Virginia Driving Laws



Information on Virginia driving laws and Virginia traffic laws...

License Suspension and Revocation

When you accept a Virginia driver's license, you also accept responsibility for obeying Virginia traffic laws and safety laws. If you repeatedly violate those laws, Virginia's Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) is authorized to suspend or revoke your driver’s license.

If your license is suspended, your privilege to drive has been withdrawn temporarily. You may pay the required fees and reinstate your license at the end of the suspension period unless your license expires during that period. You must also show proof of legal presence.

Revocation, on the other hand, means that your privilege to drive has been terminated. Your driving privilege may be restored if you reapply for a driver’s license after the revocation period has passed. You must also show proof of legal presence. You must successfully complete the vision screening, two-part knowledge exam and road skills tests and pay the required fees when you reapply.

Your license will be revoked or suspended if you are convicted of any of the following offenses:

  • Making a false statement to DMV
  • Failing to stop and identify yourself at the scene of a crash if someone has been injured or killed
  • Operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs
  • Voluntary or involuntary manslaughter resulting from driving a motor vehicle
  • Committing a drug offense, regardless of whether or not a motor vehicle is involved
  • Committing a felony involving the use of a motor vehicle
  • Taking a driver’s license examination for another person, or appearing for another person to renew a license. If convicted of this offense, your license will be revoked for ten years.
  • Eluding police

You will be required to satisfactorily complete a driver improvement clinic if you are convicted of a safety belt, child safety seat or demerit-point traffic violation committed when you were under age 18, . No safe driving points will be awarded for attending the clinic.

In accordance with Virginia driving laws, if you do not satisfactorily complete the clinic within 90 days, DMV will suspend your permit or license until the clinic is completed.

DMV will, after your second demerit point conviction, suspend your permit or license for 90 days. You may be granted restricted driving privileges by the court for the purpose of driving between your home and work place, provided there is no other means of transportation.

DMV will revoke your permit or license for one year or until you reach age 18, whichever is longer, after a third demerit point conviction. Restricted driving privileges cannot be granted by the court.



You will be required to complete a driver improvement clinic after your first demerit point conviction (including safety belt and child restraint violations) if you are age 18 or 19.

Under Virginia driving laws, if you are age 18 or older and you accumulate eight demerit points in 12 months (or 12 points in 24 months), you will receive an advisory letter that cautions you about the consequences of violating the law.

If you accumulate 12 demerit points in 12 months (or 18 points in 24 months), you will be required to complete a clinic. You must enroll in and satisfactorily complete the driver improvement clinic within 90 days or your driver’s license will be suspended.

If you accumulate 18 demerit points in 12 months (or 24 points in 24 months), your driving privilege will be suspended for 90 days. Additionally, you must complete a driver improvement clinic before your privilege will be restored.

In accordance with Virginia driving laws, once your privilege is restored, you will be placed on a six month probation. You will not be granted restricted driving privileges. If you are under age 20, a computer-based driver improvement clinic will not satisfy a driver improvement requirement. You must satisfactorily complete a clinic that provides classroom instruction.

Your license also may be suspended or revoked under the provisions of Virginia traffic laws if you:

  • Become delinquent in your child support payments by 90 days or $5,000
  • Fail to pay court fines, costs and fees for traffic or criminal convictions within 15 days
  • Fail to satisfactorily complete a required driver improvement clinic within the specified time
  • Are convicted of making a bomb threat
  • Are convicted of failing to pay for gasoline purchases
  • Become physically or mentally unable to drive safely
  • Give false information on a driver’s license application
  • Receive 18 or more demerit points in a 12-month period or 24 demerit points in a 24-month period
  • Register an uninsured motor vehicle without paying the uninsured motor vehicle fee
  • Operate or permit operation of your uninsured vehicle

If you are convicted of driving while your license is revoked or suspended, the court may revoke or suspend your license for the same amount of time for which it had previously been revoked or suspended. This will be in addition to any other penalties, possibly including jail time.

Under Virginia driving laws, a third conviction within ten years for driving on a license suspended because of a DUI-related offense is a class 6 felony and carries a mandatory term of one to five years or a fine of $2,500 or both.

For more information on Virginia driving laws, please visit the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles.

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