Your deadline
This counts 10 calendar days. Your paperwork controls, so don’t wait until the last day.
One arrest, two separate cases
A DUI arrest in California usually starts two cases at once. The criminal case is filed in the Superior Court and decides whether you are convicted. The DMV case, called an administrative per se (APS) action, decides only whether your driving privilege is suspended. They run on different tracks, with different rules and different deadlines, and winning one does not automatically decide the other.
What the 10 days are for
When an officer arrests you for DUI and takes your license, you are usually handed a pink notice of suspension that also serves as a temporary license. That notice starts the clock. Under Vehicle Code § 13558, you, or an attorney acting for you, must contact the DMV within 10 days of receiving the notice to request a hearing. If you do, the suspension is generally stayed until the hearing is decided, so you can usually keep driving in the meantime.
If nobody requests a hearing, the suspension typically takes effect automatically 30 days after the notice was served, when the temporary license runs out.
What the DMV hearing decides
The hearing is held before a DMV hearing officer, not a judge. It usually turns on a few questions (Vehicle Code § 13557):
- Did the officer have reasonable cause to believe you were driving under the influence?
- Were you lawfully arrested?
- Were you driving with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08% or more (or, for a refusal, did you refuse a chemical test after being told the consequences)?
Problems with the stop, the arrest, the testing or the paperwork can matter. The hearing is also an early chance to question the evidence before the criminal case goes much further.
Typical suspension periods
| Situation | Typical period |
|---|---|
| Adult, first offense, 0.08% or more | 4 months |
| Adult, prior DUI within 10 years | 1 year |
| Refusing a chemical test, first offense | 1 year |
| Under 21, 0.01% or more (Vehicle Code § 23136) | 1 year |
A restricted license is often available during part of a suspension, usually with an ignition interlock device. The court case can add its own suspension if there is a conviction.
What to do now
- Find the pink notice and note the date on it.
- Call or text Eric as soon as you can. He can request the hearing for you.
- Keep every piece of paper from the arrest and the release.
Law cited: Vehicle Code §§ 13353.2, 13558. Last reviewed October 2026.
General information, not legal advice. Every case is different.