West Virginia’s Second Chance Driver’s License application is the process for getting your license reinstated after it was suspended for unpaid court fines, by entering a court-approved payment plan instead of paying the full balance upfront. The program is codified in Chapter 17B, Article 7 of the West Virginia Code, and it works only for suspensions tied to nonpayment of court costs. Two steps do the real work: setting up the payment plan with the court that fined you, then applying to the Division of Motor Vehicles with proof of that plan.
Who the Program Covers
The Second Chance program addresses one specific situation. Your license must have been suspended or revoked under West Virginia Code §17B-3-3a or §17B-3-3c, both of which deal with failure to pay fines and costs ordered by a court. You also need to be at least 12 months delinquent on those payments to participate.
Some suspensions fall outside the program entirely. Unpaid court costs from commercial motor vehicle violations, or from any charge that implicates West Virginia’s commercial driver’s license requirements under Chapter 17E, are excluded. If your suspension involves a DUI revocation, a habitual traffic offender designation, or failure to maintain insurance, the Second Chance program will not clear it. Those have to be resolved separately.
If your record shows multiple suspensions, the program can only lift the ones tied to unpaid fines. Every other active suspension still has to be satisfied on its own terms before the DMV will issue a reinstated card.
Step One: Set Up a Payment Plan With the Court
The process starts at the court, not the DMV. Skipping this step is the single most common reason people waste a trip to a DMV office.
Contact the clerk’s office for the court that ordered your fines. Depending on how your case was handled, that could be a magistrate court, municipal court, or circuit court. If you are not sure, start with the magistrate clerk in the county where you received the citation. Contact information is at courtswv.gov.
You will fill out a financial affidavit swearing you cannot pay the full amount at once. The West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals developed a uniform payment plan form and financial affidavit for this purpose. If the clerk determines you qualify, they will set up a structured plan spelling out the number of payments, the amount of each, due dates, accepted payment methods, and the consequences of falling behind.
There is a $25 fee to establish the plan. If you cannot pay that upfront, the court can break it into five equal monthly payments. Courts accept cash, money orders, certified checks, credit cards, and electronic payments. Once your plan is active, the clerk’s office can provide documentation of your enrollment, which you will need for the DMV.
If you owe fines to more than one court, you need a separate payment plan with each of them. The DMV will not lift any suspension until every court with an outstanding balance confirms your enrollment.
Step Two: Apply Through the DMV
With a payment plan in place, submit your reinstatement request either through the WV DMV’s online self-service portal or in person at a regional DMV office. The DMV will pull your driving record to confirm that your only active suspensions are ones the Second Chance program covers.
If the DMV finds a discrepancy, such as a suspension you were not aware of or a court record that does not match your paperwork, they may schedule a hearing. Bring your payment plan documents, any correspondence from the court, and proof of payments already made. The hearing officer decides whether you have actually met the requirements.
Documents to Bring
The DMV wants identity and residency proof in addition to your court paperwork. Gathering everything ahead of time is the difference between a single trip and several.
- Proof of identity. A current West Virginia driver’s license or state ID works. If your license expired long ago, bring a birth certificate or valid U.S. passport.
- Proof of West Virginia residency. Utility bills, a residential lease, or official government mail dated within the last 60 days. Termination notices from a utility do not count, and you cannot submit two documents from the same company. If no bills are in your name, you may need a residency affidavit signed by the person on the lease or mortgage.
- Payment plan documentation. A current copy of the payment agreement from each court where you owe fines. If the plan has been modified since it was first set up, bring the updated version. A compliance letter from the court confirming you are not in default helps.
What It Costs
You will owe a reinstatement fee for each suspension the DMV lifts. The amount depends on the number and type of suspensions on your record. The DMV’s online reinstatement portal advises calling 1-800-642-9066 to confirm your total before paying. Reinstatement fees can be paid online through the DMV’s self-service site or in person at a regional office.
On top of that, you pay the standard licensing fee for a new Class E driver’s license, and the $25 court payment plan setup fee is separate. The DMV will not issue a reinstated license until both the reinstatement fee and the licensing fee are paid. Additional suspensions unrelated to unpaid fines each carry their own reinstatement fee.
Why Applications Get Denied
The most frequent denial comes from showing up at the DMV without a fully executed payment plan. A verbal agreement with a clerk does not count. You need the signed, written plan.
Unresolved suspensions unrelated to unpaid fines will block your application. A suspension for failure to maintain auto insurance requires filing proof of financial responsibility with the DMV before anything else moves. A points-based suspension has to be served out, with its own reinstatement fee, and points-related requirements are separate from the Second Chance process.
Outstanding warrants tied to traffic offenses are another barrier. The DMV will not reinstate a license while an active warrant exists. If you suspect there is a warrant you have not addressed, check with the magistrate court in the county where the citation was issued before you apply.
Out-of-state issues can also surface. The National Driver Register links state DMV databases, so a suspension or unresolved violation in another state will appear on your West Virginia record. If another state took action against your driving privileges, you will need to clear that state’s records before West Virginia will process your reinstatement.
Staying on the Plan
A payment plan is not a suggestion. Courts report payment status to the DMV, and a lapse can trigger re-suspension. If that happens, you are back to square one: get current on the plan, potentially renegotiate with the clerk’s office, and pay another DMV reinstatement fee.
The court has other tools too. It can assess late fees, place a judgment lien against you, or send the debt to collections. Once a collector is involved, the process is harder to manage and the total grows. Small monthly payments are far cheaper than default.
A Note for CDL Holders
If your unpaid fines came from a commercial motor vehicle violation, or from anything that implicates your CDL under Chapter 17E, the Second Chance program does not apply. That exclusion is written into the program’s eligibility requirements.
Where to Get Help
You do not need an attorney to apply, but legal help matters when the situation is complicated, like fines owed to multiple courts across different counties or a denial you believe was wrong. Attorneys familiar with DMV reinstatement can negotiate plans, assemble documentation, and represent you at a hearing.
If you cannot afford a private attorney, Legal Aid of West Virginia provides free legal services to low-income residents and victims of domestic violence. Eligibility and applications are at legalaidwv.org. Some county public defender offices also help people work through outstanding court fines that are blocking reinstatement, even outside an active criminal case. Reaching out before you start the application is smarter than trying to unwind a denial afterward.