Driving after a DUI in Nevada: the Ignition interlock privilege (Restriction Y license)

The first days: the administrative suspension and the hearing deadline

In most states the licensing agency suspends the license at arrest, separately from any court case, and the driver has a short window to request a hearing on that suspension. Missing it lets the suspension take effect without review.

NRS 484C.220(1): the officer serves the order of revocation, seizes the license and, if the person requests one, issues a temporary license effective for only 7 days including the date of issuance; the order states the right to administrative and judicial review under NRS 484C.230. If the order is not served in person, the Department mails it and it becomes effective 5 days after mailing (484C.220(3)). NRS 484C.230(1) sets no fixed deadline: 'at any time while a person is not eligible' the person may request in writing a hearing by the Department (one hearing only); unless ineligible, the Department issues an additional temporary license sufficient to complete the review, during which the person is exempt from the interlock requirement. The DMV Office of Administrative Hearings page states that for revocation orders with file numbers beginning 'IP', 'ID' or 'RT' a hearing may not be requ

“At any time while a person is not eligible for a license, permit or privilege to drive following an order of revocation issued pursuant to NRS 484C.220, the person may request in writing a hearing by the Department to review the order of revocation, but the person is only entitled to one hearing.”

Who can get it, and how soon

The DMV states that a driver whose license was revoked for DUI or for failing to submit to evidentiary testing does not qualify for the general restricted license (form DMV-21) and instead has the option to reinstate driving privileges by installing an ignition interlock device, which the DMV issues as a Restriction Y license; NRS 484C.210(3) makes the interlock a condition of obtaining that privilege at any time during the ineligibility period. The DMV DUI page states the driver must not drive during the revocation period unless the driver has an ignition interlock restricted license. NRS 484C.210(4) lets the Department make an exception and issue a restricted license under NRS 483.490(1) to a person who is not a repeat intoxicated driver and either cannot provide a deep lung breath sample (physician or APRN certification) or lives more than 100 miles from an interlock manufacturer or i

“Individuals who have had their license suspended or revoked caused by driving under the influence or failing to submit to evidentiary testing will not qualify for a restricted license and will have the option to reinstate their driving privileges”

These values describe the DMV's interlock alternative, since the restricted license itself is not available for DUI revocations. NRS 484C.210(3) provides that at any time while a person is ineligible following a revocation under subsection 1 (refusal: one year, or three years with a prior refusal revocation in 7 years) or subsection 2 (0.08 or more or prohibited substance: 185 days), the person shall install an interlock in any vehicle operated as a condition to obtaining an ignition interlock privilege under NRS 483.490; the DMV's suspension page states the driver may reinstate before the revocation period ends by installing an interlock, and the DUI page lists installing the device 'for immediate reinstatement'. No waiting period is stated for either track. For comparison, the general restricted license under NRS 483.490(1) requires that one-half of the ineligibility period has expired

“the person shall install, at his or her own expense, an ignition interlock device in any motor vehicle which the person operates as a condition to obtaining an ignition interlock privilege pursuant to NRS 483.490.”

Conditions attached to the privilege

For the interlock alternative, the DMV's DUI Revocations checklist lists: install an ignition interlock device (if applicable/required), obtain SR-22 insurance, present the Certificate of Compliance or proof of installation, pay reinstatement fees, pass written testing and a driving skills test if required. The DMV DUI page's reinstatement steps add court requirements (DUI school, treatment if ordered, Victim Impact Panel), the $120 alcohol/drug reinstatement fee, the $35 victim impact fee, in-person submission and DMV tests; the DMV states the SR-22 must be maintained for 3 years (36 consecutive months) beginning at reinstatement and that a lapse restarts the period. Whether court-ordered DUI school must be completed before the early interlock reinstatement is not stated (the suspension-page checklist omits it; the DUI page lists it as step 1), so that sequence is not recorded. The DMV

“Requirements Checklist: Install Ignition Interlock Device (if applicable/required) Obtain SR-22 Insurance Present Certificate of Compliance or Proof of Installation (if applicable/required) Pay Reinstatement Fees Pass Written Testing (if required) Pass Driving Skills Test (if required)”

Where and when it allows driving

Interlock privilege: no purpose, hour or area limits are stated; the license carries Restriction Y and NRS 484C.210(3) requires the device in any motor vehicle the person operates (the state record notes an employer-vehicle exception in NRS 484C.460). The restricted license under NRS 483.490(1), which the DMV says DUI revokees do not qualify for, is limited to driving to and from work or in the course of work, or to acquire medicine or food or receive regularly scheduled medical care for the applicant or immediate family; DMV-21 limits work driving to six days per week and ten hours per day.

“DMV will issue a license with Restriction Y after proof of installation and meeting other requirements.”

How it is issued

The licensing agency issues the Ignition interlock privilege (Restriction Y license).

Official page: dmv.nv.gov

The statute: Nev. Rev. Stat. § 484C.210

“The Department may provide for an exception to the requirements of subsection 3 and issue a restricted license pursuant to subsection 1 of NRS 483.490 if the Department determines that the person is not a repeat intoxicated driver”