In California, a minor in possession of alcohol in public is a misdemeanor under Business and Professions Code 25662. A first offense carries a $250 fine or 24 to 32 hours of community service, plus a mandatory one-year driver’s license suspension even if no car was involved. After California’s penalty assessments, the real cost of that $250 fine runs closer to $1,000. Most people charged are eligible for judicial diversion, which can end the case with no conviction at all.
What Counts as Possession
BPC 25662 applies to anyone under 21 who possesses an alcoholic beverage on a street, highway, or in any public place or place open to the public.1California Legislative Information. California Business and Professions Code 25662 – Possession of Alcoholic Beverage by Person Under 21 A private house party sits outside this particular statute because the location is not public, though other statutes covering consumption or furnishing alcohol to minors can still reach that conduct.
Possession is not limited to holding a cup. A bottle in your backpack counts. A cooler in the trunk of the car you brought counts. The question courts ask is whether the alcohol was within your control, not whether it was in your hand at the moment of the stop.
An alcoholic beverage means any liquid or solid containing one-half of one percent or more of alcohol by volume that is fit for drinking.2California Legislative Information. California Business and Professions Code 23004 – Alcoholic Beverage Beer, wine, spirits, and nearly every hard seltzer clear that line.
What a First Offense Actually Costs
The statute gives the judge two options for a first conviction: a $250 fine or 24 to 32 hours of community service.1California Legislative Information. California Business and Professions Code 25662 – Possession of Alcoholic Beverage by Person Under 21 One or the other, not both. The Legislature has said community service should be performed at an alcohol or drug treatment facility or a county coroner’s office when one is available locally.
The $250 figure understates the bill. Under the 2026 Uniform Bail and Penalty Schedule, a $250 base fine generates roughly $808 in surcharges and assessments on top, bringing the total to about $1,058.3Superior Court of California. Uniform Bail and Penalty Schedule Effective January 1, 2026 The exact figure varies slightly by county because one assessment is optional at the local level, and a separate restitution fine of up to $150 can be added. Plan on paying four to five times the posted fine.
BPC 25662 does not itself require enrollment in an alcohol education program. A judge can order one as a condition of probation or diversion, but the statute lists only the fine or community service.
The License Suspension
This is usually the part that stings. Vehicle Code 13202.5 requires the court to suspend driving privileges for one year for anyone 13 or older convicted of an alcohol-related offense, which includes MIP.4California Legislative Information. California Vehicle Code 13202.5 – Suspension or Revocation by Court The court takes the physical license and sends a certified abstract to the DMV within 10 days.
The suspension applies whether or not a vehicle was involved. Holding a beer in a park with no car in sight still costs you the license for a year.
If the minor doesn’t have a license yet, the court orders the DMV to delay issuing one for a year after the person becomes eligible to drive.4California Legislative Information. California Vehicle Code 13202.5 – Suspension or Revocation by Court A 15-year-old convicted of MIP waits until 17 for a provisional, not 16.
A minor with a genuine need to drive for work, school, or family can petition for a restricted license. The court has discretion, and judges generally want to see that public transportation and other alternatives truly cannot meet the need before granting it.4California Legislative Information. California Vehicle Code 13202.5 – Suspension or Revocation by Court
Second and Later Offenses
A second conviction stays a misdemeanor but opens up a wider penalty range: a fine of up to $500, 36 to 48 hours of community service, or a combination of the two.1California Legislative Information. California Business and Professions Code 25662 – Possession of Alcoholic Beverage by Person Under 21 Unlike the first offense, the court can stack both. With assessments, a $500 base fine clears $2,000 out of pocket. Each additional conviction triggers another year of license suspension.4California Legislative Information. California Vehicle Code 13202.5 – Suspension or Revocation by Court
Narrow Exceptions
Delivering Alcohol for a Parent
BPC 25662 doesn’t apply when the minor’s only reason for possession is to deliver the alcohol at the direction of a parent, legal guardian, responsible adult relative, or an adult designated by the parent or guardian.1California Legislative Information. California Business and Professions Code 25662 – Possession of Alcoholic Beverage by Person Under 21 The same exception covers delivery during employment. A teenager carrying a six-pack from the car into the house for a parent is covered. Standing next to a parent in a public place with a drink in hand is not what the statute exempts.
911 Immunity
BPC 25667 shields an underage person from prosecution when they call 911 to report that they or someone else needs medical help because of alcohol consumption. The caller has to be the first person to make the 911 report. If the call is for someone else, the caller has to stay on scene until help arrives and cooperate with emergency responders and law enforcement.5California Legislative Information. California Business and Professions Code 25667 The immunity does not extend to drunk driving or other dangerous conduct.
Culinary and Hospitality Students
Students 18 or older enrolled in accredited hotel management, culinary arts, or wine and beer production programs may taste alcohol as part of coursework, under the supervision of an instructor at least 21 years old. The student may draw the beverage into the mouth but may not swallow it.6California Legislative Information. California Business and Professions Code 25668
Related Charges That Often Come With MIP
BPC 25662 covers possession. Other statutes cover related conduct and often appear on the same citation.
- Attempting to purchase alcohol under BPC 25658.5 is an infraction, not a misdemeanor. No jail exposure, no misdemeanor on the record. The fine and community service structure matches BPC 25662: up to $250 or 24 to 32 hours for a first offense, $500 or 36 to 48 hours for later ones. The one-year license suspension under Vehicle Code 13202.5 still applies.7California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. On-Sale Licensee Informational Guide – Minors
- Consuming alcohol on licensed premises under BPC 25658(b) is a misdemeanor with the same fine and community service structure as possession. A minor who is both holding and drinking from the same cup in a bar can be charged under more than one statute.
The difference between an infraction and a misdemeanor matters most for the long-term record. The up-front money is similar; the lingering effect on background checks is not.
Diversion: The Realistic Best Outcome
After the citation, the minor appears for arraignment and enters a plea. Prosecutors sometimes agree to reduce a misdemeanor possession charge to an infraction. The larger opportunity is judicial diversion under Penal Code 1001.95.
Under that statute, a judge can offer diversion at their own discretion, even over the prosecutor’s objection. The case is continued for up to 24 months while the minor completes conditions the judge sets, typically community service and alcohol education.8California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1001.95 – Misdemeanor Diversion MIP is not on the list of excluded offenses, so most minors charged under BPC 25662 qualify.
Complete the conditions, and the judge dismisses the charge. No conviction, nothing to disclose later as a conviction from the incident. Fall out of compliance, and the court can reinstate the criminal proceedings where they left off.8California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1001.95 – Misdemeanor Diversion Diversion is not guaranteed, but it is available in nearly every MIP case and is the strongest outcome short of outright dismissal.
Cleaning the Record After a Conviction
Adult Expungement
Someone convicted of misdemeanor MIP as an adult can petition under Penal Code 1203.4 to withdraw the guilty plea, enter a not-guilty plea, and have the case dismissed after probation. The court can also grant relief in the interest of justice before probation formally ends. The relief releases the person from most penalties and disabilities of the conviction, but the original conviction still has to be disclosed when applying for public office or state licensing, and it can still be used as a prior in any later prosecution.9California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1203.4 – Dismissal After Probation For most private employers, a dismissed conviction is a meaningful improvement.
Juvenile Record Sealing
If the case was handled in juvenile court, the minor can petition to seal records five years after the juvenile court’s jurisdiction ended, or any time after turning 18. The court must find no felony or misdemeanor involving moral turpitude since the case ended and that rehabilitation has been achieved.10California Legislative Information. California Welfare and Institutions Code 781 – Sealing of Records Sealed records are treated as if they never existed for most purposes, including employment background checks.
Collateral Consequences
The courtroom penalties are rarely the whole story. A misdemeanor MIP can surface years later on applications a teenager isn’t thinking about yet.
- Military enlistment usually requires a conduct waiver for a misdemeanor conviction. Waivers are not automatic and typically call for documentation of the circumstances and character references. Multiple offenses compound the problem.
- Federal financial aid is not affected. Federal Student Aid limits eligibility restrictions to incarceration and certain sex-offense commitments, not alcohol convictions.11Federal Student Aid. Eligibility for Students With Criminal Convictions
- College applications and private scholarships often ask about criminal history. A misdemeanor doesn’t automatically disqualify an applicant, but it has to be explained and can cost close calls.
- State professional licenses in California require disclosure of the original conviction even after expungement under PC 1203.4.
The practical conclusion is the same in every category: avoiding a conviction through diversion is worth real effort, and if that window closes, pursuing expungement or sealing as soon as eligibility opens is the next best move.
On Federal Land
National parks, military bases, and other federal property in California follow their own rules. National Park Service regulations separately prohibit alcohol possession by anyone under 21 on NPS land.12eCFR. 36 CFR 2.35 – Alcoholic Beverages and Controlled Substances On other federal property without a specific federal rule, the Assimilative Crimes Act lets federal courts apply California’s MIP law as if the federal land were state territory.13Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 13 – Laws of States Adopted for Areas Within Federal Jurisdiction A citation written by a federal officer goes to federal court, which means California’s diversion statute under PC 1001.95 is not on the table, and the case shows up in the federal system rather than state records.