DUI and Work Permits

Many people who are convicted of DUI are eligible to obtain a work permit while their driver's license is still suspended.  Florida statute section 322.271 authorizes two different types of work permits:

1.  A business-purposes-only permit "means a driving privilege that is limited to any driving necessary to maintain livelihood, including driving to and from work, necessary on-the-job driving, driving for educational purposes, and driving for church and for medical purposes."

2.  An employment-purposes-only permit "means a driving privilege that is limited to driving to and from work and any necessary on-the-job driving required by an employer or occupation."

•  In order to acquire a work permit after a first DUI conviction, a person must have completed DUI school and applied to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles ("DHSMV") for a hearing regarding possible hardship reinstatement.

•  In order to acquire a work permit after a second DUI conviction that occurs within 5 years of a prior DUI conviction, a person may apply for a hardship license after his license has been suspended for one year.  Such an individual must have completed DUI school, he must remain in the DUI supervision program for the remainder of the suspension period, and he may not have consumed any alcohol or controlled substances or driven a motor vehicle for 12 months prior to obtaining a hardship license.

•  In order to acquire a work permit after a third DUI conviction that occurs within 10 years of a prior DUI conviction, a person may apply for a hardship license after his license has been suspended for two years.  The individual must have completed DUI school, he must remain in the DUI supervision program for the remainder of the suspension period, and he may not have consumed any alcohol or controlled substances or driven a motor vehicle for 12 months prior to obtaining a hardship license.

•  In order to acquire a work permit after a DUI conviction causing serious bodily injury, a person must have completed DUI school and applied to DHSMV for a hearing regarding possible hardship reinstatement.

•  If a person has been convicted of DUI manslaughter and has no prior DUI-related convictions, he may apply for a hardship license if he meets the following requirements:

a.  5 years must have passed from the date of suspension or from the date when he was released from jail;

b.  He has not been arrested for a drug-related offense for at least 5 years prior to the hearing at DHSMV;

c.  He has been alcohol-free and drug-free for at least 5 years prior to the hearing;

d.  He must have completed DUI school and must be supervised by the DUI program for the remainder of the suspension period.