Your workday probably starts in the driver’s seat as you travel to job sites across Plano and Collin County. After a felony driving while intoxicated (DWI) arrest, an officer may have served you with a license suspension notice. Texas law offers a possible way to keep driving. Knowing what an occupational license allows, when to act and which rules apply can help you protect your work.
Know what an occupational license allows
An occupational license is a restricted license a judge can grant while your regular license is suspended. You must show an essential need to drive, such as getting to work or school. If the judge grants your petition, the Texas Department of Public Safety issues a license that lets you drive a noncommercial vehicle within the order’s terms. It never covers a commercial motor vehicle, and it is valid only in Texas.
Act before the suspension takes effect
Timing matters next, because deadlines start running at your arrest. In most cases, you have 15 days after receiving the notice to request an administrative hearing. Otherwise, the suspension usually begins on the 40th day.
Challenging an administrative license suspension and petitioning for an occupational license are separate steps. A later felony DWI conviction brings its own suspension, generally 180 days to two years. Since September 2023, Texas has also dropped the old waiting periods for these licenses.
Expect closer review after a felony DWI
A felony charge can make your petition harder to win. Before a conviction, a judge may decide it from the paperwork alone. After a DWI conviction, the judge must hold a hearing and the prosecutor may argue against your request.
Under the 2023 overhaul of the license law, a judge may also deny the petition if you have more than one intoxication-related conviction in the past 10 years. A felony DWI often rests on prior convictions, so this rule may apply, though denial is not automatic. You must also prove insurance coverage and usually attend alcohol counseling.
Weigh the ignition interlock requirement
Next, consider the ignition interlock device, which keeps a vehicle from starting if it detects alcohol on your breath. A judge generally must require one if your bond already includes an interlock or your license was suspended after a DWI conviction. The court may waive it if it finds the device unnecessary for community safety.
An interlock restriction typically removes limits on when and where you drive. Without one, the default is four hours a day, or up to 12 if needed. You may drive your employer’s vehicle without a device if your job requires it, you do not own or control the company and you keep proof in the vehicle that your employer knows about the restriction.
Protect your job while your case moves forward
An occupational license can help you keep working while a felony DWI case is pending, but it has firm limits. It covers only noncommercial driving in Texas, depends on quick action, may draw closer review after recent convictions and often requires an interlock. Because the license addresses your driving privileges and not the charge itself, speaking with a criminal defense attorney early can help you coordinate both.
