Reader question:

If I get an SR22 for DUI, how long must I have the form on file?

Jane

Thanks for the question, Jane.

Well, if all goes well, you should only have the SR22 for DUI form on file for three years, unless you are in Texas, in which case, two years. This is if you do everything correctly and quickly. See, normally, you are actually on probation for five years, which means that you do not return to normalcy until five years have passed since you restored your license. You can bypass two of those years by having an SR22 form on file continuously for the first three years, but if you decide to wait it out and not reinstate your license, in most states you will have to wait the whole five years.

Of course, how many years you must file an SR22 for DUI will also hinge on how many DUIs you have had before. If this DUI is only your first DUI, then you will do three years along with the people who racked up too many traffic points or drove without insurance and so on. In some states, though, if you have been convicted of multiple DUIs, then you will have to file SR22 for DUI for even longer, with the amount going up to as much as 10 years.

Cheers,

Fashun Guadarrama.