Summary of New Mexico's Administrative License Suspension Laws

THE CIVIL CASE - The MVD civil hearing process is separate from the criminal court proceeding. You can win one case and lose the other. If you refuse to take a breath or blood test as requested by the officer, you may lose your license of one year and you cannot get a work permit or a limited license. If your license is revoked for the first time and you took a blood or breath test, you will lose your license for 90 days if you are 21 or older with a 0.08 or higher blood-alcohol result. If you are under 21, then you will lose your license for six months with a 0.02 or higher alcohol level. If you have previously had your license revoked for DWI through the MVD civil hearing and your alcohol level is above the legal limit, then you will lose your license for one year without the possibility of a work permit or a limited license. Your driver's license can be revoked through a DWI criminal conviction or a DWI civil revocation (the MVD hearing), or if you are convicted of driving on a revoked license. If your license if revoked, you cannot drive. If you are caught driving, you will be arrested. If you are convicted in criminal court of driving on a revoked license, you will receive a sentence of seven days to one year in jail and a $300 to $1000 fine. You also will receive an additional one-year revocation of license, which starts when your current revocation ends, and your vehicle can be immobilized - impounded or locked in your driveway - for 30 days at your expense. When your revocation period is over, you must apply to MVD and pay $100 to reinstate your license, otherwise you risk being arrested. A person who has three or more DWI convictions resulting in a five-or-10 year revocation needs an order from the state district court before MVD will reinstate his license.