DUI Laws in Georgia

0.08 grams for drivers 21 and older; 0.02 grams for drivers under 21.

DUI penalties include fines up to $1,000, jail up to 12 months, and mandatory license suspension. For drivers 21 and older, a first DUI within 5 years brings a 12-month suspension, but the driver can apply for reinstatement after 120 days by completing a DDS-approved DUI Alcohol or Drug Use Risk Reduction Program and paying the reinstatement fee. A limited driving permit may be available.

A fourth or later DUI conviction within 10 years is a felony (1 to 5 years in prison, of which all but 90 days may be suspended or probated, and a $1,000 to $5,000 fine). The 10 years are measured from the arrest dates of the earlier offenses to the current arrest, and a nolo contendere plea counts as a conviction. Only convictions or nolo pleas on or after July 1, 2008 count toward the felony. A first or second conviction is a misdemeanor and a third is a 'high and aggravated' misdemeanor.

Georgia law requires drivers to submit to state-administered chemical tests of blood, breath, urine or other bodily substances. Refusing leads to a license suspension of at least one year, and refusal to submit to blood or urine testing may be offered as evidence at trial. Drivers may obtain additional independent tests at their own expense after submitting to the state's tests.

For license suspensions, DUI convictions are counted within a 5-year period (measured from arrest dates); a second DUI conviction within 5 years brings an 18-month suspension, with an ignition interlock limited permit available only after a 120-day hard suspension.

How long a DUI stays on the Georgia driving record was not found on an official page. For the criminal record, Georgia lets some people with misdemeanor convictions ask the court to restrict (seal) access to their criminal history, but the law excludes 'any serious traffic offense' under Article 15 of Chapter 6 of Title 40, which is the article that contains the DUI law. So a DUI conviction cannot be restricted under that process.

Some suspended drivers qualify for a limited driving permit, which restricts driving to purposes such as going to work, scheduled medical care or prescriptions, school classes, alcohol or drug treatment support groups, and driver education or required assessment and treatment programs. For a first DUI conviction, DDS must issue a limited permit to a qualifying driver ($25, valid one year).