Missouri DWI Laws: Penalties, License Loss, and Reinstatement

A first driving-while-intoxicated conviction under Missouri DWI laws is a Class B misdemeanor carrying up to six months in jail, but the penalties escalate quickly: repeat offenses move into felony territory, and causing an injury or death can mean years in prison even for a first-time offender. Missouri runs two parallel tracks after a DWI arrest. The criminal court decides jail time and fines. The Department of Revenue, acting on its own, suspends or revokes your license based on the arrest itself. The administrative action moves forward even if the criminal charge is later reduced or dismissed, so losing your license is possible even when you beat the charge in court.

When You’re Over the Limit

Missouri uses different blood alcohol thresholds depending on who’s driving and what they’re driving. For most adult drivers, a BAC of 0.08% or higher behind the wheel of any vehicle is the offense of driving with excessive blood alcohol content.¹ Commercial drivers face a stricter 0.04% limit while operating a commercial vehicle. Drivers under 21 are held to 0.02% under Missouri’s zero-tolerance rule, a threshold a single drink can cross.

A BAC under 0.08% does not automatically keep you out of trouble. Under § 577.010, you can be charged with driving while intoxicated for operating a vehicle “while in an intoxicated condition,” based on any evidence of impairment from alcohol or drugs.²

Criminal Penalties by Offense Count

Missouri’s DWI statute builds penalties around how many prior intoxication-related offenses are on your record. There are seven tiers, climbing from a Class B misdemeanor to a Class A felony.² The maximum terms of imprisonment come from Missouri’s general sentencing statute.³

First offense is a Class B misdemeanor, up to six months in jail and a fine of up to $500.
Prior offender is a Class A misdemeanor, applied when you have one previous intoxication-related offense within five years. Up to one year in jail.
Persistent offender is a Class E felony, applied when you have two or more priors with no time limit on how far back they go. Up to four years in prison.
Aggravated offender is a Class D felony, three or more priors, up to seven years.
Chronic offender is a Class C felony, four or more priors, three to ten years.
Habitual offender is a Class B felony, five or more priors, five to fifteen years.
A Class A felony applies when a prior conviction under the most serious Class B DWI provisions is followed by another such offense, carrying up to thirty years or life.

Fines run up to $10,000 for Class C, D, and E felonies. Courts can also impose probation, community service, and mandatory treatment on top of a sentence.

The way Missouri counts priors catches many people by surprise. For “prior offender” status, only convictions within the last five years count. Once you reach persistent-offender territory and above, every intoxication-related conviction counts regardless of age.⁴ Missouri eliminated the former ten-year look-back for persistent offenders, so a DWI from twenty years ago can still enhance a current charge to a felony. The prior count also includes driving with excessive BAC, not only DWI.

Aggravators That Raise the Penalty

Several circumstances push a Missouri DWI beyond the baseline for each tier, locking in mandatory jail time or bumping the classification higher.

High BAC at Arrest

A BAC between 0.15% and 0.20% requires at least 48 consecutive hours of imprisonment. Above 0.20%, the minimum is five days.² These apply on a first offense, and no part of the sentence can be suspended unless you take part in a DWI court program.

Child in the Vehicle

A passenger under 17 elevates a first offense from a Class B to a Class A misdemeanor, doubling the maximum jail time to one year.² For repeat offenders the classification doesn’t change further, but it weighs heavily at sentencing.

Injury or Death

When a DWI causes harm to another person, penalties escalate regardless of your prior record:²

Physical injury to another person is a Class E felony, up to four years.
Serious physical injury is a Class D felony, up to seven years.
Causing a death is a Class C felony, three to ten years.
Killing a non-passenger, killing two or more people, or causing a death while your BAC was 0.18% or higher is a Class B felony, five to fifteen years.³

Injuries to law enforcement officers or emergency responders push each classification one tier higher than the equivalent civilian injury.

What Happens to Your License

The Missouri Department of Revenue handles license consequences on its own track, starting the moment of arrest and continuing regardless of what happens in criminal court.⁵ For a first alcohol-related offense with no prior contacts in the past five years, the Department imposes a 90-day suspension. If your record shows one or more prior alcohol-related enforcement contacts in that five-year window, it becomes a one-year revocation instead. You have 15 days from the date on the suspension notice to request an administrative hearing.

Restricted Driving Privilege for First-Time Suspensions

With no prior alcohol-related offenses in the past five years, you have two options during the 90-day suspension. The first is an immediate 90-day Restricted Driving Privilege that requires an ignition interlock device and an SR-22 insurance filing, and must be requested within 15 days of the suspension notice.⁶ The second is to sit out a full 30-day hard suspension, then take a 60-day RDP for the remainder.

Both options limit where you can go. The immediate 90-day version covers work, education, medical and substance-abuse treatment, court obligations, religious services, child care, custody-related trips, and grocery and fuel stops. The 60-day option is narrower, covering only work, school, alcohol treatment, and interlock-provider visits.

Limited Driving Privilege for Repeat Offenders

Drivers facing a one-year revocation because of prior alcohol contacts cannot get an RDP. The alternative is a Limited Driving Privilege, applied for either through the Department of Revenue or by petition to the circuit court.⁷ An LDP requires SR-22 insurance, and for anyone with more than one alcohol offense, an ignition interlock device. If you have an active five-year or ten-year denial on your record, you must go through circuit court, and the interlock has to be equipped with a camera.

Refusing the Chemical Test

By driving on Missouri roads you’ve already given implied consent to a breath, blood, or urine test when an officer has reasonable grounds to believe you’re intoxicated.⁸ You can still refuse, but refusal triggers an automatic one-year revocation of your driving privileges.⁹ The officer will usually take your license on the spot and give you a temporary permit. Evidence that you refused is also admissible at trial. You have 15 days from the notice date to request a hearing to challenge the revocation.

Five-Year and Ten-Year Denials

Beyond the standard 90-day suspension or one-year revocation, Missouri imposes extended denials of driving privileges for repeat offenders. Two DWI or excessive-BAC convictions within a five-year period produce a five-year denial. Three or more at any point in your life produce a ten-year denial.⁷ During a denial period, your only route to any driving at all is to petition the circuit court for an LDP with a camera-equipped interlock, and potentially GPS monitoring.

Getting Your License Back

Reinstatement after a DWI-related suspension or revocation takes several steps. Missing any one of them stops the process.

Every DWI offender must complete the Substance Awareness Traffic Offender Program (SATOP).¹⁰ It begins with a screening at an Offender Management Unit, which assigns the level of education or treatment required. Costs vary with the level assigned. A Missouri resident convicted in another state may complete a comparable program, with Department of Revenue approval.

Drivers with more than one alcohol-related offense or an active chemical revocation must install a certified ignition interlock device on every vehicle they operate. For a second or subsequent offense, the device must remain installed for at least six months after reinstatement. A court can order interlock for a first offense as well, especially when the BAC was high. You pay the installation and monthly lease costs, which typically run about $55 to $100 per month.

You also need an SR-22 on file with the Department of Revenue, a certificate from your insurance company confirming you carry the state minimum liability coverage. If the SR-22 lapses before the required period ends, your driving privilege is cancelled again. Insurance premiums usually rise substantially for several years after a DWI. The reinstatement fee payable to the Department is $20.¹¹

A DWI Stays on Your Record

Missouri’s expungement statute specifically excludes intoxication-related traffic offenses. Under § 610.140, any offense defined as intoxication-related under § 577.001, including DWI and driving with excessive BAC, cannot be sealed or removed.¹² There is no waiting period, no petition, and no judicial discretion that changes this. A DWI conviction stays on your record for background checks, employment screening, and the calculation of priors if you’re ever charged again.

1
Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Revised Statutes 577.012 – Driving With Excessive Blood Alcohol Content
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Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Revised Statutes 577.010 – Driving While Intoxicated
3
Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Revised Statutes 558.011 – Sentence of Imprisonment
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Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Revised Statutes 577.023 – Prior and Persistent Offenders
5
Missouri Department of Revenue. Driving While Intoxicated (DWI)
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Missouri Department of Revenue. Restricted Driving Privilege (RDP) – Alcohol
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Missouri Department of Revenue. Limited Driving Privilege (LDP)
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Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Revised Statutes 577.020 – Chemical Tests for Alcohol Content of Blood
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Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Revised Statutes 577.041 – Refusal to Submit to Chemical Test
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Missouri Department of Mental Health. What is Substance Awareness Traffic Offender Program (SATOP)?
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Missouri Department of Revenue. Reinstatement Requirements
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Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Revised Statutes 610.140 – Expungement of Certain Records