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- Expert: Steve Prager — Criminal defense attorney and former prosecutor; supervised the domestic violence prosecution unit in El Paso County before founding Prager Law
- Experience: Licensed in Colorado for 8 years; handled 40+ jury trials across the state; extensive background in criminal charges, DUI charges, domestic violence and serious criminal cases
- Last updated: October 2025
Question: is your license suspended immediately after a DUI in Colorado? Your driver’s license is not technically suspended the moment you’re arrested for DUI in Colorado, but the administrative process that leads to suspension begins immediately. You’ll receive a temporary driving permit that allows you to drive for seven days after your arrest, during which time you must request a hearing to challenge the suspension. If you fail to request this hearing within seven days, your license will be automatically suspended. If you need immediate legal help after an arrest, consider contacting a Denver DUI lawyer.
Is Your License Suspended Immediately After a DUI in Colorado?
Your driving privileges are not immediately suspended upon DUI arrest in Colorado, but you receive a temporary permit that expires in seven days unless you take action. The arresting officer will typically confiscate your physical driver’s license and issue you a Notice of Revocation that serves as a temporary driving permit. This seven-day window is critical because it represents your only opportunity to request an administrative hearing to challenge the impending license suspension.
What Happens to Your Driving Privileges Right After a DUI Arrest?
When you’re arrested for DUI in Colorado, the officer will confiscate your physical driver’s license on the spot. You retain driving privileges temporarily—you are not immediately left without the ability to drive. Instead, you’ll receive a Notice of Revocation that functions as a temporary driving permit, allowing you to drive legally for the next seven days.
This temporary permit isn’t just a courtesy; it’s designed to give you time to understand your options and take necessary action. During these seven days, you can drive without restrictions, whether that’s getting to work, handling family responsibilities, or meeting with an attorney. However, this grace period comes with a critical deadline that you cannot afford to miss.
The seven-day deadline begins the day after your arrest. If you were arrested on a Tuesday, Wednesday becomes day one of your seven-day window. This deadline does not extend for weekends, holidays, or any other circumstances. By midnight on the seventh day, your temporary permit expires, and without proper action, your regular driving privileges will be suspended automatically.
Understanding Colorado’s Two-Track DUI System
Colorado operates under a dual-track system that separates your DUI case into two distinct processes: criminal charges and administrative license actions. Think of these as two different trains running on parallel tracks—they’re related to the same incident, but they follow different routes and arrive at different destinations.
- The criminal case proceeds through the court system and can result in fines, jail time, probation, community service, and other penalties upon conviction.
- The administrative case is handled by the Colorado Department of Revenue’s Division of Motor Vehicles and focuses solely on your driving privileges.
These two processes run independently, which means you can win one and lose the other. You might beat the criminal charges but still lose your license administratively, or you might keep your license through the administrative process but later face criminal penalties. The deadlines, procedures, evidence standards, and potential outcomes differ between the two tracks, making it necessary to address both simultaneously. For immediate representation that understands both tracks, speak with an experienced Denver DUI attorney.
The Critical Seven-Day Window After Arrest
The most important deadline in any Colorado DUI case is the seven-day limit to request an administrative hearing. Missing this deadline has immediate and severe consequences that are difficult to reverse. The Department of Revenue strictly enforces this timeline with no exceptions for lack of knowledge, weekend delays, or other circumstances.
To request a hearing, you must take the following steps within the seven-day window:
- Contact the Colorado Department of Revenue within seven days of your arrest
- Pay the required fee of $95
- Specify the type of violation you’re facing (refusing a chemical test or having a BAC over the legal limit)
- Submit your request by phone, mail, or online, ensuring it’s received within the seven-day window
When you successfully request a hearing within the deadline, your driving privileges remain valid until the hearing occurs and a decision is made. Hearings are typically scheduled within 60 days of your request, giving you additional time to prepare your defense and maintain your ability to drive to work, school, and handle daily responsibilities.
If you miss this seven-day deadline, however, your license will be automatically suspended with no opportunity for administrative review. This automatic suspension begins at midnight on the seventh day after your arrest, leaving you without legal driving privileges and no immediate recourse through the administrative process.
Temporary Driving Permits and Immediate Driving Rights
The Notice of Revocation you receive after arrest provides important driving privileges for the first seven days, but understanding its limitations is vital. This temporary permit allows you to drive without restrictions during this brief window, but it expires at midnight on the seventh day after your arrest unless you’ve successfully requested a hearing.
For most drivers, this temporary permit functions just like your regular license during the seven-day period. You can drive to work, take your children to school, run errands, and handle all your normal driving needs. However, commercial drivers face additional complications, as the temporary permit may not authorize commercial vehicle operation, creating immediate employment concerns.
If you successfully request a hearing within the seven-day limit, your driving privileges typically remain valid until the hearing occurs. This extension can provide weeks or even months of continued driving ability while you prepare your case. However, if the hearing officer rules against you, the suspension begins immediately following that adverse decision.
Types of License Suspensions in Colorado DUI Cases
Colorado imposes different types of license suspensions depending on the circumstances of your arrest, your blood alcohol content, and your driving history. Understanding these variations helps you prepare for what you might face and plan accordingly.
The suspension periods break down as follows:
- First-time DUI (BAC 0.08-0.15): 9-month license suspension
- Extreme DUI (BAC 0.15+) or test refusal: 9-month license suspension with a two-year ignition interlock requirement for first offense; refusal may result in a one-year revocation.
- Second offense within five years: 12-month license suspension
- Third offense: 24-month license suspension
- Drivers under 21: License suspension for any detectable alcohol under Colorado’s zero tolerance policy
- Commercial drivers: Disqualification from commercial driving privileges even for BAC below 0.08
These extended periods reflect Colorado’s enhanced penalties for higher BAC levels, repeat offenses, and refusal to cooperate with testing. Repeat offenders face substantially longer suspensions as the state recognizes the increased risk that multiple violations pose to public safety.
Colorado also has specific provisions for drivers under 21, who face license suspension for any detectable amount of alcohol under the state’s “zero tolerance” policy. Commercial drivers face disqualification from commercial driving privileges even for BAC levels below the standard 0.08 limit, often losing their livelihood even for a first offense. These administrative suspensions are separate from any license penalties imposed through the criminal court process, meaning you could face additional suspension time if convicted criminally.
Requesting and Preparing for Your Administrative Hearing
Once you’ve requested an administrative hearing within the seven-day deadline, preparation becomes key to protecting your driving privileges. These hearings are conducted by Department of Revenue hearing officers, not judges, and follow administrative procedures rather than criminal court rules.
The burden of proof in administrative hearings is lower than in criminal court, requiring only a preponderance of evidence rather than proof beyond a reasonable doubt. This means the hearing officer needs to find it more likely than not that the violation occurred, making your defense strategy vital.
During the hearing, you can present evidence, call witnesses, and challenge various aspects of your case. Common defense strategies include questioning whether the officer had reasonable suspicion for the initial traffic stop, whether proper procedures were followed during the arrest and testing process, and whether the testing equipment was properly calibrated and maintained.
You can also challenge the accuracy of chemical tests by examining maintenance records, questioning the chain of custody for blood or urine samples, and presenting evidence about medical conditions or other factors that might affect test results. Success at this hearing can preserve your driving privileges even if you’re later convicted in criminal court.
Having a DUI lawyer for your administrative hearing can substantially improve your chances of success. An experienced attorney understands the specific procedures and evidence standards that apply in these hearings and can identify weaknesses in the state’s case that might not be apparent to someone unfamiliar with the process.
Consequences of Missing the Seven-Day Deadline
Failing to request an administrative hearing within seven days of your DUI arrest triggers automatic license suspension with no opportunity for administrative review. This automatic suspension begins at midnight on the seventh day after your arrest, leaving you without legal driving privileges and facing a much more difficult path to restoration.
Once the automatic suspension takes effect, your options for restored driving privileges become limited and expensive. You cannot contest the suspension through the administrative process—that opportunity has passed permanently. Instead, you must either wait until the full suspension period expires or apply for early reinstatement after serving a portion of the suspension.
Early reinstatement typically requires several steps and significant expense. However, this early reinstatement requires:
- Installing an ignition interlock device on your vehicle
- Completing Level II alcohol education classes
- Obtaining SR-22 high-risk insurance coverage
- Paying substantial fees to the Department of Revenue
These requirements can cost thousands of dollars and take weeks or months to complete, during which time you remain unable to drive legally. The financial and practical consequences of missing this deadline far exceed the $95 cost of requesting the hearing, making prompt action necessary even if you’re uncertain about fighting the charges.
The difference between taking action within seven days and missing the deadline can be the difference between maintaining your driving privileges and losing them for months.
Getting Your License Back After Suspension
Reinstating your driver’s license after a DUI-related suspension involves several steps and requirements that vary based on your specific situation and the length of your suspension. The process can be complex, time-consuming, and expensive, making prevention through the administrative hearing process far preferable when possible.
For most first-time offenders, early reinstatement becomes available after serving one month of the suspension period. However, this early reinstatement requires installing an ignition interlock device on your vehicle, completing Level II alcohol education classes, and obtaining SR-22 insurance coverage.
The ignition interlock device must remain installed for the duration of the early reinstatement period, typically at least eight months for first-time offenders. These devices require breath samples before starting your vehicle and periodically while driving, and any violations—including failed tests or tampering attempts—can result in extended suspension periods.
Costs for reinstatement can be substantial and ongoing. Ignition interlock devices typically cost $100–$200 to install plus $60–$80 per month for monitoring. SR-22 insurance coverage can double or triple your insurance premiums. Administrative fees to the Department of Revenue add several hundred dollars more. Level II alcohol education classes cost additional hundreds of dollars and require significant time commitment.
Even after meeting all requirements and paying all fees, you may need to retake written and driving tests if your license has been suspended for an extended period. This adds additional time, stress, and expense to an already complicated process.
The complexity and cost of license reinstatement underscores why protecting your driving privileges from the beginning through the administrative hearing process is so important. Taking action within that critical seven-day window after arrest can save you thousands of dollars, months of inconvenience, and the stress of navigating Colorado’s license restoration requirements.
Key Takeaways:
- Request a hearing within seven days — this is the single most important action to preserve driving privileges.
- Pay the $95 fee and submit the hearing request promptly.
- Understand the two-track system: criminal case vs. administrative license actions.
- Missing the deadline leads to automatic suspension and costly reinstatement requirements like ignition interlock and SR-22.
- Seek legal help quickly to protect your rights and driving ability. If you want experienced counsel, contact a DUI attorney.
Do You Need Legal Help with Your Colorado Criminal Charges?
If you or someone you love is facing criminal charges in Colorado, don’t wait — contact the Colorado criminal defense lawyers at Prager Law today. Criminal charges are terrifying, and you deserve more than a cookie-cutter defense. At Prager Law, we provide personalized legal representation backed by real trial experience and insider knowledge of how prosecutors think.
Founding attorney Steve Prager is a former supervisor in the El Paso County District Attorney’s Office. He’s handled more than forty jury trials and trained new prosecutors — giving him rare insight into how cases are built and, more importantly, where they fall apart. That experience can be the difference between a conviction and a second chance.
Call 303-483-4452 or contact us online to discuss your case. We’ll review your situation, explain your legal options, and start building a strategic defense — one built just for you.
