Alaska DUI License Reinstatement (2026): Suspension, Steps and Fees
How do you get your license back after a first DUI in Alaska?
A first-offense DUI in Alaska carries a 90-day license revocation, with a possible limited license for the final 60 days if the driver installs an ignition interlock device. Reinstatement needs the interlock installed, an Alcohol Safety Action Program (ASAP) certificate, an SR-22 filing held for 5 years and a $200 DMV reinstatement fee. Alaska runs both an administrative (DMV) revocation and a separate court revocation on a DUI conviction.
In Alaska the license consequences start with the Alaska Division of Motor Vehicles rather than the courtroom. An administrative suspension runs on its own clock beside the court case and the window to request the administrative hearing is 7 days. The page below lays the pieces out in the order the state runs them.
An ignition interlock is part of every first-offense path here. The SR-22 filing is required. The education or treatment step comes before reinstatement. Each piece has its own section below, with the official source beside it.
The parts Alaska drivers most often miss are the 7-day hearing-request deadline, which runs from the arrest or notice date, the insurance filing that lives with your insurer rather than the court and the order of the steps, since several gate the ones after them. The sections below take them in order.
How long is your license suspended after a first DUI in Alaska?
The first-offense term and how the administrative and court tracks interact in Alaska.
| Item | Alaska rule |
|---|---|
| First-offense suspension | 90 days revocation |
| Administrative vs court | Alaska runs two revocation tracks: a civil administrative revocation through the DMV triggered by a failed (0.08+) or refused breath test and a separate revocation entered by the court on a DUI conviction. The DMV publishes distinct pages and reinstatement paths for each track. |
| Worth knowing | A limited license is available for the final 60 days of the 90-day period if the revocation followed a breath test failure (not a refusal) and the driver installs an ignition interlock device. |
The hearing clock: how long you have to act in Alaska
The deadline to request the administrative review of the license suspension. It runs from the arrest or notice date, not from the court date.
| Item | Alaska rule |
|---|---|
| Request window | 7 days |
| How it works | The driver has 7 days from receiving the Notice and Order of Revocation to request an administrative review hearing in writing from the DMV (Anchorage Driver Services). A temporary license is issued once the request is received, valid until the hearing date. |
The path back: the Alaska reinstatement steps in order
Several of these steps gate the ones after them, so the order matters as much as the list.
- Serve the 90-day revocation, or become eligible for a limited license after 30 days with an interlock installed
- Complete ASAP screening and any assigned alcohol education or treatment
- Install a court-ordered ignition interlock device
- File SR-22 proof of insurance dated within 30 days
- Pass the written and vision tests (road test if required)
- Pay the DMV reinstatement fee and submit the application
Get the free Alaska reinstatement checklist
The one-page map of the Alaska steps, in the order Alaska runs them.
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Ignition interlock rules in Alaska
Whether the device is required for a first offense, for how long and where the state lists its certified providers.
| Item | Alaska rule |
|---|---|
| Required for a first offense? | Yes, mandatory for a first offense |
| First-offense duration | 6 months below 0.15 BAC; 1 year at 0.15 BAC or above |
| BAC trigger | 0.15 and above triggers the longer first-offense term |
| Approved providers | unverifiable (a DMV-hosted approved-provider list page could not be located during this |
| Worth knowing | The device carries a 'C' restriction on the license. It must be installed on every vehicle the driver operates. All installation, monitoring and removal costs are the driver's responsibility. |
Do you need SR-22 insurance in Alaska?
The financial-responsibility filing your insurer makes with the state, where Alaska requires one.
| Item | Alaska rule |
|---|---|
| Required after a first DUI? | Yes |
| The form | SR-22 |
| How long it must stay in force | 5 years from the ending date of the revocation, on a first offense (10 years on a second offense) |
| Worth knowing | Proof must also be dated within 30 days of the reinstatement application. |
Driving before full reinstatement in Alaska
The limited license, if any, that lets a first offender drive during the suspension.
| Item | Alaska rule |
|---|---|
| Available for a first offense? | In some cases (see below) |
| What Alaska calls it | Limited license |
| Waiting period | 30 days into the 90-day revocation, first offense |
| Worth knowing | Available only if the underlying revocation followed a breath test failure (not a refusal) and requires ignition interlock installation. |
The DUI program, the fees and the lookback
The DUI program. Alcohol Safety Action Program (ASAP) screening, which designs and recommends the applicable education or treatment track. A certificate of completion is required for reinstatement. Length: commonly cited as a 12-hour Level 1 course for first offenders and a 24-hour Level 2 course for repeat offenders, not confirmed against a DMV-hosted hours table.
The lookback period. 15 years (Alaska Statutes § 28.35.030) for counting prior DUI or refusal convictions toward sentencing; a separate 10-year window governs when two or more priors elevate a new offense to a felony. This is the window over which a prior offense counts toward repeat-offense treatment.
The costs a Alaska driver can expect on the way back.
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| Reinstatement fee, one DUI/refusal | $200 |
| Reinstatement fee, one DUI/refusal plus any other administrative action | $250 |
| Reinstatement fee, two DUIs and refusal plus any administrative action | $500 |
