Administrative Alcohol FAQs

When a police officer stops you while driving and suspects you have been drinking, the officer may ask you to take some tests like walking heel to toe or standing on one leg. These tests will help the officer decide if you should be arrested and submit to a test to determine the alcohol level of your breath, blood, or urine. The result of this test is known as your Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) level.

If your BAC level is .08% or more (or, for minors, a BAC level of .020% or more), a police officer will take your license and give you a Notice of Suspension/Revocation. This notice tells you that you will not be eligible to legally drive (your license will be suspended or revoked) after 15 days. The notice includes a 15-day driving permit that you may get if the officer indicates this on the notice. The notice also includes a form that allows you to request a hearing.  If you are granted a hearing, you may continue to legally drive until 15 days after a decision is mailed to you.

For more information visit our Driving While Intoxicated web page.

For information about reinstating a Missouri driving privilege, visit our License Reinstatement Requirements web page.

Administrative Alcohol suspensions and revocations are a permanent part of the record and can never be removed.

If your driving privilege is suspended, you may be eligible for a Restricted Driving Privilege (RDP). For more information, visit our Restricted Driving Privilege (RDP) web page.

If your driving privilege is revoked, you may also be eligible for a Limited Driving Privilege (LDP). For more information, visit our Limited Driving Privilege (LDP) web page.

Within 15 days from the date the Notice of Suspension/Revocation of Your Driving Privilege (Form 2385) is issued to you, a written request for hearing must be received by or postmarked to:

Missouri Department of Revenue
ATTN: General Counsel's Office
PO Box 475
Jefferson City MO 65105-0475
FAX: (573) 751-7151

The written request may be submitted by you or your attorney of record. The bottom portion of your Form 2385 may be used for this purpose.

• You must indicate on the hearing request whether you want to have your hearing in-person (at one of our regional in-person hearing locations) or by telephone. If you do not request an in-person hearing, a telephone hearing will be scheduled.
• If a hearing is granted, a permit to drive will be mailed to you if you have surrendered your driver license and are eligible to drive in Missouri. The permit will allow you to drive until 15 days after the decision from the hearing is mailed to you.
• Prior to a telephone hearing only, a copy of the officer's arrest report is sent to you at no fee.
• Your hearing date and time will be mailed to you. If you have hired an attorney, please provided the attorney's full name and current mailing address on your request for hearing.
• If you decide not to appear at the in-person hearing, you must notify the Missouri Department of Revenue in writing, on or prior to the date of the hearing, whether you intend to submit the matter upon the records (officer’s report) or waive your right to hearing. Otherwise, if you do not appear, you will be in default and a decision sustaining your license suspension or revocation will be entered by the hearing officer.
• If you do not request a hearing within 15 days from the date the Form 2385 is issued to you, your hearing will be denied and no further appeal is possible.

If you wish to appeal your hearing decision, you must file the petition for judicial review in the county of your arrest.

An SR-22 form is a form from your insurance company that shows your motor vehicle has liability insurance.

You need to file the SR-22 form for two (2) years from the starting date of your suspension or revocation. The SR-22 is not required for minors suspended for the first time testing .020% or more.

For information regarding Substance Awareness Traffic Offender Program (SATOP) courses, visit the Department of Mental Health (DMH) Division of Behavioral Health website.

If you have an alcohol offense, such as an Administrative Alcohol suspension or revocation on your driver record, the law requires you to complete a Substance Awareness Traffic Offender Program (SATOP) for reinstatement.

If your driver record shows more than one alcohol- or drug-related law enforcement contact, you are required to have an Ignition Interlock Device (IID) installed on any vehicle you operate. You must maintain the device for a minimum period of six months from the reinstatement date. You will be monitored during the last three months of the six-month period. If you have any violations, as determined by the device manufacturer during the monitoring period, your requirement to maintain the device will be extended until you complete a three-consecutive month period without violation. Violations are defined in 7 CSR 60-2.010 (refer to "violations reset" language).

For more information, visit our Ignition Interlock Device (IID) web page.