Once you are charged with driving under the influence in Florida, your driver’s license is suspended for six months. This is an administrative suspension that is automatically imposed by the Florida Department of Motor Vehicles and is separate from any suspension that results from a conviction.
Driver License Revocation Periods for DUI
- First offense without bodily injury: Minimum 180 days revocation, maximum one year.
- First offense with bodily injury: Minimum three years revocation.
- Second offense within five years from prior conviction: Minimum five years revocation. May be eligible for hardship reinstatement after one year.
- Second offense five or more years after first conviction, the same revocation periods as first offense apply.
- Third offense within 10 years of the second conviction: Minimum 10 years revocation. May be eligible for a hardship reinstatement after two years.
- Third offense 10 or more years after the second conviction, the same revocation periods as first offense apply.
- Fourth conviction, regardless of when prior convictions occurred: Mandatory permanent revocation. May be eligible for hardship reinstatement after five years. If incarcerated, the revocation period begins upon date of release from incarceration.
- DUI manslaughter: Mandatory permanent revocation. May be eligible for hardship reinstatement after five years, if there are no prior DUI related convictions.
- Manslaughter, DUI serious bodily injury or vehicular homicide convictions: Minimum three years revocation. DUI serious bodily injury having prior DUI conviction is the same as second – fourth bullet above.
Once you are charged, you have a ten-day window before your license is suspended. During this time, it is imperative that you apply for a hardship, or Business Purposes Only license. This type of license will allow you to drive back and forth to work and other necessary appointments.
The process is pretty simple and straightforward. You fill out a form, pay a fee and submit it to the local hearing office of the DMV. You will receive a phone call at a random time (as they don’t tell you when they will be calling) for a hearing. During the hearing you are asked a series of questions about why you need a hardship license and then you will agree to the terms and conditions.
The hearing officer will then approve or deny your application. If approved, you can go immediately to the DMV – but don’t drive as your license is STILL suspended! Once at the DMV you will pay a license reinstatement fee, have your picture taken, and a new driver’s license issued. It is at that point that you can now drive for business purposes only.
Business or Employment Reinstatement
- Suspension for driving with an unlawful alcohol level of .08 or above, or refusal to submit to breath, urine, or blood test, must show proof of enrollment in DUI school and apply for an administrative hearing for possible hardship reinstatement. For unlawful alcohol level, must serve 30 days without driver license or permit prior to eligibility for hardship reinstatement. For first refusal, must serve 90 days without driver license or permit prior to eligibility for hardship reinstatement. No hardship reinstatement for two or more refusals.
- Suspension for persons under the age of 21 driving with a breath alcohol level of .02 or above, must complete a Traffic Law and Substance Abuse Education course before hardship reinstatement. Persons with BAL of .05 or higher, must complete DUI program prior to eligibility for hardship reinstatement. Must serve 30 days without driver license or permit prior to eligibility for hardship reinstatement.
Once charged, you will be required to take some additional steps in order to keep your hardship license, such as attending a DUI school like I had to. This must be completed ASAP with the school submitting proof of completion. You will not be able to get your full license back until school is completed.
Once your six months is up and you completed DUI school and other requirements, you are free to drive wherever you want! You do not have to go back to the DMV unless you want to get a new driver’s license, as your Business Purposes Only license will be noted as such with a date on it. If you don’t care about that, there is no need to go back to the DMV.
Now, once you are convicted of driving under the influence, your license will be suspended AGAIN. This is a court-ordered suspension and is effective immediately. There is no ten-day grace period like there was with the administrative suspension.
Convictions that Require DUI School
- First conviction, must complete DUI school before hardship reinstatement. Customers who wait until revocation period ends before reinstatement must show proof of enrollment or completion for driver license to be reinstated. If a customer enrolls and is reinstated after the revocation period expires, failure to complete the DUI school within 90 days after reinstatement will result in license cancellation. The driver license cannot be reinstated until DUI school is completed.
- Second conviction in five years (five-year revocation) or third conviction in 10 years (10-year revocation), customer must complete DUI school following conviction.
- DUI manslaughter with no prior DUI-related conviction, permanent revocation. Customers must complete DUI school before hardship reinstatement.
- Customers who wait until revocation period expires must enroll in DUI school and pass the driver license exams to be reinstated. Failure to complete the school within 90 days after reinstatement will result in cancellation of the license until the school is completed.
- Reckless driving, if the court has reason to believe that the use of alcohol, chemical or controlled substances contributed to a violation of reckless driving, the person convicted of reckless driving must complete DUI school if ordered by the court.
Just like the administrative suspension, you can apply for a hardship license for your court-ordered suspension. I did it for both so I could continue to have transportation back and forth to work. You will follow the same process as before – filling out the form, paying the fee, having the hearing, and going to the DMV to pay the reinstatement fee and obtaining a new license.
Individuals convicted of a DUI, may have their driver license privilege reinstated for business or employment purposes. To apply for a reinstatement, please see the following guidelines.
- First conviction, must complete DUI school and apply to FLHSMV for hearing for possible hardship reinstatement. Mandatory ignition interlock device (IID) for up to six months for BAL of .15.
- Subsequent convictions, no hardship license except as provided below. Mandatory IID for one to two years if BAL is greater than .15.
- Second conviction within five years, five-year revocation. May apply for hardship reinstatement hearing after one year. Must complete DUI school and remain in the DUI supervision program for the remainder of the revocation period. Failure to report for counseling or treatment results in cancellation of the hardship license. Applicant may not have consumed any alcoholic beverage or controlled substance or driven a motor vehicle for 12 months prior to reinstatement. Mandatory IID for one to two years if BAL is greater than .15.
- Third conviction within 10 years of a prior conviction, 10-year revocation. May apply for hardship reinstatement hearing after two years. Must complete DUI school and remain in the DUI supervision program for the remainder of the revocation period. Failure to report for counseling or treatment results in the cancellation of the hardship license. Applicant may not have consumed any alcoholic beverage or controlled substance or driven a motor vehicle for 12 months prior to reinstatement. Mandatory IID for two years.
- DUI manslaughter with no prior DUI-related conviction, permanent revocation. May be eligible for hardship reinstatement after five years have expired from date of revocation or from date of term of incarceration, provided the following requirements have been met:
- Applicant has not been arrested for a drug-related offense for at least five years prior to the hearing;
- Applicant has not driven a motor vehicle without a license for at least five years prior to the hearing;
- Applicant has been alcohol and drug-free for at least five years prior to the hearing; and
- Applicant must complete a DUI school and be supervised under the DUI program for the remainder of the revocation period. Failure to report for counseling or treatment results in cancellation of the hardship license.
If these requirements have been met, an IID is required for two years.
- Manslaughter, DUI serious bodily injury, or vehicular homicide convictions, three-year revocation. May immediately apply for hardship reinstatement hearing. Must complete DUI school or advanced driver improvement course.
Again, once your six-month court-ordered suspension is over, you can resume driving. If you want to go to the DMV to obtain a license without the BPO note on it you can, otherwise, you can continue to use the license you currently possess.
Yes, all of this is a pain.
It’s designed to be inconvenient.
It’s designed to generate revenue for the state.
It’s designed to make it difficult for you so you never drink and drive again.
The important thing to remember is that there is a way for you to continue to have transportation to and from work after being charged and/or convicted of driving under the influence.
What can you do with a Business Purposes Only license?
Here’s important information to keep in mind. The law is very broad when it comes to defining what you can and can’t do with a Business Purposes Only license. By definition, it allows you to drive:
- To and from work
- School or educational purposes
- Necessary on-the-job driving
- To go to church, or
- To see a doctor or medical reasons.
It does not allow you to go to a restaurant for dinner and doesn’t specifically say you can even go to the grocery store.
If you have a BPO, play by the rules. You don’t want to end up losing your license for a longer period of time. I was very cautious as to what I did with my hardship license. I only drove to and from work, to my community service locations, to one emergency appointment, and if I needed to stop at the grocery store, I would make sure I did it on my way home from work – in uniform – and only to the closest store to my home.
Otherwise, I relied upon friends, Uber, Lyft, Instacart, Uber Eats, and Doordash for everything else.