Virginia Code § 18.2-272 makes it a crime to drive while your license is suspended or revoked for a DUI-related reason. A first or second offense is a Class 1 misdemeanor carrying up to 12 months in jail and a $2,500 fine. A third offense within ten years becomes a Class 6 felony punishable by one to five years in prison.1Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 18.2-272 – Driving After Forfeiture of License The statute also criminalizes driving with any measurable alcohol on a restricted license, and driving a vehicle without an ignition interlock when one is required.
What the Statute Prohibits
Subsection A is the heart of § 18.2-272. You violate it if you drive on a Virginia highway while your license is suspended or revoked because of any of the following:
- A conviction for refusing a breath or blood test under § 18.2-268.3 or § 46.2-341.26:3
- A DUI-related conviction listed in subsection E of § 18.2-270, including DUI, DUI-related involuntary manslaughter, and DUI-related maiming
- An administrative revocation under § 18.2-271, § 46.2-391.2, § 46.2-389, or § 46.2-391
- Violating the terms of a restricted license issued under § 18.2-271.1 or § 18.2-270.1
“Highway” is defined broadly under § 46.2-100 as any way or place open to public vehicular travel, which sweeps in streets, alleys, shopping center parking lots, and roads on federal property.2Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia Title 46.2, Subtitle I – General Provisions A purely private driveway with no public access does not qualify. The statute also reaches operating a train or engine, though that scenario is rare.
The 0.02% BAC Rule for Restricted Drivers
Subsection B imposes a near-zero-tolerance rule on anyone whose license has been restricted, suspended, or revoked for a DUI-related offense. If your blood alcohol content is 0.02% or higher while driving, you are in violation “regardless of compliance with any other restrictions.”1Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 18.2-272 – Driving After Forfeiture of License Following the letter of your court order about hours and destinations does not save you if alcohol shows up on a test.
A 0.02% threshold is very low. A single drink can push many adults past it, and residual alcohol from mouthwash, certain medications, or foods cooked with alcohol can register at that level. If an officer suspects a violation, Virginia’s implied consent law applies, and refusing to provide a sample carries its own penalties.3Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 18.2-268.3 – Refusal of Tests; Penalties; Procedures
Driving Without a Required Ignition Interlock
Subsection C makes it a separate Class 1 misdemeanor to drive any vehicle that lacks a certified ignition interlock system when § 46.2-391.01 requires one. A conviction also triggers administrative license revocation.1Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 18.2-272 – Driving After Forfeiture of License The requirement attaches to every vehicle you drive, not only the one you own. Borrowing a friend’s car without an interlock is a violation even if your own car is properly equipped.
Courts typically impose the interlock as a condition of a restricted license and require at least six consecutive months without an alcohol-related interlock violation. That period runs from the date the restricted license is issued, not from the date of conviction or installation.4Legislative Information System. Code of Virginia 18.2-271.1 – Probation, Education, and Rehabilitation of Person Charged or Convicted
What a Restricted License Actually Lets You Do
Because much of § 18.2-272 turns on whether you stayed inside the terms of a restricted license, it helps to know how narrow those terms are. A restricted license under § 18.2-271.1 permits driving only for specifically listed purposes:5Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 18.2-271.1 – Probation, Education, and Rehabilitation of Person Charged or Convicted
- Commuting to work, and driving during work hours when driving is part of the job
- Attending school with written verification of enrollment
- Medical appointments, including transporting an elderly parent or household member with a serious medical condition
- Taking children to school or day care
- Court-ordered child visitation
- ASAP meetings and other court-ordered program appointments
- Religious worship once per week at a specified time and place
- Court appearances and probation meetings
- Ignition interlock service appointments
- Job interviews with written proof of the appointment
- Virginia Employment Commission visits for job-seeking
Driving outside those purposes or outside the times set by your court order is a full violation of subsection A, carrying the same penalties as driving with no license at all. A stop at the grocery store on the way home from work is outside the scope. Officers can review the language of your order during a traffic stop, so keeping a copy in the car is practical.
One exception broadens the privilege: if you have an ignition interlock installed and meet the additional conditions of § 18.2-270.1, a court may issue a restricted license that allows driving for any lawful purpose.
Penalties for a First or Second Conviction
A first or second conviction under § 18.2-272 is a Class 1 misdemeanor, the most serious misdemeanor classification in Virginia. The maximum punishment is 12 months in jail and a $2,500 fine, or both.6Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 18.2-11 – Punishment for Conviction of Misdemeanor Judges often view these violations as deliberate defiance of a prior court order, which tends to push sentencing toward the higher end of the range.
A conviction also triggers administrative revocation under §§ 46.2-389 and 46.2-391. Under § 46.2-389 the revocation lasts one year, and the DMV will not reinstate your license until ASAP is complete if the court required it.7Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia Title 46.2, Chapter 3, Article 12 – Suspension and Revocation of Licenses, Generally Any restricted driving privileges you held can be revoked as well.
A Third Violation Is a Felony
Three convictions under § 18.2-272 within ten years elevate the offense to a Class 6 felony. That carries one to five years in a state correctional facility, though the judge or jury has discretion to reduce the sentence to up to 12 months in jail and a fine of up to $2,500.8Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 18.2-10 – Punishment for Conviction of Felony The jump from misdemeanor to felony is the sharpest consequence in the statute, and it catches people off guard. A felony conviction affects employment, housing, and the right to possess firearms well beyond any jail time.
The Harsher Track Under § 46.2-391
The exposure grows if your record triggers § 46.2-391, Virginia’s statute for repeat DUI offenders. Two or more convictions under § 18.2-272 within ten years, or certain combinations of DUI and § 18.2-272 convictions, cause the DMV Commissioner to revoke your license for three years. Three qualifying offenses within ten years can produce an indefinite revocation.9Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 46.2-391 – Revocation of License for Multiple Convictions
Driving while revoked under § 46.2-391 without endangering anyone remains a Class 1 misdemeanor, but it now carries a mandatory minimum of 10 days in jail. If the driving endangers life, limb, or property, or you are caught driving intoxicated during the revocation, the offense becomes a felony punishable by one to five years in prison with a mandatory minimum of one year. This is a separate track from the Class 6 felony inside § 18.2-272 itself, and prosecutors can pursue either or both.
Costs That Follow the Conviction
The $2,500 maximum fine understates the real financial hit. Virginia requires FR-44 financial responsibility certification for anyone convicted under § 18.2-272, the same filing required for a DUI conviction.10Virginia DMV. SR-22/SR26 Financial Responsibility Certification FR-44 is not the same as an SR-22. It requires liability coverage at double Virginia’s standard minimum limits, which raises premiums significantly. Your insurer files the certificate directly with the DMV, and any lapse triggers automatic license suspension. Reinstatement will not go through without an active FR-44 on file.
Beyond insurance, anyone convicted of DUI must enroll in and complete a Virginia Alcohol Safety Action Program (VASAP) as a condition of probation, which is also a prerequisite for a restricted license.11The Commission on VASAP. FAQS – The Commission on VASAP The court sets a program fee between $250 and $300.5Virginia Code Commission. Code of Virginia 18.2-271.1 – Probation, Education, and Rehabilitation of Person Charged or Convicted Failing to complete VASAP without good cause lets the court revoke your restricted license and resentence you as if no program had been offered, and the DMV will not reinstate your full license until it receives confirmation you finished.
The ignition interlock device typically runs between $500 and $1,600 or more across installation, monthly calibration, and removal. Add court costs, reinstatement fees, and towing and storage if your vehicle was impounded, and the out-of-pocket cost of a single conviction routinely runs into several thousand dollars before accounting for lost wages.
Common Defenses
The most effective defense in these cases is usually lack of knowledge that your license was actually suspended or revoked. Virginia notifies drivers by mail to the address on file with the DMV. If you never received that notice because you moved, the mail was returned, or the DMV had an outdated address, an attorney can argue you lacked the awareness needed for a criminal conviction. The defense is fact-specific and depends on showing you had no reason to know your license status had changed.
Challenging an ignition interlock reading is harder. Manufacturers maintain that fuel cell technology does not produce true false positives when used correctly, though the devices have a margin of error and residual alcohol from non-beverage sources can trigger a failure. Documenting what you consumed before a failed test and reporting it immediately to your monitoring agency and attorney builds the strongest record for a later challenge.
Emergency necessity, meaning you had to drive to protect life or safety, exists as a defense but Virginia courts apply it narrowly. You would need to show a genuine danger to human life or property, that calling for help was not a viable alternative, and that you drove only as far as needed to address the emergency. Judges are skeptical when the driver could have called 911 or asked someone else to drive.