To renew your Alabama driver’s license, you can use ALEA’s online portal, visit a county probate judge or license commissioner office in person, or mail in Form DL-100 if you qualify as military or an out-of-state student. The renewal window opens 180 days before your expiration date, a standard Class D renewal costs $36.25, and your new license is good for four years.1Madison County, AL. Driver’s License Information – Section: Driver’s License Renewal2Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. Document Requirements and Fees
When You Can Renew and the Grace Period
Your renewal window opens 180 days before the expiration date printed on your card.1Madison County, AL. Driver’s License Information – Section: Driver’s License Renewal Each renewed license is valid for four years from the previous expiration date, no matter when during the window you actually renew.3Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code Title 32 – Section 32-6-1
If the date slips past you, Alabama law treats the expired card as still valid for driving for 60 days.3Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code Title 32 – Section 32-6-1 ALEA mails a renewal notice 30 days after expiration if you still haven’t renewed. After day 60, the license is no longer valid and driving on it can get you cited.
Active-duty military members whose deployments prevented them from renewing in the standard 180-day window are exempt from that timing restriction when they can show proof of the deployment.3Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code Title 32 – Section 32-6-1
Renewing Online
The fastest option is ALEA’s portal at alabamadl.alea.gov. You verify your identity with your current license number and the information on your existing card, confirm your personal details, and pay. Once the transaction clears, you can print a temporary license right away.
Online renewal fits straightforward cases where nothing on the license is changing. It does not cover a name change: if your name has changed since your last license was issued, you need to go in person with supporting documents such as a marriage certificate, divorce decree, or court order, plus proof you’ve already updated your name with the Social Security Administration.4Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. Driver License Forms A first-time STAR ID upgrade also requires an in-person visit because of document verification.
Renewing in Person
In-person renewals go through your county’s probate judge office or license commissioner office. Bring your current license and expect a new photo to be taken. Age doesn’t change the process: Alabama has no maximum age for holding a license, and the four-year cycle applies to every driver.
If you want to add the STAR ID designation while you’re there, bring additional documents: one proof of identity and date of birth (a valid U.S. passport or a certified birth certificate from a state vital statistics office), two proofs of your residential address such as a mortgage contract and a utility bill less than 90 days old, and verification of your Social Security number.5Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. STAR ID Document List ALEA’s checklist tool at al.accessgov.com walks you through exactly which documents fit your situation, which can save a second trip.
Renewing by Mail
Mail renewal is open only to military personnel, their dependents, and students living temporarily outside Alabama. The form is DL-100, available on ALEA’s driver license forms page.6Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. Application for Renewal or Duplicate of Alabama Driver License or ID Card4Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. Driver License Forms
Military applicants include copies of their military orders and military photo ID card. Students include current full-time enrollment verification. Payment goes by cashier’s check or money order payable to ALEA; personal checks and credit cards are not accepted for mail renewals. Send the packet to:1Madison County, AL. Driver’s License Information – Section: Driver’s License Renewal
Alabama Law Enforcement Agency
Driver License Division
P.O. Box 1471
Montgomery, AL 36102-1471
Fees and Payment
A standard Class D renewal is $36.25.2Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. Document Requirements and Fees ALEA accepts Visa, Mastercard, and Discover, with a 4% convenience fee on credit card transactions, which works out to about $1.45 on the base fee. Cash and money orders at in-person locations carry no surcharge.
Online renewals also include a non-refundable processing fee at the end of the transaction, and some county offices add a small local issuance fee. Expect your total to land a few dollars above $36.25 depending on how and where you pay. Adding STAR ID to the renewal does not change the $36.25 base fee.
Your Temporary License and When the Card Arrives
You walk away from a renewal with a temporary paper license good for 30 days.7Shelby County, AL. State Drivers License Examiners Office If you renewed online, you need a printer to produce it. That paper is legally valid for driving in Alabama while your permanent card is manufactured.
The plastic card usually arrives by mail within one to three weeks, with some county offices quoting seven to ten days.7Shelby County, AL. State Drivers License Examiners Office If the card doesn’t arrive before the 30-day temporary expires, call the ALEA Driver License Division with your transaction receipt or confirmation number to check the shipment and request an extension if needed.
If You Let It Expire Too Long
Within the 60-day grace period, you renew normally with no penalty. Between 60 days and three years past expiration, you can still renew the same way, but the card isn’t valid in the meantime and you’d be driving illegally.
Past three years is the hard cutoff. At that point Alabama treats you like a new driver and requires you to retake both the written knowledge exam and the road driving test before issuing a new license.3Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code Title 32 – Section 32-6-1 That’s the main reason to use the 180-day early window rather than cut it close.
Should You Add STAR ID at Renewal?
Since May 7, 2025, federal law has required every air traveler age 18 and older to present a REAL ID-compliant license or another acceptable form of identification at TSA security for domestic flights. Alabama’s STAR ID satisfies that requirement; a standard Alabama license without the STAR ID marking does not.8Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. Star ID
A U.S. passport, passport card, DHS trusted traveler card (Global Entry, NEXUS, SENTRI), or military ID also works at the checkpoint. Starting February 1, 2026, TSA is introducing a ConfirmID option for travelers without REAL ID, involving an online form and a $45 fee, though TSA does not guarantee the identity verification will succeed.9Defense Travel Management Office. Travelers Without REAL ID Could Pay $45 Fee for TSA’s ConfirmID Beginning February 1, 2026 If you fly and don’t carry a passport, folding the STAR ID into your next renewal is the straightforward fix. The fee is the same $36.25 either way; the only extra work is gathering the identity, residency, and Social Security documents and going in person.