Michigan’s SOS-258 evaluation requirements govern the Substance Use Evaluation you must submit when petitioning the Office of Hearings and Administrative Oversight for license restoration after multiple operating-while-intoxicated convictions. The form must be completed by a clinician qualified to diagnose substance use disorders, must include a DSM-based diagnostic impression and a prognosis for continued sobriety, must document your lifetime substance use, treatment, and support group history, must list all prescription medications, and must be accompanied by a laboratory-administered 12-panel urine drug screen with integrity variables. The completed evaluation has to reach the state within 90 days of the date the evaluator signed it, or the hearing request is denied.1Michigan Department of State. OHAO Form Package (SOS 257 and 258)
Who Can Complete the SOS-258
Michigan does not publish an approved-evaluator list and does not require any single certification. The Secretary of State’s guidance says the evaluator should have enough training to diagnose substance use disorders and provide expert clinical opinions.2Michigan Department of State. Office of Hearings and Administrative Oversight – License Restoration Hearings and Interlock Licensed psychologists, physicians, clinical social workers, and substance abuse counselors with diagnostic experience all qualify in practice.
That flexibility is where applicants get hurt. A clinician who rarely sees license restoration cases will complete the form technically correctly and still produce something that reads as thin to a hearing officer who reviews these daily. The evaluation is clinical evidence meant to persuade; a form filled in by someone unfamiliar with how Michigan uses it tends to leave gaps the hearing officer will exploit.
The 12-Panel Drug Screen
A laboratory-administered 12-panel urinalysis must accompany the evaluation. Instant or rapid tests are not accepted. The screen must include at least two integrity variables such as specific gravity, creatinine, or pH to guard against tampering, and it must test for amphetamines, barbiturates, benzodiazepines, cocaine, ecstasy/MDMA, marijuana, methadone, methaqualone, opiates, oxycodone, PCP, and propoxyphene.1Michigan Department of State. OHAO Form Package (SOS 257 and 258)
Lab results should be sent directly to the evaluator so chain of custody is preserved. Hand-carried results, or results from a screen that is missing an integrity variable or a required substance, are grounds for rejection.
Diagnostic Impression and Prognosis
The clinical heart of the form is the diagnostic impression. The evaluator must use DSM-IV or DSM-5 criteria for substance use disorders, categorize past severity as mild, moderate, or severe, document the duration of remission, and select the course specifiers that describe your current status, including whether you are on agonist therapy.1Michigan Department of State. OHAO Form Package (SOS 257 and 258)
Paired with the diagnosis is a prognosis for continued sobriety, ranked poor, guarded, fair, good, or excellent. Hearing officers read this closely. A rating of “fair” with thin justification raises more concern than a rating of “good” backed by years of documented recovery activity. The number alone does not carry the section; the reasoning the evaluator attaches to it does.
Substance Use, Treatment, and Support Group History
The SOS-258 requires a detailed account of your substance use history, including every past conviction, every treatment episode, and any relapses. It also asks for a lifetime support group history: the type of group (AA, NA, or others), the timeframe and frequency of attendance, and whether you have a sponsor.1Michigan Department of State. OHAO Form Package (SOS 257 and 258)
Bring documentation to the appointment. Treatment completion certificates, letters from counselors, and verification of support group participation give the evaluator something to cite. Without them, the evaluator has only your self-report, which the hearing officer will discount.
Prescription Medications and the DA-4P
Every prescription medication, past and current, must be listed with the prescribing physician, the condition treated, and the dates of use. For medications that could affect safe driving, including addiction treatment drugs such as methadone or buprenorphine, the prescribing physician must also complete a separate DA-4P form.1Michigan Department of State. OHAO Form Package (SOS 257 and 258)
Omitting a medication is one of the fastest ways to lose credibility. The 12-panel screen will flag substances the evaluator did not account for, and the hearing officer will ask about any mismatch.
The 90-Day Submission Window
Whatever submission method you use, the evaluation must reach the Office of Hearings and Administrative Oversight within 90 days of the date the evaluator completed it. Documents older than 90 days are treated as expired and will result in denial of your hearing request.1Michigan Department of State. OHAO Form Package (SOS 257 and 258) Schedule the appointment and the lab screen with your filing date in mind, not the other way around.
What Must Accompany the SOS-258
The evaluation does not stand alone. A complete evidence package also includes the Request for Hearing form (SOS-257), the lab drug screen results, notarized letters from three to six people who can personally speak to your sobriety, and any treatment completion certificates or DA-4P forms for medications. Both the SOS-257 and SOS-258 come in the same form package from the Michigan Department of State.1Michigan Department of State. OHAO Form Package (SOS 257 and 258)
Each support letter must be typed or handwritten and notarized, and must cover the writer’s relationship to you, what the writer knows about your past and current alcohol and drug use (including marijuana), and the changes the writer has seen in your recovery. If a witness will testify in person at the hearing, you do not need a letter from that witness; for out-of-state reviews, letters are mandatory.2Michigan Department of State. Office of Hearings and Administrative Oversight – License Restoration Hearings and Interlock
Packages can be submitted through the Driver Appeal Integrated System online or mailed to the Office of Hearings and Administrative Oversight in Lansing.2Michigan Department of State. Office of Hearings and Administrative Oversight – License Restoration Hearings and Interlock
What the Evaluation Costs
The state charges nothing to file the hearing request itself, but the evaluation and screen are out of pocket. Substance use evaluations from providers experienced with Michigan license restoration generally run $250 to $600, depending on credentials and location. The 12-panel laboratory screen typically costs $85 to $115 separately, though some evaluators bundle it into their fee. These costs are generally not covered by insurance. Plan for notarization fees on your support letters and for any charges to pull records or completion certificates from past treatment programs.