ARD License Suspension by BAC in PA | Nicholas A. Frisk III

Last updated October 4, 2026.

One of the main reasons people choose ARD is the license. A DUI conviction above the lowest tier means a suspension of 12 or 18 months; ARD for the same arrest usually means a much shorter one, and sometimes none. The exact length is set by statute, not by the judge's discretion. How ARD works in general is covered in ARD in Pennsylvania. The overall defense approach is on the main DUI defense page.

What does the statute say?

Section 3807(d) makes a license suspension a condition of every DUI ARD, and the court "shall order" it in one of four lengths:

License suspension as a condition of DUI ARD (75 Pa.C.S. 3807(d))
Situation	Suspension
Blood alcohol under 0.10% at the time of testing	None
Blood alcohol of at least 0.10% but under 0.16%	30 days
Blood alcohol of 0.16% or higher	60 days
Blood alcohol not known	60 days
A crash with bodily injury or damage to a vehicle or other property	60 days
Charged with a drug DUI under 3802(d)	60 days
Under 21 at the time of the offense	90 days

"Minor" in the DUI chapter means a person under 21 (75 Pa.C.S. 3801). Note the "not known" row: a case with no reliable alcohol number still carries the 60-day term, so a missing or excluded test result does not automatically mean no suspension. Drug cases, explained on the page about DUI for prescription pills or medical marijuana, always fall in the 60-day row.

How does an ARD suspension play out, step by step?

The suspension is ordered by a judge but carried out by PennDOT, so it moves between the court and the license office:

The test that sets the row. The statute looks at the blood alcohol concentration "at the time of testing" (3807(d)). That is the chemical test of breath or blood after arrest, not the roadside screening device, which is a different thing explained in the roadside breath test versus the DUI chemical test.
The ARD hearing. If the District Attorney moves for ARD and the judge accepts the case, the judge states the conditions in open court, and the suspension is one of them (3807(d); Pa.R.Crim.P. 313(C)). In Lawrence County that hearing is in the Court of Common Pleas, described in what to expect at the Lawrence County Courthouse.
The court notifies PennDOT. When a person accepts ARD for a DUI, the court must promptly notify PennDOT, which keeps a record of the acceptance (1534(b)).
PennDOT's notice. PennDOT then mails the suspension notice with its start date. The suspension runs from that date, not from the day of the hearing.
An interlock license, if you want one. PennDOT's eligibility chart lists ARD suspensions of 30, 60 and 90 days as eligible for an Ignition Interlock Limited License immediately upon receiving notice of the suspension. The petition goes to PennDOT by certified mail with the required fees.
Serving the term. The mandatory penalties for driving while suspended keep applying until the operating privilege is actually restored, not just until the last day of the term (1543(b)(2)).
Restoration. The license is not valid again until PennDOT restores it, as described below. For an ARD suspension on a first offense, PennDOT's chart shows no ignition interlock requirement at restoration.

How does that compare with a conviction?

ARD suspension compared with a first conviction for the same tier
Tier on a first offense	With ARD	With a conviction
General impairment (0.08% to under 0.10%)	None	None
High rate (0.10% to under 0.16%)	30 days	12 months
Highest rate (0.16% or more) or drugs	60 days	12 months

Conviction suspensions come from 3804(e)(2): 12 months for an ungraded or second-degree misdemeanor and none for a first general impairment offense with no prior offense. For a first-time general impairment driver the license result is the same either way; for that driver, the difference ARD makes is the chance of a dismissal instead of a conviction. Every tier, including second and third offenses, is laid out in the Pennsylvania DUI penalties chart.

Does ARD cancel a refusal suspension?

No. A refusal suspension is a separate civil penalty that PennDOT imposes "upon notice by the police officer" that a person under arrest for DUI refused chemical testing: 12 months, or 18 months with a prior refusal suspension or DUI sentence (1547(b)(1)). It is not one of the ARD lengths in the table above, and PennDOT's Driver's Manual says the refusal suspension is "in addition to the suspension imposed for a conviction or Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition." It has its own appeal process and its own restoration fee. If you refused, read the page about appealing a PennDOT license suspension before the 30-day window closes.

Can I drive during an ARD suspension?

Not without the right license. Driving during a suspension imposed "as a condition of acceptance of Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition" for a DUI is covered by the mandatory penalties of 1543(b): a $500 fine and 60 days in jail on a first conviction, and a $1,000 fine and 90 days if the driver has a blood alcohol level of 0.02% or more at the time (1543(b)(1)(i), (1.1)(i)). That is why the statute requires that every ARD participant receive oral and written notice of 1543(b) (3807(b)(1)(i)). The details are on the page about driving during a DUI suspension.

Licenses during and after an ARD suspension (PennDOT)
Question	PennDOT's answer	Source
Occupational limited license (OLL)	Not available for a DUI ARD suspension until the term is fully served	PennDOT OLL fact sheet
Ignition Interlock Limited License (IILL)	Eligible immediately upon receiving notice of a 30, 60 or 90-day ARD suspension	PennDOT IILL eligibility chart
Interlock required when the license is restored	No, for an ARD suspension on a first offense	PennDOT IILL eligibility chart
Getting an unrestricted license after an IILL	The vendor's Declaration of Compliance must show no incidents in the prior 30 days, rather than the usual two months	PennDOT IILL page and fact sheet

PennDOT describes the Ignition Interlock Limited License as allowing driving with an interlock device during a DUI-related suspension, for drivers who meet its conditions. For use in another state, PennDOT says to ask that state's driver license agency or police, because rules vary by state.

A change is coming. Act 36 of 2026, signed on July 20, 2026, repeals the limited license and creates a new ignition interlock driver's license. That part of the act takes effect 16 months after signing, in November 2027; until then, the rules above apply.

When does the suspension start, and how do I get the license back?

The start date is the one on PennDOT's notice, which follows the court's report of the ARD (1534(b)). As with any suspension, the license is not automatically valid again on the end date: PennDOT says restoration requirements must be met first, and because they vary from person to person, it offers a free restoration requirements letter online, or by mail about 30 days before the eligibility date.

Who qualifies for ARD in the first place, and what the program costs locally, is on the page about getting ARD for a DUI in Lawrence County.

What changes the answer?

These are the facts that move a case from one row to another, each with the rule behind it:

The chemical test result. Under 0.10% means no ARD suspension; 0.10% to under 0.16% means 30 days; 0.16% or more means 60 days (3807(d)(1) to (3)).
No usable number. A refusal or a missing result can leave the level "not known," which is the 60-day row (3807(d)(3)(ii)). Whether a blood result was lawfully taken is covered in whether police need a warrant to draw blood.
A crash. A crash with bodily injury or damage to a vehicle or other property is listed in the 60-day row (3807(d)(3)(iii)). A crash that killed or seriously injured someone else bars ARD altogether (3807(a)(2)(ii)).
The kind of DUI charged. A charge under 3802(d), the controlled substance section, is always 60 days (3807(d)(3)(iv)).
Age. A driver under 21 at the time of the offense is in the 90-day row (3807(d)(4), 3801).
A refusal. It adds PennDOT's separate 12 or 18-month refusal suspension on top of whatever ARD carries (1547(b)(1)).
An earlier DUI or ARD within 10 years. It generally bars ARD (3807(a)(2)(i)), so the conviction suspensions of 3804(e) apply instead.
A commercial driver's license. PennDOT is not required to expunge its record of the ARD after 12 years if the person was a commercial driver at the time of the violation (1534(d)(2)).

A worked example

For example, take a hypothetical driver (not a real case), age 34, with no earlier DUI, who is stopped in Ellwood City, gives a chemical breath test result of 0.12%, and was not in a crash.

If the District Attorney offers ARD and the judge accepts it, the suspension is 30 days, because 0.12% is at least 0.10% but under 0.16% (3807(d)(2)). A conviction for the same arrest would carry 12 months (3804(e)(2)). The court notifies PennDOT (1534(b)), and PennDOT mails a notice with the start date. Under PennDOT's chart, the driver could petition for an Ignition Interlock Limited License as soon as that notice arrives, and no interlock is required when the license is restored.

Change one fact at a time. If the same driver had refused the test, the level would not be known, so the ARD suspension would be 60 days (3807(d)(3)(ii)), and PennDOT's refusal suspension of 12 months would come on top of it (1547(b)(1)). If the driver had been 20 years old, the ARD suspension would be 90 days (3807(d)(4)).

Common mistakes with an ARD suspension

Treating the end date as the day you can drive. The 1543(b) penalties apply until the operating privilege is restored (1543(b)(2)), and PennDOT says restoration requirements must be met first.
Counting from the hearing date. The term runs from the start date on PennDOT's notice, so read the notice instead of guessing.
Applying for an occupational limited license. PennDOT's OLL fact sheet lists a DUI ARD suspension as ineligible until the term is fully served.
Assuming a refused test means no suspension. It means the 60-day ARD row plus a separate refusal suspension.
Ignoring the refusal letter while the ARD case is pending. The appeal window for a PennDOT suspension is short and runs on its own clock.
Letting your address go stale. PennDOT mails its notices and restoration letter to your address of record.

What to do this week

Find the chemical test result, or the refusal form, from the arrest; it decides your row in the table.
Note whether there was a crash, any injury or damage, and your age on the date of the offense.
Open every PennDOT letter the day it arrives and write down its mailing date and any start date.
Check that PennDOT has your current address.
If you will need to drive, read PennDOT's Ignition Interlock Limited License page and petition before the suspension starts.
Plan rides for the suspension period, including court dates in New Castle.
Request your restoration requirements letter online before the end date.

Frequently asked questions

Can the judge shorten or skip the ARD suspension?

No. Section 3807(d) says the court "shall order" the suspension in the length that fits the facts, so the judge's choice is whether to accept the case into ARD, not how long the suspension is.

Will the ARD show on my driving record?

PennDOT keeps a record of the acceptance and completion of DUI ARD and makes it available to prosecutors, courts and police on request; it expunges that record 12 years after completion, with exceptions for habitual offender revocations and commercial drivers (1534(b) to (d)). The reason it is kept is the newer offense explained in DUI following diversion under Act 58.

Do I need an ignition interlock after ARD?

Not to get the license back after a first-offense ARD suspension, according to PennDOT's eligibility chart. An interlock is optional during the suspension, through the limited license, if you want to keep driving.

I am under 21. Is an underage drinking citation the same thing?

No. The 90-day ARD suspension comes from a DUI charge (3807(d)(4)). A citation for underage possession or consumption is a separate summary case, explained in what happens after an underage drinking citation.

I have an Ohio license. Does the ARD suspension apply to me?

The suspension is of your privilege to drive in Pennsylvania, and driving here during it is an offense whatever state issued the license (1543). What Ohio does with a Pennsylvania case is covered in an Ohio driver's DUI in Lawrence County.

If you are weighing ARD after a DUI in Ellwood City, Lawrence County or Western Pennsylvania and your license is the main worry, I can tell you which row of this table applies to you. You work directly with me, and the first consultation is always free and confidential.

How long is my license suspended if I get ARD for a DUI in Pennsylvania?