To run a Broward County driver’s license check, use the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV) online portal at mydmvportal.flhsmv.gov. It’s free, takes about 30 seconds, and tells you whether your driving privileges are valid, suspended, or revoked.1Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Driver License Check The Broward County Clerk of Courts links to the same tool, because unresolved Broward traffic citations are one of the most common reasons a Florida license quietly ends up suspended.
Running the Check
Open the FLHSMV Driver License Check page, type your Florida license number into the field, complete the CAPTCHA, and click search. The system pulls your record from the state database and shows your current status immediately.
Your Florida license number is 13 characters: the first letter of your last name followed by 12 digits.2U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Florida Driver’s License and ID Card Information Copy it off your physical card exactly, with or without the hyphens the form displays (for example, Z123-456-78-901-0). A single wrong digit returns nothing, and the portal won’t guess.
FLHSMV keeps these records under Florida law, which requires the department to maintain a file on every licensed driver that includes crash reports, court convictions, and any suspension or revocation orders.3Florida Statutes. Florida Code 322.20 – Records of the Department; Fees; Destruction of Records The free online check gives you the current status; a formal driving history is a separate paid request.
What Your Status Result Means
The portal returns one of a few labels, and each one points you toward a different next step.
Valid means your driving privileges are current with no restrictions or holds. Nothing to do.
Suspended means the state has temporarily pulled your privileges. Common triggers include accumulating too many points, letting your insurance lapse, failing to pay a citation, or missing a court date. The word to focus on is temporarily: once you clear the underlying issue and pay a reinstatement fee, you can get your license back.
Revoked is more serious. Revocation terminates your driving privileges, and you can’t fix it just by paying a fee. Florida law lists the offenses that trigger mandatory revocation, including DUI, vehicular manslaughter, using a vehicle to commit a felony, and leaving the scene of a crash involving injuries.4Florida Senate. Florida Code 322.26 – Mandatory Revocation of License by Department Three reckless driving convictions within 12 months also results in revocation.
Why Broward Citations Trip Up So Many Drivers
If your status comes back as anything other than valid, the cause in Broward County often traces to an unresolved traffic ticket. The Broward County Clerk of Courts runs a separate case search portal where you can look up pending citations, outstanding fines, and missed court dates.5Broward County Clerk of Courts. Case Search – Public Outstanding balances can be paid through the Clerk’s online payment portal.6PayItBrowardClerk. PayItBrowardClerk – Broward County Clerk of Courts Payment Portal
The timeline matters. Under Florida law, if you fail to pay a traffic penalty on time, skip driver improvement school, or miss a hearing, the Clerk must notify FLHSMV within 10 days. The department then mails a suspension order that takes effect 20 days later.7Florida Senate. Florida Code 318.15 – Failure to Comply With Civil Penalty or to Appear; Penalty The suspension stays on your record for seven years even after you eventually clear it. Plenty of drivers find out only at a traffic stop.
How Points Lead to a Suspension
Florida assigns points for every moving violation conviction, and the totals stack toward escalating suspensions:8Florida Statutes. Florida Code 322.27 – Authority of Department to Suspend or Revoke Driver License or Identification Card
- 12 points in 12 months: suspension up to 30 days
- 18 points in 18 months: suspension up to 3 months
- 24 points in 36 months: suspension up to 1 year
Points carry across tiers. A driver who already served a 30-day suspension at 12 points doesn’t reset; those same points still count toward the 18-point and 24-point thresholds. A couple of speeding tickets and a red-light violation can get you closer to the first tier than you’d expect.
What You’ll Actually Owe
Florida sets base fines by statute. The most common ones:9Florida Statutes. Florida Code 318.18 – Amount of Penalties
- Standard moving violation: $60
- Speeding 6–9 mph over: $25
- Speeding 10–14 mph over: $100
- Speeding 15–19 mph over: $150
- Speeding 20–29 mph over: $175
- Speeding 30+ mph over: $250
- Passing a stopped school bus: $200 to $400
- Nonmoving violation: $30
These are the base amounts. Court costs, surcharges, and county fees push the actual total noticeably higher, and fines double in school zones and construction zones. If your ticket already triggered a suspension, you’ll also owe a separate reinstatement fee on top of the original penalty.
Reinstating a Suspended License
Reinstatement is a sequence, not a single payment, and skipping any part leaves your license suspended even after you’ve handed over money. For a suspension caused by an unpaid citation or missed court date, FLHSMV lays out the path: contact the traffic court in the county where the citation was issued and satisfy whatever that court requires, whether paying the fine, attending a hearing, or completing driver improvement school. The Clerk’s office then electronically notifies FLHSMV that you’re cleared. You pay the reinstatement fee at any Florida driver license service center or by calling 850-617-3000.10Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Traffic Citations or Court Suspensions
If the ticket came from another state, you’ll need a paid receipt bearing the court seal from the county where you were cited, then take that proof to a Florida service center or mail it to the Bureau of Motorist Compliance in Tallahassee with your reinstatement fee.10Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Traffic Citations or Court Suspensions
Pay the fine and pay the reinstatement fee. They’re separate obligations, and clearing one doesn’t clear the other. Once both are done, run your status through the FLHSMV check again to confirm.
For Broward citations specifically, the Clerk of Courts is where you’ll satisfy the court side before FLHSMV will process the reinstatement.11Broward County Clerk of Courts. Traffic and Misdemeanor
Don’t Drive Until the Status Reads Valid
Driving on a suspended or revoked license is a criminal matter if you knew about the suspension, and the state assumes you did if FLHSMV mailed the notice to the address on file:12Florida Senate. Florida Code 322.34 – Driving While License Suspended, Revoked, Canceled, or Disqualified
- First offense: second-degree misdemeanor, up to 60 days in jail and up to a $500 fine
- Second offense: first-degree misdemeanor, up to 1 year in jail and up to a $1,000 fine
- Third offense: first-degree misdemeanor with a mandatory minimum of 10 days in jail
The charge jumps to a third-degree felony, punishable by up to 5 years in prison, on a third or subsequent offense if any of the violations involved a DUI-related suspension, a refused breath test, a crash causing death or serious injury, or fleeing law enforcement.12Florida Senate. Florida Code 322.34 – Driving While License Suspended, Revoked, Canceled, or Disqualified Habitual traffic offenders face an automatic third-degree felony regardless of how many prior offenses they have.
Even without knowledge of the suspension, you’re still looking at a moving violation with civil penalties and added points. Running the online check before you drive is the cheapest way to avoid the whole problem.
If You Need to Drive Before Reinstatement
If your license is suspended or revoked and you genuinely can’t go without driving, Florida offers two restricted licenses:13Florida Senate. Florida Code 322.271 – Authority to Modify Revocation, Cancellation, or Suspension Order
- Business purposes only: covers driving to and from work, on-the-job driving, and trips for education, church, and medical needs
- Employment purposes only: limited strictly to commuting and driving required by your employer
You have to show the department that losing your license creates a genuine hardship, meaning you can’t maintain your livelihood or support your family without driving. The department typically requires completion of an approved driver training course, and for DUI-related suspensions a substance abuse education course and evaluation. Letters of recommendation from community members, law enforcement, or judges may also be required.13Florida Senate. Florida Code 322.271 – Authority to Modify Revocation, Cancellation, or Suspension Order
Not everyone qualifies. Drivers with two or more DUI convictions, or two or more breath-test refusal suspensions, are generally ineligible for any restricted license. Driving outside the purposes listed on your permit is treated the same as driving on a suspended license.