Penalties
Underage DUI: Zero-Tolerance Laws by State
What Happens if You Get an Underage DUI?
An underage DUI usually means a driver under 21 was caught under a zero-tolerance law, which sets a much lower alcohol limit than the 0.08 adult limit. Of the 51 jurisdictions (the 50 states and D.C.), 36 set the under-21 limit at 0.02, California and New Jersey use 0.01, and 13, including Texas and Illinois, punish any detectable alcohol. The usual result of a first violation is a license suspension of 30 days to a year, and a reading of 0.08 or more is charged as a regular DUI with adult penalties.
What Counts as an Underage DUI
An underage DUI is an impaired-driving case against a driver under 21, and it can mean two different things. The first is a zero-tolerance violation: you drove with a small amount of alcohol in your system, below the adult limit of 0.08 but above the much lower limit your state sets for drivers under 21. The second is a regular DUI, charged the same way it would be for an adult, because your reading was 0.08 or higher or you were impaired.
Which one you face changes almost everything: whether it is a crime, what court hears it, how long you lose your license and whether it follows you into adult life. Many states draw the line in the same place. In Kentucky, Louisiana and Mississippi, under-21 drivers at 0.08 or more get the adult DUI penalties, while a lower reading falls under the zero-tolerance rules.
If you or your child was just stopped, the most urgent fact is the license deadline. Some states, including North Dakota and Missouri, suspend an under-21 license through the same administrative process adults face, which comes with a short window to ask for a hearing. In Florida you must request a review within 10 days of the notice. Use the DUI license hearing deadline calculator to find yours.
Zero-Tolerance Laws: The Under-21 Limit by State
Every jurisdiction checked sets a lower limit for drivers under 21, but the number differs.
| Under-21 limit | How many of the 51 jurisdictions | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Any detectable or measurable alcohol | 13 | Texas, Illinois, Arizona, Maryland, North Carolina, Utah, Wisconsin, D.C. |
| 0.01 | 2 | California, New Jersey |
| 0.02 | 36 | Florida, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington, Michigan |
A 0.02 limit sits close to zero, and some 0.02 states add a separate any-alcohol rule. Michigan also bars driving with any alcohol in your body from drinking, except as part of a recognized religious service, and Delaware bars driving under 21 after consuming alcohol at all, treating 0.02 or more as proof of drinking.
The strictest wording comes from the “any amount” states. In Texas, a minor commits an offense by driving in a public place with any detectable amount of alcohol (Tex. Alco. Bev. Code § 106.041). Utah calls its rule Not-a-Drop. Maine bars more than 0.00. In D.C., any measurable amount makes a driver under 21 legally intoxicated, with the same DUI penalties adults face.
The limit only decides whether you broke the under-21 rule. Your actual reading still matters after that, because a higher number can move the case from a zero-tolerance violation to a regular DUI, and Wyoming adds 6 months of interlock for an under-21 driver at 0.15 or more on a first conviction. For how BAC is measured and what the adult limits are, see Blood Alcohol Content Limits by State.
Some States Add a Middle Tier
A few states create a second under-21 threshold between their zero-tolerance limit and 0.08:
- California: 0.01 or more brings a 1-year DMV suspension, and driving at 0.05 or more under 21 is a separate offense (Cal. Veh. Code §§ 23136, 23140).
- New York: 0.02 to 0.07 is a Zero Tolerance violation handled at a DMV hearing, but at 0.05 or more police may charge DWAI or DWI in criminal court.
- Utah: any measurable alcohol violates Not-a-Drop, and a driver under 21 at 0.05 can also be charged with DUI.
- Rhode Island: drivers 18 to 20 are covered from 0.02 to under 0.08, while drivers under 18 are covered from 0.02 to under 0.10 under a family court section.
Underage DUI Penalties: License, Fines and Jail
For a first zero-tolerance violation, the main penalty in most states is losing your license. Fines, community service and alcohol education often come with it, and a few states add possible jail.
| First-offense license loss | Examples |
|---|---|
| 30 days | Alabama, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, South Dakota; Kansas adds 180 days of interlock-only driving |
| 60 to 91 days | Iowa 60 days, Delaware 2 months, New Jersey 30 to 90 days, Arkansas, Nevada and Washington 90 days, North Dakota 91 days |
| About 6 months | Florida, Kentucky and New York 6 months; Hawaii 180 days; Massachusetts 180 days, or 1 year if under 18 |
| 1 year or more | California, Maine, New Mexico and North Carolina 1 year; New Hampshire at least 1 year; Pennsylvania 12 months; Virginia 1-year forfeiture plus the administrative suspension |
Repeat violations escalate quickly. New York revokes for at least 1 year or until age 21, whichever is longer, on a second finding. Washington and West Virginia do the same on a second offense, and Arkansas’s third offense brings a 3-year revocation or until 21.
Is It a Crime?
The answer splits sharply. In some states a low-level under-21 violation is not a crime at all:
- Civil, administrative or infraction: Alaska (an infraction with a $500 fine and community work on a first offense), Colorado (a class A traffic infraction), Hawaii, Indiana (a Class C infraction), Nebraska, Vermont, Wisconsin (a $200 forfeiture) and Rhode Island for ages 18 to 20. Florida and Iowa suspend the license whether or not a crime is charged.
- Misdemeanor: Arizona and Virginia (Class 1), North Carolina (Class 2), Texas (Class C, fine up to $500), Ohio (fourth degree), South Dakota (Class 2), plus Idaho, Minnesota, Michigan, Wyoming and West Virginia.
Some statutes allow jail even on a first offense. Pennsylvania applies its high-rate DUI penalties to drivers under 21 at 0.02 or more, which means at least 48 consecutive hours in jail, a $500 to $5,000 fine and a 12-month suspension on a first offense. Louisiana sets 10 days to 3 months on a first conviction, and Maryland allows up to 2 months. Idaho’s second offense carries 5 to 30 days.
Penalties also rise with a younger driver. In Arizona, a driver under 18 convicted of the under-21 offense or of DUI loses their license for 2 years. In Kentucky a driver under 18 stays suspended until 18 if that is longer. In Delaware, a juvenile convicted of DUI loses the license until 21.
Under-21 Limit by State
| State | Under-21 limit |
|---|---|
| DUI law in Alabama | 0.02 (0.02 percent or more for drivers under 21) |
| DUI law in Alaska | 0 (any quantity of alcohol (ages 14 to 20)) |
| DUI law in Arizona | 0 (any spirituous liquor in the body while driving if under 21) |
| DWI law in Arkansas | 0.02 (Underage DUI covers a BAC of 0.02 through 0.079 for drivers under 21) |
| DUI law in California | 0.01 (0.01 percent or greater is unlawful for drivers under 21 (Veh. Code § 23136); 0.05 percent or more is a separate offense for drivers under 21 (Veh. Code § 23140). The 0.04 limit also applies to drivers carrying paying passengers.) |
| DUI law in Colorado | 0.02 (At least 0.02 but not more than 0.05 is a class A traffic infraction for drivers under 21; above 0.02 and below 0.08 triggers an administrative revocation) |
| DUI law in Connecticut | 0.02 (0.02 or more for a driver under 21) |
| DUI law in Delaware | 0.02 (drivers under 21 may not drive after consuming alcohol; 0.02 or more is per se evidence of consumption) |
| DUI law in District of Columbia | 0 (any measurable amount of alcohol counts as intoxicated for a driver under 21) |
| DUI law in Florida | 0.02 (unlawful for a person under 21 to drive or be in actual physical control with a blood- or breath-alcohol level of 0.02 or higher (administrative license suspension, not a criminal DUI by itself)) |
| DUI law in Georgia | 0.02 (a driver under 21 is irrefutably considered under the influence of alcohol at 0.02 grams or more) |
| OVUII law in Hawaii | 0.02 (a measurable amount of alcohol: a test result of .02 or more but less than .08) |
| DUI law in Idaho | 0.02 (an alcohol concentration of at least 0.02 but less than 0.08) |
| DUI law in Illinois | 0 (drivers under 21 face a license suspension for any alcohol concentration greater than 0.00 (zero tolerance, 625 ILCS 5/11-501.8 and 6-208.2)) |
| OWI law in Indiana | 0.02 (a driver under 21 with 0.02 to under 0.08 commits a Class C infraction; the court may recommend a license suspension of up to 1 year) |
| OWI law in Iowa | 0.02 (drivers under 21 with 0.02 or more lose their license under the zero tolerance law, even without a criminal charge) |
| DUI law in Kansas | 0.02 (0.02 or greater for drivers under 21) |
| DUI law in Kentucky | 0.02 (0.02 or more for drivers under 21) |
| DWI law in Louisiana | 0.02 (0.02 or more for operators under 21) |
| OUI law in Maine | 0 (drivers under 21 may not operate with an alcohol level of more than 0.00 grams per 100 milliliters of blood or 210 liters of breath) |
| DUI law in Maryland | 0 (every licensee under 21 carries an alcohol restriction that prohibits driving with alcohol in the blood) |
| OUI law in Massachusetts | 0.02 (drivers under 21 with a blood alcohol percentage of 0.02 or more lose their license administratively) |
| OWI law in Michigan | 0.02 (0.02 or more but less than 0.08, or any presence of alcohol from drinking (except as part of a recognized religious service or ceremony)) |
| DWI law in Minnesota | 0 (any physical evidence of alcohol consumption in the body) |
| DUI law in Mississippi | 0.02 (0.02 or more for a person below the legal age to purchase alcoholic beverages; from 0.02 up to but not including 0.08 the Zero Tolerance for Minors penalties apply, and at 0.08 or more the adult penalties apply) |
| DWI law in Missouri | 0.02 (drivers under 21 face administrative suspension at 0.02 or more when stopped for a traffic violation or on suspicion of driving with 0.02 or more) |
| DUI law in Montana | 0.02 (0.02 or more, or any amount of THC, for a driver under 21) |
| DUI law in Nebraska | 0.02 (0.02 or more but under 0.08 for a driver under 21 is a traffic infraction) |
| DUI law in Nevada | 0.02 (0.02 or more but less than 0.08 for a driver under 21 triggers a 90-day license suspension) |
| DWI law in New Hampshire | 0.02 (0.02 or more for a driver under 21) |
| DWI law in New Jersey | 0.01 (0.01 or more but less than 0.08 for a driver under 21) |
| DWI law in New Mexico | 0.02 (0.02 or more for a driver under 21 triggers administrative license revocation) |
| DWI law in New York | 0.02 (.02 to .07 BAC violates the Zero Tolerance Law (VTL 1192-a) and is handled at a DMV hearing; .05 or more may be charged as DWAI or DWI in criminal court) |
| DWI law in North Carolina | 0 (drivers under 21 may not drive with any alcohol or controlled substance remaining in their body (G.S. 20-138.3); the immediate civil revocation applies at 0.01 or more for drivers under 21) |
| DUI law in North Dakota | 0.02 (drivers under 21 face an administrative license suspension at 0.02 or more) |
| OVI law in Ohio | 0.02 (0.02 or more but less than 0.08 (whole blood or breath)) |
| DUI law in Oklahoma | 0 (any measurable quantity of alcohol) |
| DUII law in Oregon | 0 (any amount of alcohol fails the implied consent test for drivers under 21) |
| DUI law in Pennsylvania | 0.02 (0.02 or higher within two hours of driving (minors, defined as under 21)) |
| DUI law in Rhode Island | 0.02 (Drivers 18 to 20 with a BAC of at least 0.02 but under 0.08 are 'driving while impaired' (a civil, non-criminal violation). Drivers under 18 with a BAC of at least 0.02 but under 0.10 are 'driving while impaired' under a separate family-court section.) |
| DUI law in South Carolina | 0.02 (Drivers under 21 with an alcohol concentration of 0.02 or more face a DMV license suspension) |
| DUI law in South Dakota | 0.02 (0.02 percent or more for drivers under 21, or any physical evidence of marijuana or a controlled drug or substance not lawfully prescribed) |
| DUI law in Tennessee | 0.02 (0.02 percent or more for drivers under 21, or under the influence of alcohol or any other intoxicant (underage driving while impaired)) |
| DWI law in Texas | 0 (A minor (under 21) commits an offense by operating a motor vehicle in a public place with any detectable amount of alcohol in the minor's system.) |
| DUI law in Utah | 0 (A driver younger than 21 may not operate or be in actual physical control of a vehicle with any measurable blood, breath or urine alcohol concentration.) |
| DUI law in Vermont | 0.02 (0.02 or more for drivers age 12 to under 21 is a civil violation under 7 V.S.A. § 656(b)(1)(E); 0.02 or more is also the limit for school bus drivers under 23 V.S.A. § 1201(a)(1)(B)) |
| DUI law in Virginia | 0.02 (0.02 or more but less than 0.08 after illegally consuming alcohol (Va. Code § 18.2-266.1)) |
| DUI law in Washington | 0.02 (0.02 or more alcohol, or any THC above 0.00, within two hours after driving (RCW 46.61.503)) |
| DUI law in West Virginia | 0.02 (0.02 or more but less than 0.08 for drivers under 21) |
| OWI law in Wisconsin | 0 (a person under the legal drinking age may not drive with an alcohol concentration of more than 0.0 but not more than 0.08 (absolute sobriety); 0.08 or more is charged as OWI/PAC) |
| DUI law in Wyoming | 0.02 (a person younger than 21 may not drive or be in actual physical control of a vehicle with an alcohol concentration of 0.02 or more) |
From each state's statutes, DMV and court pages, checked October 2026. Each state's page links its sources.
Refusing a Test Under 21
Refusing a breath or blood test usually costs more license time than failing it, and that is true for under-21 drivers too.
- Illinois: 3 months for a test over 0.00, but 6 months for refusing (625 ILCS 5/6-208.2).
- New York: a Zero Tolerance refusal brings a 1-year revocation and a $300 civil penalty.
- Maine: 18 months for a first refusal, compared with 1 year for a first offense.
- Massachusetts: a 3-year suspension for refusal, compared with 180 days for a 0.02 test.
- California: 1 to 3 years for refusing a test under the 0.01 law.
In Vermont, refusing even the roadside preliminary breath test counts as a violation. The rules on refusal for every driver are explained in Implied Consent: What Happens If You Refuse a Test, and state details are on pages such as Illinois DUI refusal.
How an Underage DUI Affects Your Future
A zero-tolerance violation and a regular DUI follow you in different ways.
- Later DUIs. Kentucky does not count under-21 0.02 convictions as priors, and Montana’s under-21 offense doesn’t count as a prior for adult sentencing. A regular DUI conviction can count toward repeat-offense penalties for years, depending on your state’s lookback period. See Felony DUI: Repeat Offenses, Injury and Lookback Periods.
- Getting a first license. Mississippi bars offenders too young for a license from getting one until 18. New Jersey delays a license 30 to 90 days for unlicensed drivers under 17.
- Clearing it. West Virginia lets a first offense be dismissed and expunged after the Test and Lock program, and Mississippi makes a first offense eligible for nonadjudication.
- Interlock. Utah requires an interlock after a DUI conviction under 21, and Kansas adds 180 days of interlock-only driving after a first 0.02 suspension. See Ignition Interlock Devices.
For how long any DUI stays on a driving or criminal record in your state, see How Long Does a DUI Stay on Your Record?
Passengers and Other Add-Ons
Two details can lengthen an underage suspension. Maine adds 180 days if a passenger under 21 was in the vehicle, and Wisconsin doubles its suspension to 6 months with a minor passenger under 16.
Several states also cover drugs in the under-21 rule. Montana and Washington reach THC, and South Dakota reaches marijuana or any controlled substance not lawfully prescribed while evidence remains in the body.
What to Do After an Underage DUI
- Check the license deadline. The administrative suspension is separate from any court case. Find the window with the deadline calculator and read your state’s page, such as Florida license suspension or California license suspension.
- Read the paperwork for the charge. Find out whether it is a zero-tolerance violation, an infraction or a DUI. The citation or notice names the statute.
- Look up your state’s rules. Start at DUI laws by state and open your state, such as Texas DWI laws or New York DWI laws.
- Talk to a lawyer licensed in your state if the charge is criminal, if the reading was 0.08 or more, or if you are under 18 and the case is in juvenile or family court. Your state bar’s lawyer referral service can help, and the court can tell you whether you qualify for a public defender. See How to Find and Choose a DUI Lawyer.
If the charge is a regular DUI rather than a zero-tolerance violation, the First DUI guide explains the adult penalties you may face.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is an Underage DUI a Criminal Charge?
It depends on the state and the reading. Some states treat a low-level under-21 violation as civil or administrative only: Florida's 0.02 rule is an administrative suspension, Rhode Island's is a non-criminal violation for ages 18 to 20, and Wisconsin's is a forfeiture. Others make it a crime, such as a Class 1 misdemeanor in Arizona and Virginia or a Class C misdemeanor in Texas. At 0.08 or more, every state can bring a regular DUI charge.
Can I Get a Restricted License After an Underage DUI?
Sometimes. Arkansas may issue a restricted driving permit, North Carolina lets drivers aged 18 to 20 with no prior violation apply for a limited driving privilege, Wisconsin allows an occupational license at any time, and Virginia allows a restricted license with VASAP and an interlock. Colorado does not let drivers under 21 reinstate early. See Hardship Licenses After a DUI.
Does an Underage DUI Count as a Prior for Adult DUI?
Not always. Kentucky does not count under-21 0.02 convictions as priors for adult DUI, and Montana says its under-21 offense does not count as a prior for adult sentencing. In other states a regular DUI conviction before 21 counts like any other. See Felony DUI and lookback periods.
Will I Need SR-22 Insurance After an Underage DUI?
It depends on the state and the charge. Missouri says an SR-22 is not required for a first-time under-21 suspension at 0.02. A regular DUI conviction can bring a filing requirement in states that use SR-22. See SR-22 Insurance After a DUI.
Can Marijuana Lead to an Underage DUI?
Yes, in some states. Montana's under-21 offense covers any amount of THC, Washington's covers any THC above 0.00 within two hours of driving, and South Dakota's covers driving after using marijuana while physical evidence remains in the body.
Can an Underage DUI Be Cleared From My Record?
A few states build in a path. In West Virginia a first offense can be continued for the Test and Lock program and then dismissed and expunged, Mississippi makes a first offense eligible for nonadjudication, and Alabama keeps first-violation records confidential except to courts, police, your attorney and your employer. See Can a DUI Be Expunged?
More on Penalties
- Is a DUI a Felony?When a DUI becomes a felony in each state
- First DUIFirst-offense penalties across the states and what happens next
- Felony DUIRepeat-offense and injury felonies and how lookback periods work
- DUI With a CDLThe 0.04 limit and federal CDL disqualification
- DUI vs DWI vs OWIWhat each term means and which states use which
- What OWI MeansOperating while intoxicated, and the states that use the term
This guide explains DUI law in plain language from official sources. It isn't legal advice; laws differ by state and change, and a lawyer licensed in your state can advise on your case.