Driving On A Suspended License In Arizona – Frequently Asked Questions

There are three main difference between a criminal and a civil ticket for driving on a suspended license:

• • When you get a criminal ticket, you have technically been arrested, even if the police did not take you to the station or jail. Most police officers do what is called a “cite and release”. This means they issue the criminal citation, and then release the driver because the driver promises to show up in court at a future date.
  • Jail or probation are possible with a criminal ticket, but not with a civil ticket.
  • If you are convicted of a criminal driving on a suspended license, you will have a criminal background. This means if you are asked about criminal convictions on a job or school application, you will have to disclose the conviction. A civil ticket does not result in any criminal background.

See A.R.S. 28-3482 for the civil statute. If the license suspension is due to:

• • not paying a fine, or
  • failing to appear in court

Then it is a civil violation to be driving on a suspended license.

Consequences will be limited to a fine of up to $500 plus court fees and surcharges. The police are not allowed to tow or impound your car for this violation.

If you can get your license reinstated, the judge has the discretion to dismiss the charge.

See A.R.S. 28-3473 for the criminal statute. It reads:

A person may not operate a motor vehicle on a public highway if the person’s privilege to drive a motor vehicle is suspended, revoked, canceled or refused or if the person is disqualified from driving.

If your privilege to drive has been taken away for any reason other than a failure to appear in court or for the non-payment of a fine, and you continue to drive, the charge of driving on a suspended license will be criminal.

Possible Penalties:

Driving on a suspended license is a class 1 misdemeanor. This means the following is possible under the law:

• Fines up to $2,500 plus surcharges and court assessments that could nearly double the total fine
• Up to 6 months in jail.
• Up to 3 years probation

Likely Penalties:

• Class 1 misdemeanor conviction.
• Fines in the $300-$600 range
• This is not a moving violation, so there are no points.
• Jail is extremely unlikely, even in egregious situations.

Possible Collateral Consequences:

• Increased insurance rates
• Immigration issues
• Having to disclose a criminal conviction on job applications

For a civil charge, get your license reinstated and see if the judge will dismiss it. Otherwise, just pay the fine and move on.

For a criminal charge, get your license reinstated if at all possible. Sometimes this is not possible due to the circumstances and timing of the suspension. Or if there is a revocation, it may take too long to apply for a new license. Usually in a criminal case, you will have at least 2 or 3 months to get your license squared away before you run out of time.

If you don’t know what’s going on with your license, get a copy of your driving record. If your license is out of a state other than Arizona, you may need to get two records – one from your home state and one from Arizona. Even if you don’t have an Arizona license, Arizona will have a driving record for you if you’ve ever had a ticket in Arizona.

Once you get your license reinstated, it may be possible to negotiate a civil plea agreement with the prosecution.

A license suspension is a temporary removal of the privilege to drive. A suspended license can be reinstated by paying a small reinstatement fee once the underlying issue causing the suspension is resolved. Sometimes this can even be done online.

A license can be suspended for a variety of reasons:

• Too many points on your driving record in a given period of time.
• A DUI conviction
• Failure to complete traffic survival school
• A reckless driving or aggressive driving conviction
• Not having insurance

A revoked license is different than a suspended license.  A revocation is a termination of the privilege to drive, whereas a suspension is a temporary removal of the privilege to drive. In order to reinstate a revoked license, the driver will need to complete an investigation packet and reapply for a license. The driver may also be required to obtain an SR-22 certificate as a condition of reapplying.

Reasons for a revocation include:

• Aggravated DUI conviction
• Two reckless driving conviction within 24 months
• Two DUI convictions within 7 years

It is often easier to reinstate a suspended license than it is a revoked license. For a suspension, as long as the suspension period has run, the driver just has to comply with any ADOT requirements and pay a reinstatement fee and good to go. When there is a revocation, there are some extra steps. 

It is worth noting that when there is a revocation, there are often suspensions at work too. We advise obtaining a copy of your Arizona driving record and making sure any suspensions are taken care of first before addressing the revocation.

Once a driver has confirmed that there are no suspensions or outstanding requirements, then they can address the revocation. This involves completing a revocation application. ADOT has a revocation packet with instructions and the application. You will note that the instructions say to contact ADOT/MVD first to make sure you are eligible to apply for reinstatement. 

Beware though, ADOT is frequently wrong about what needs to happen to reinstate from a revocation. If what ADOT is telling you isn’t making sense, it could be worthwhile to reach out to an attorney for help.

If your recoation is due to a DUI conviction, you will need to submit to an evaluation and have the evaluator sign off on the application affirming you are safe to drive. Then you can submit the revocation application. In our experience, you will get an answer within a few days.