Driving on a Suspended License in Virginia: § 46.2-301 Charges & Outcomes

According to 22,843 public court records from 2025, Driving Suspended cases across 116 Virginia jurisdictions have an average dismissal rate of 28.4% and an average conviction rate of 69.8%.

Driving on a suspended or revoked license is one of the most frequently charged criminal offenses in Virginia's General District Courts — 20,550 cases were filed in 2025 across the 115 Virginia jurisdictions with reportable volume. The base offense, § 46.2-301, is a Class 1 misdemeanor — up to 12 months in jail and a fine of up to $2,500 — and a conviction adds a new license suspension on top of the one already in place. Which statute applies depends on why the license was suspended: DUI-related revocations are charged under § 18.2-272, and insurance-related suspensions under § 46.2-302. The law in this area also changed materially in 2020, when the General Assembly repealed the statute that suspended licenses for unpaid court fines and costs. This page explains the statute structure, the penalties, the restricted-license and reinstatement process, and what the public court record shows about how these cases resolved.

The Main Driving-Suspended Statutes in Virginia

Driving While Suspended or Revoked (§ 46.2-301)

The general offense. Under § 46.2-301(B), no person whose license, learner's permit, or privilege to drive has been suspended or revoked — or who has been directed not to drive by a court or the DMV Commissioner — may drive a motor vehicle or self-propelled machinery on any Virginia highway until the suspension ends, the privilege is reinstated, or a restricted license is issued. Mopeds are expressly excluded. A violation is a Class 1 misdemeanor, and the current text of the statute contains no mandatory minimum jail term.

Driving After a DUI-Related Revocation (§ 18.2-272)

When the license was forfeited or revoked in connection with a DUI conviction or administrative revocation, the charge is brought under § 18.2-272 rather than § 46.2-301. A violation is a Class 1 misdemeanor, but the statute escalates: three violations committed within a 10-year period is a Class 6 felony, punishable by 1 to 5 years in prison or, at the discretion of the court or jury, up to 12 months in jail and a $2,500 fine. The section also makes it unlawful to drive with a blood alcohol content of 0.02 percent or more while on a DUI-related suspension, and to drive without a certified ignition interlock system where one is required. Driving outside the terms of a DUI restricted license is itself a § 18.2-272 offense, not a § 46.2-301 offense.

Driving Without Proof of Financial Responsibility (§ 46.2-302)

Where license restoration is contingent on furnishing proof of financial responsibility — typically after an insurance-related suspension — driving before that proof is furnished is charged under § 46.2-302: a Class 2 misdemeanor (up to 6 months in jail, up to a $1,000 fine) on a first offense and a Class 1 misdemeanor on any subsequent offense.

Driving Without a License (§ 46.2-300)

A person who never obtained a valid license is charged under a different statute entirely. § 46.2-300 makes driving without a valid license a Class 2 misdemeanor on a first violation and a Class 1 misdemeanor on a second or subsequent violation. The distinction matters because court records — and outcomes — track these as separate offenses.

Virginia No Longer Suspends Licenses for Unpaid Court Debt

For decades, Virginia suspended driver's licenses for failure to pay court fines and costs under § 46.2-395. That statute was repealed by the 2020 General Assembly (Acts 2020, cc. 964 and 965). Unpaid Virginia court debt, standing alone, is no longer a ground for license suspension. Suspensions and revocations on other grounds — DUI-related revocations, insurance-related suspensions, and court or DMV orders — remain in force, and driving on them remains chargeable under the statutes above.

What a Conviction Adds: More Suspension, Possible Impoundment

A § 46.2-301 conviction carries consequences beyond the jail and fine exposure. Under subsection D, the court suspends the person's license for the same period as the prior suspension — or, where the prior suspension had no definite end date, for an additional period of up to 90 days — capped at 10 years from the conviction date in most cases. Where the underlying suspension was DUI-related, § 46.2-301.1 provides for administrative impoundment or immobilization of the vehicle for 30 days, and § 46.2-301(A) allows the court to extend impoundment by up to 90 days on conviction, with all removal and storage costs paid by the offender before release of the vehicle.

Restricted Licenses and Getting a License Back

Under § 46.2-301(E), a person who is otherwise eligible may petition each court that suspended the license to authorize a restricted license, which the court may grant for good cause for the purposes enumerated in § 18.2-271.1(E) — among them travel to and from work and work duties, school, medical care, transporting minor children to school and daycare, court appearances and probation appointments, religious worship, and job interviews. A restricted license under this subsection never covers commercial motor vehicles, and driving is not permitted until the restricted license is physically received from the Commissioner.

Full reinstatement runs through the DMV, not the criminal court. Under § 46.2-411, reinstatement after a revocation requires proof of financial responsibility and payment of a reinstatement fee — $30 at base, higher for certain violations, with a portion directed to the Trauma Center Fund — and the suspension or revocation order remains in effect until every requirement attached to it is met.

The Compliance Dismissal Provision (§ 46.2-301(G))

The statute contains its own dismissal mechanism. Where there have been no prior violations or convictions of § 46.2-301 within the past 10 years, the court may, in its discretion, dismiss the summons or warrant if proof of compliance is provided to the court on or before the court date. The provision does not apply to holders of a commercial driver's license or commercial learner's permit, or to anyone who was operating a commercial motor vehicle. Where prior violations exist, the court may still dismiss or amend the charge on proof of substantial compliance. Dismissal under subsection G is discretionary — the statute permits it; it does not require it.

Court Outcomes for Driving Suspended in Virginia (2025)

In 2025, 20,550 driving-suspended cases were filed across the 115 Virginia jurisdictions with reportable volume. Of the 17,676 cases that reached a final disposition during the year, the public court record shows:

• 28.3% ended in dismissal — includes judicial dismissals, compliance dismissals under § 46.2-301(G), and nolle prosequi (prosecutor declining to pursue).
• 69.9% ended in conviction — a much higher conviction rate than most misdemeanors, because the license status itself is a matter of record.
• These are rates among resolved cases only; outcomes vary materially by jurisdiction.

For current jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction data — dismissal rates, conviction rates, and median case durations — see the driving on a suspended license jurisdictional outcomes page or the § 46.2-301 statute-anchored data page.

What Happens After a Driving-Suspended Charge

Driving-suspended cases are misdemeanors and begin — and almost always end — in General District Court, which has original jurisdiction over Class 1 and Class 2 misdemeanors. The summons or warrant lists a court date, typically several weeks out. Across the public record, common procedural events on these cases include continuances, amendments to a different charge, compliance dismissals, and convictions on the original charge. Felony § 18.2-272 third-offense charges follow the felony track: a preliminary hearing in General District Court, then certification to Circuit Court, with materially longer timelines.

Related Data

• Driving on a Suspended License — Court Outcomes by Virginia Jurisdiction
• § 46.2-301 — Statute-Anchored Outcome Data
• Methodology — How These Numbers Are Computed