Window Tint Laws in Newfoundland and Labrador: Tied to a Federal Standard, Not a Provincial Percentage

Newfoundland and Labrador's tint rule does not state its own percentage. Section 38 of the Licensing and Equipment Regulations bans window material that stops a vehicle from continuing to conform with the federal CMVSS 205 glazing standard, and a widely repeated claim that a violation costs 2 demerit points is refuted by the province's own demerit-point schedule.

Information last verified on 2026-08-16. This article has not yet been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

A Federal Cross-Reference, Not a Provincial Number

Every other Atlantic province sets its own tint standard directly in provincial law: Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island use an absolute ban with no percentage at all, and New Brunswick states a specific 30% light-blocked cap. Newfoundland and Labrador does something structurally different. Section 38 of its Licensing and Equipment Regulations, CNLR 1007/96, made under the Highway Traffic Act, RSNL 1990, c.H-3, bans placing non-transparent, translucent, or opaque material on the windshield or on a side window beside or forward of the driver, but only to the extent that doing so causes the vehicle to no longer conform with the requirements of the federal Motor Vehicle Safety Act's CMVSS 205 glazing materials standard.

That is the whole rule: the provincial regulation does not write its own percentage into the text at all. It borrows compliance from a federal technical standard, the same one that governs the glass a vehicle must meet when it is manufactured, and makes ongoing conformance with that standard the condition for legal aftermarket tint. For how this federal cross-reference compares with the percentage standards and outright bans used elsewhere, see window tint laws in Canada.

This article deliberately does not state a specific VLT percentage for Newfoundland and Labrador. A commonly cited figure, roughly 70% VLT, is often associated with CMVSS or FMVSS 205 windshield-area glazing in general discussion, but confirming that figure requires opening the federal standard itself, a Transport Canada instrument, which was outside the scope of the provincial research this article draws on. A driver relying on a specific percentage for NL should confirm it against the actual federal standard rather than the widely repeated shorthand.

What the Section Actually Covers

Section 38(1) applies to the windshield glazing and to side window glazing beside or forward of the driver, on both the right and left side of the vehicle. Rear side windows and the rear windshield are not named in the section at all, so they fall outside its scope entirely and are unrestricted by this particular rule, the same pattern used across every other jurisdiction covered in this cluster.

Section 38(4) adds an independent basis apart from the CMVSS conformance requirement: it separately bans window material that casts a glare at other vehicles, whether from sunlight or from headlights. Section 38(5) makes operating a vehicle with prohibited material an offence.

Three Exceptions, No Medical Carve-Out

Section 38(2) sets out the same three narrow exceptions used elsewhere in Atlantic Canada:

• An equivalent factory-installed replacement for the original glazing
• A clear, untinted frost shield
• A window sticker that does not impair the driver's field of vision or safe operation of the vehicle

Section 38(3) requires any frost shield used under the second exception to stay free of discoloration, scratches, or damage that would impair vision through it.

No medical or light-sensitivity exemption appears anywhere in section 38. The only medical exemption found anywhere in this regulation set concerns bicycle helmets, an unrelated provision about a certificate for someone who cannot wear one for medical reasons. A driver seeking a medical tint exemption in Newfoundland and Labrador should not assume a process comparable to Alberta's exists; nothing in the regulation text supports one.

The 2-Demerit Claim Is Refuted, Not Just Unverified

A specific anecdotal claim circulates online, describing an NL tint ticket that carried 2 demerit points under a section referred to as "155A" of the Highway Traffic Act. This claim does not hold up. Newfoundland and Labrador's own official demerit-point schedule, the Highway Traffic Demerit Point System Regulations, CNLR 753/96, was checked directly against this claim, and it does not list a Licensing and Equipment Regulations section 38 violation anywhere in its schedule. A window-glazing offence under section 38 does not carry demerit points under this regulation.

This is a refutation, not an absence of evidence. The claim was actively checked against the province's own demerit-point regulation and did not appear anywhere in it. A driver who receives a section 38 ticket in Newfoundland and Labrador should not expect it to affect their demerit-point total.

Fines: Unconfirmed, and the Common Figure Is Likely Stale

A figure of $23 to $52 circulates among third-party tint-law summaries as the NL fine for illegal tint, but this article does not treat that figure as current. A Government of Newfoundland and Labrador news release states that, as of February 5, 2018, the minimum fine for a category of offences described as including illegal vehicle modifications was raised to $100. Whether window glazing under section 38 specifically falls within that "illegal modifications" category was not directly confirmed by opening the release's full offence list, so this article cannot state a specific current fine figure with confidence.

What can be said with reasonable confidence is that the older $23 to $52 figure predates a fine increase that took effect in 2018, and a separate 2023 release referencing further Highway Traffic Act fine increases suggests the amount may have moved again since then. Confirm the actual current fine directly with Service NL or a lawyer before relying on any specific dollar figure for a section 38 violation.

Factory Glass vs Aftermarket Film

As with the rest of Atlantic Canada, factory-installed or factory-equivalent replacement glazing is exempt outright under section 38(2)(a). Anything applied to the windshield or front side windows after the vehicle leaves the factory is subject to the CMVSS 205 conformance requirement described above, with no separate percentage carve-out written into the provincial text itself.

Related Resources

For how Newfoundland and Labrador's federal cross-reference compares with the flat percentage and outright-ban approaches used elsewhere in Canada, see window tint laws in Canada. For what happens after a ticket, see fighting a traffic ticket in Canada. For windshield-mounted dash cams, which sit in the same general area these glazing rules govern, see dash cam laws in Canada. For Newfoundland and Labrador's impaired driving rules, see DUI laws in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Disclaimer

This article is informational only and is not legal advice. Two figures in this article are genuinely unresolved by primary sources located during research: the exact VLT percentage implied by continued CMVSS 205 conformance, since the federal standard itself was not opened directly, and the current dollar fine for a section 38 violation, since the commonly circulated $23 to $52 figure predates at least one 2018 provincial fine increase and possibly a 2023 one. The claim that a violation carries 2 demerit points is not merely unverified, it was actively checked against Newfoundland and Labrador's own demerit-point schedule and does not appear there. Confirm current fees and the applicable federal standard directly with Service NL, Transport Canada, or a licensed lawyer before making a decision based on this article.