-rules, headlights, fines, driving]
publisher: "XAB.info"
---

# Daytime running lights outside the city: what Ukraine's traffic rules require and whether the 510-hryvnia fine for not having them is lawful

## 🎯 Key Points

- Point 9.8 of Ukraine's traffic rules requires switching on daytime running lights outside populated areas during daylight hours, or the low-beam headlamps if they are absent.
- By Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 1105 dated 20 October 2023, the requirement became year-round (previously — from 1 October to 1 May).
- Lawyer Dmytro Nagornyuk pointed to a conflict: the 510-hryvnia fine under Part 2 of Article 122 of the CUAO applies to the start of movement/a manoeuvre, whereas for straight-line driving there is no separate provision, and courts most often reclassify it to a warning under Article 125 of the CUAO.

Drivers in Ukraine are required to switch on their daytime running lights while driving outside populated areas during daylight hours. If a vehicle is not structurally equipped with such lights, the driver must use the low-beam headlamps. This is stated directly in point 9.8 of the Road Traffic Rules of Ukraine, according to RBC-Ukraine. Daytime running lights are white external lighting devices provided for by the vehicle's design, located at the front, and intended to make the vehicle more visible during daylight hours.

### What point 9.8 of the traffic rules requires

In accordance with point 9.8 of the traffic rules, daytime running lights must be switched on on all mechanical vehicles outside populated areas. If the vehicle is not structurally equipped with such devices, the driver is obliged to switch on the low-beam headlamps. The same point also defines the situations in which the low beam is required during daylight hours. In conditions of reduced visibility, the driver may use the high-beam headlamps or additionally the fog lights, provided that the light does not dazzle other road users. For an ordinary car, the rule boils down to a simple one: outside a populated area during daylight hours, the daytime running lights must be on, and if they are absent — the low-beam headlamps.

### 2023 changes: the requirement became year-round

Importantly, the requirement is no longer limited to a specific period of the year. Previously, the traffic rules provided for the mandatory use of lights from 1 October to 1 May. By Resolution No. 1105 of the Cabinet of Ministers dated 20 October 2023, the words "From 1 October to 1 May, on all" in point 9.8 were replaced with "On all". Thus, the requirement now applies throughout the year, not only during the autumn-winter period.

### Contradictory data

Here a significant legal conflict arises, as noted by lawyer Dmytro Nagornyuk. In practice, patrol officers may hold drivers liable under Part 2 of Article 122 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offences (CUAO) for driving outside populated areas without the daytime running lights or low beam switched on; the fine under this article is 510 hryvnias. However, Part 2 of Article 122 of the CUAO provides for liability for violating the rules of using external lighting devices or warning signals precisely at the start of movement or when changing its direction. In other words, this provision covers situations in which the driver begins to move or performs a manoeuvre. If the vehicle is simply driving straight and the driver has not switched on the daytime running lights or low beam in accordance with point 9.8 of the traffic rules, then, according to Nagornyuk, there is no separate provision of the CUAO that provides for a fine specifically for this violation. Therefore, courts most often cancel such fines and reclassify the violation under Article 125 of the CUAO, which provides for a warning rather than a fine. Thus, one version is the formal application of Part 2 of Article 122 with a 510-hryvnia fine, while the other is the absence of a direct provision for straight-line driving and reclassification to a warning under Article 125.

### Fines and court practice

The practical outcome for the driver is twofold. On the one hand, the patrol may issue a 510-hryvnia fine under Part 2 of Article 122 of the CUAO. On the other hand, when driving straight without a manoeuvre, the driver has real chances of having the fine cancelled in court and reclassified to a warning under Article 125 of the CUAO. The lawyer emphasises that it is precisely this conflict between point 9.8 of the traffic rules and the wording of the sanction in the CUAO that creates uncertainty in law enforcement.

### Context: plans to tighten liability

Separately, RBC-Ukraine reported that Ukraine plans to tighten drivers' liability for operating vehicles with an excessive noise level: fines of up to 34,000 hryvnias are proposed, and for a repeat violation during martial law — disqualification from driving for 3–6 months. It is also proposed to increase fines for speeding, with the penalty amount potentially rising to 17,000 hryvnias. These initiatives point to a general trend of tightening road sanctions against the backdrop of the existing rule on daytime running lights.

## 🔍 Fact-Check Verification

- [Headlamps off outside the city: a lawyer explains whether the 510-hryvnia fine is lawful](https://www.rbc.ua/ukr/news/vimkneni-fari-poza-mistom-advokat-poyasniv-1790267304.html) - Основной источник: пункт 9.8 ПДД, постановление КМ №1105 от 20.10.2023, позиция адвоката Дениса Нагорнюка о коллизии ч.2 ст.122 и ст.125 КУоАП, штраф 510 гривен, планы ужесточения штрафов за шум (до 34 тыс. грн) и скорость (до 17 тыс. грн).
- [Road cameras may start fining drivers for not switching on their headlamps](https://www.m24.ru/articles/17022016/97496) - Источник по российской юрисдикции (РФ); не подтверждает факты по ПДД Украины и не использовался для верификации.
- [Lawyer Rusyaev explained what fine drivers face for having their headlamps off during the day](https://vm.ru/news/1231582-yurist-rusyaev-rasskazal-kakoj-shtraf-grozit-voditelyam-za-vyklyuchennye-fary-dnem) - Источник по российской юрисдикции (РФ); не подтверждает украинские нормы и не использовался для верификации.
- [Protected the headlamps from stones — but not from the law: a fine of up to 5,000 and loss of driving license](https://www.pravda.ru/news/auto/2248732-headlight-film-ban/) - Источник по российской юрисдикции (РФ) о тонировке/защите фар; не подтверждает украинские факты и не использовался для верификации.

## ❓ FAQ

### Q: When is it mandatory to switch on the lights outside a populated area in Ukraine?
**A:** During daylight hours outside populated areas, the daytime running lights must be on, and if the vehicle is not structurally equipped with them — the low-beam headlamps. Since 2023, this requirement applies year-round.

### Q: What fine threatens for not switching on the daytime running lights?
**A:** In practice, patrol officers may apply Part 2 of Article 122 of the CUAO with a 510-hryvnia fine; however, for straight-line driving without a manoeuvre there is no separate provision, and courts most often reclassify the violation to a warning under Article 125 of the CUAO.

### Q: Has the rule on lights changed in recent years?
**A:** Yes. By Resolution No. 1105 of the Cabinet of Ministers dated 20 October 2023, the seasonal limitation "from 1 October to 1 May" was removed from point 9.8 of the traffic rules, and now the requirement to use lights applies throughout the year.