A first-time DUI conviction in Virginia is a Class 1 misdemeanor. That means up to 12 months in jail, a mandatory minimum fine of $250 with a $2,500 ceiling, a one-year license revocation, required enrollment in the Virginia Alcohol Safety Action Program, and an ignition interlock device on any vehicle you drive. Once you add court costs, program fees, the interlock, higher insurance, and attorney fees, the real bill usually lands between $5,000 and $10,000 in the first year. The conviction stays on your record for life.
Jail Time and the Fine
Virginia’s Class 1 misdemeanor classification is the most serious misdemeanor tier in the state, and it caps a first-offense DUI at 12 months in jail and a $2,500 fine, either or both.1Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 18.2-11 – Punishment for Conviction of Misdemeanor For a standard first offense at a lower blood alcohol concentration, jail is not required, but the judge can still impose it.
The fine has a firm floor of $250 no matter the circumstances.2Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 18.2-270 – Penalty for Driving While Intoxicated; Subsequent Offense; Prior Conviction Judges routinely go higher depending on the facts.
When Jail Time Becomes Mandatory
Two facts can turn a discretionary sentence into a required one, even on a first offense.
The first is your BAC. A reading between 0.15 and 0.20 carries a mandatory minimum of five additional days in jail. Above 0.20, that mandatory minimum jumps to 10 days.2Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 18.2-270 – Penalty for Driving While Intoxicated; Subsequent Offense; Prior Conviction The judge cannot waive these.
The second is having a passenger 17 or younger in the vehicle. That adds a mandatory five days in jail plus an extra fine of $500 to $1,000 on top of everything else.2Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 18.2-270 – Penalty for Driving While Intoxicated; Subsequent Offense; Prior Conviction The enhancements stack. A first-offense driver at 0.18 BAC with a child in the car is looking at a 10-day minimum and the additional fine before the judge decides whether to add more.
Losing Your License and Getting Back Behind the Wheel
A first-offense conviction automatically revokes your Virginia driver’s license for one year the moment the judgment is entered.3Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 18.2-271 – Forfeiture of Drivers License for Driving While Intoxicated You do not keep driving while you sort things out.
Most first-offense defendants can petition for a restricted license, and Virginia gives adults two paths.4Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 18.2-270.1 – Ignition Interlock Systems; Penalty The default requires an ignition interlock device for at least 12 consecutive months with no alcohol-related violations, and in exchange you can drive anywhere for any purpose as long as every vehicle you use has a functioning interlock. On motion, the court can shorten the interlock requirement to six months, but only if it also restricts where you can drive. Those restrictions typically limit travel to work, school, VASAP sessions, medical appointments, religious services, court appearances, and child-related obligations.5Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 18.2-271.1 – Probation, Education, and Rehabilitation of Person Convicted
Virginia caps the interlock’s monthly monitoring fee at $95 plus applicable taxes.6Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Administrative Code 24VAC35-60-50 – Fees Over six to twelve months, that alone runs $570 to $1,140, before installation and removal.
When the revocation period ends, your license does not come back automatically. DMV charges a $220 reinstatement fee for DUI-related revocations.7Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles. Reinstatement Fees
VASAP and Probation
Every first-offense DUI conviction requires enrollment in the Virginia Alcohol Safety Action Program, usually called VASAP or ASAP.8The Commission on VASAP. FAQS The program screens you for alcohol dependency, assigns you to education or treatment, and supervises your compliance throughout the one-year probation period.9Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles. DMV 168 – DUI Information Sheet
The enrollment fee is set by statute at $250 to $300, reducible or waivable only for defendants who demonstrate indigency.5Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 18.2-271.1 – Probation, Education, and Rehabilitation of Person Convicted Education typically runs at least 20 hours over 10 weeks. If the screening identifies a more serious problem, VASAP can refer you to treatment at additional cost. Getting revoked from the program triggers separate consequences, including its own reinstatement process.
If You Refused the Breath or Blood Test
Virginia is an implied-consent state. Driving on Virginia roads counts as agreement to submit to a blood or breath test when an officer has probable cause to believe you are impaired. Refusing does not make the case go away. It adds to it.
A first-time refusal is a civil offense that triggers a one-year suspension of your driving privilege, separate from the suspension attached to any DUI conviction. Because it is civil rather than criminal, a first refusal does not carry jail time on its own. A refusal within 10 years of a prior DUI or refusal, though, becomes a Class 1 misdemeanor with a three-year revocation.10Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 18.2-268.3 – Refusal of Tests; Penalties; Procedures
Refusal also does not stop the prosecution. The Commonwealth can still pursue the DUI using officer observations, field sobriety results, and other evidence. The common outcome: DUI penalties and the refusal suspension stacked together.
What a First DUI Actually Costs
The mandatory $250 fine is the number people quote. It’s a fraction of the real total.
On top of any fine, Virginia adds a stack of mandatory court costs: a $61 fixed misdemeanor fee, a $100 DUI-specific fee, a $50 trauma center fund assessment, blood test and withdrawal fees of up to $50, a $20 ignition interlock fee, and a $15 internet crimes against children fund fee, among others.11Virginia’s Judicial System. JDR Manual Appendix B – Criminal and Traffic Fines and Fees Local jurisdictions may layer on courthouse security, jail booking, and electronic summons fees. Court costs alone typically clear $300 before the fine itself.
VASAP costs $250 to $300.5Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 18.2-271.1 – Probation, Education, and Rehabilitation of Person Convicted The interlock adds $700 to $1,200 across its term, counting monitoring, installation, and removal.6Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Administrative Code 24VAC35-60-50 – Fees Any treatment beyond basic education is extra.
The biggest long-term cost is insurance. Virginia requires anyone convicted of DUI to file an FR-44 with DMV, certifying liability coverage at double the state minimums.12Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles. SR-22/SR-26 Financial Responsibility Certification Most insurers respond by raising premiums sharply; some cancel outright, pushing you into the high-risk market at higher rates still. The FR-44 obligation lasts three years, and elevated premiums often persist longer.
Private defense attorneys for a first-offense DUI generally charge flat fees somewhere between $2,500 and $10,000, depending on complexity and experience. Add the fine, court costs, VASAP, interlock, reinstatement, insurance impact, and attorney fees, and $5,000 to $10,000 in the first year is a realistic range, with insurance consequences reaching several years past that.
The Conviction Stays on Your Record
Virginia does not allow DUI convictions to be expunged. The expungement statute reaches only cases dismissed or ending in acquittal.13Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 19.2-392.2 – Expungement of Police and Court Records A guilty finding does not qualify.
The newer record-sealing law that takes full effect on July 1, 2026, does not help either. The statute lists DUI under ยง 18.2-266 as ineligible for sealing.14Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 19.2-392.12 – Sealing of Offenses Resulting in Conviction or Deferred Dismissal The conviction stays on your criminal record permanently and will appear on background checks run by employers, landlords, and licensing boards for the rest of your life.
Jobs and Licenses at Risk
Commercial Drivers
If you hold a CDL, a first DUI disqualifies you from operating a commercial motor vehicle for at least one year under federal law, even if you were driving your personal car when the offense happened.15Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 49 USC 31310 – Disqualification Virginia DMV enforces this and makes clear that a restricted license covering personal driving does not extend to commercial vehicles.16Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles. CDL Disqualifications Transporting hazardous materials at the time pushes the disqualification to three years.
Pilots
FAA-certificated pilots must report any alcohol-related motor vehicle conviction to the FAA in writing within 60 calendar days.17eCFR. 14 CFR 61.15 – Offenses Involving Alcohol or Drugs Missing the deadline is grounds for suspending or revoking your pilot certificate and airman medical certificate. The DUI must also be disclosed at your next FAA medical exam.
Military and Civilian Employment
A DUI conviction can complicate or block military enlistment. Each branch sets its own waiver policy, and a misdemeanor DUI typically requires a conduct waiver the branch has discretion to deny. For civilian work, the permanent record means the conviction surfaces on background checks, with the biggest effects on jobs involving security clearances, driving, healthcare, education, and law enforcement.
Traveling to Canada
Canadian immigration law treats impaired driving as a serious criminal offense, and even a single misdemeanor DUI conviction in the U.S. can make you inadmissible.18Government of Canada. Overcome Criminal Convictions Canadian border officers have access to U.S. criminal records and can turn you away at land crossings, airports, or seaports. Options for getting past inadmissibility include applying for criminal rehabilitation, available five years after you complete your entire sentence including probation and fines, or obtaining a temporary resident permit. Both take time, paperwork, and money.