How Do I Get a Restricted License After Getting a DUI in California?
You need to show the DMV that you’ve enrolled in a DUI class, have a clean driving record, and have car insurance.
One of the biggest consequences of a DUI conviction is having your license suspended for, at minimum, 6 months.[i] For 6 months, you cannot drive at all — for work, for school, or to take your children to school – and if you do, you will be charged with driving on suspended license, which is punishable as a misdemeanor.[ii]
Fortunately, relief is available in the form of a restricted license. A restricted license won’t shorten the amount of time that your license is suspended. It won’t fully restore your driving privileges either. What it will allow you to do is drive, for very limited purposes, during the 6 months that your license is suspended.[iii]
Applying for a Restricted License after Getting Convicted of DUI
Once you get convicted of DUI, you are eligible for a restricted license.[iv] You can apply for a restricted license by submitting proof to the DMV that:
- You have enrolled in the 3-month, First-Offender DUI class;[v]
- Your vehicle is insured in spite of your DUI conviction;[vi] and
- You have paid the $125 license reinstatement fee[vii]
Be aware that you can be prohibited from applying for a restricted license if the Court finds that permitting you to drive would endanger pedestrians and other motorists.[viii] Your driving record will play a significant role in this decision.
A restricted license will allow you to drive during the 6 months that your license is suspended — but only for the limited purpose of commuting to work and to your DUI class. [ix]
You May Be Able to Apply for a Restricted License Sooner, But It Will Be Harder
The restricted license discussed above is available after you are convicted of DUI. But you can apply for a restricted license much sooner than that. This is because, when it comes to DUI, there are two events that trigger a license suspension: (1) getting arrested for DUI;[x] and (2) getting convicted of DUI.[xi]
Once you are arrested for DUI, your license will be confiscated, you will be issued a 30-day temporary license, and then your license will be suspended for 4 months.[xii] The only way to avoid this license suspension is to request a DMV hearing within 10 days of your arrest and prevail at that hearing. You must win at your DMV hearing or else your license will be suspended.[xiii]
If you lose the hearing, or if you do not request a hearing, your license will be suspended for 4 months[xiv] and you cannot apply for a restricted license.[xv]
If you manage to prevail at your DMV hearing, you may be eligible to apply for a restricted license — but only if meet all the following criteria:
- You were 21 years of age or older when you were arrested[xvi]
- You have not recently been arrested for a separate DUI or DUI-related crime[xvii]
- You do not have any DUI or DUI-related charges currently pending[xviii]
- Your license has not been suspended in the last 10 years because you refused the post-arrest chemical test[xix]
- Your license has not been suspended in the last 10 years after losing at a DMV hearing[xx]
- You have not suffered a DUI or DUI-related conviction in the last 10 years[xxi]
Again, to be eligible to apply for a restricted license after getting arrested for DUI, you must: (1) win your DMV hearing; and (2) satisfy all of the criteria above.
Getting a restricted license after being arrested for DUI is harder than getting a restricted license after being convicted of DUI.
If you are eligible for a restricted license after your DUI arrest, you can apply for one by:
- Enrolling in DUI class in the 3-month, First-Offender DUI class;[xxii]
- Submitting proof that your vehicle is insured despite your DUI arrest;[xxiii] and
- Paying the $125 license reinstatement fee[xxiv]
Once granted, your restricted license will not take effect immediately; you must first suffer through a 30-day suspension period during which you cannot drive at all.[xxv] The restricted license will become effective after the 30-day suspension period.[xxvi]
After the 30-day suspension period, you will be permitted to drive, but only to commute for work and for your DUI class.[xxvii] The restricted license will last remain in effect for 5 months.[xxviii]
If you are unable to avoid the license suspension after you are arrested for DUI, then you can try seeking a restricted license after you are convicted of DUI. In that instance both suspensions will be imposed,[xxix] but they will run concurrently (they can overlap) and not consecutively (one suspension period need not end before the next one begins).[xxx]
Conclusion
A DUI conviction doesn’t mean you have to give up driving for 6 months. Obtaining a restricted license will at least allow you to continue to drive to work and put you on the path to restoring your license. With the help of a skilled criminal defense attorney, you may be able to obtain a restricted license shortly after your DUI arrest and significantly reduce the amount of time that your license is suspended.
[i] Vehicle Code §13352(a)(1). Note: Your license will be suspended for 10 months if your blood alcohol level was .20 or if you refused to submit to the post-arrest chemical test. Vehicle Code §13352.1(a).
[ii] Vehicle Code §§14601.2(a), (d)(1).
[iii] Vehicle Code §13352.4(b), (c).
[iv] Vehicle Code §13352.4(a).
[v] Vehicle Code §§13352.4(a)(1)(A), 23538(b)(1). Note: You must not only enroll in your DUI class, but you must also complete it. If you do not participate and/or complete the class, the DMV will terminate your restricted license and re-suspend your license. Vehicle Code §13352.4(f).
[vi] Vehicle Code §13352.4(a)(2).
[vii] Vehicle Code §13352.4(a)(3). See also: https://www.dmv.org/ca-california/suspended-license.php.
[viii] Vehicle Code §13352.4(h).
[ix] Vehicle Code §§13352(a)(1), 13352.4(b), 13352.4(c).
[x] Vehicle Code §§13382(a), 13353.2(a)(1), 13353.3(b)(1).
[xi] Vehicle Code §13352(a)(1).
[xii] Vehicle Code §§13382(a), (b); 13353.3(b)(1).
[xiii] Vehicle Code §§13353.2(a)(1), (d).
[xiv] Vehicle Code §13353.3(b)(1).
[xv] Vehicle Code §§13353.7(a), (e).
[xvi] Vehicle Code §11353.7(a).
[xvii] Vehicle Code §11353.7(a).
[xviii] Vehicle Code §11353.7(a).
[xix] Vehicle Code §§11353.7(a), (e).
[xx] Vehicle Code §§11353.7(a), (e).
[xxi] Vehicle Code §§13353.7(a), (e).
[xxii] Vehicle Code §13353.7(a).
[xxiii] Vehicle Code §13353.7(a). (2).
[xxiv] See https://www.dmv.org/ca-california/suspended-license.php.
[xxv] Vehicle Code §§13353.7(a); 14601.5(a), (d)(1).
[xxvi] Vehicle Code §13353.7(a).
[xxvii] Vehicle Code §13353.7(a).
[xxviii] Vehicle Code §13353.7(a)(3). Note that the period of restriction (5 months) is longer than the period of suspension (4 months) you would have suffered had you either lost your DMV hearing or not requested a hearing. Vehicle Code §13353.3(b)(1).
[xxix] Vehicle Code §§13382(a), (b); 13353.3(b)(1). 13352(a)(1).
[xxx] Vehicle Code §§13352.4(b), 13353.3(c). Note: The imposition of two license suspensions for the same conduct may seem unfair, but it is the law. Vehicle Code §§13557(f), 13353.2(e).
Attorney Michael J. Ocampo is a former deputy district attorney. He focuses his practice exclusively on criminal law so that he can help those accused of a crime — often ordinary, everyday people — ensure that their rights are honored and that they receive a fair opportunity to be heard.
