Missouri Administrative Alcohol Hearings and Refusal Review

Identify the notice before choosing a review procedure

Look for the action's title, issuance date, driver information, and whether the case concerns a completed chemical test or refusal. Missouri's alcohol enforcement overview treats BAC-based administrative actions and chemical refusals separately, even though both may arise from a DWI stop. A criminal summons is another document with another purpose. Place each notice in a dated file and identify the agency or court named in its instructions. Sending a general letter saying that the ticket is disputed does not ensure that the licensing review procedure has been invoked or that the correct office can act on the request.

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Calendar the administrative hearing deadline immediately

For a BAC-based action, DOR's administrative alcohol FAQ requires a written hearing request within fifteen days from issuance of Form 2385, with timely receipt or postmark as described by the agency. That short period runs from the notice, not from the later criminal court appearance. Keep the original notice and a copy of the submitted request, including proof of transmission or mailing. An informal conversation with an office employee is not the written request described by DOR. When reviewing a household member's paperwork, copy the actual issuance date instead of calculating from the day someone first opened an envelope.

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Use the correct part of Form 2385

The Notice of Suspension or Revocation form contains a hearing-request section and a separate request concerning immediate interlock restricted driving. Those choices serve different purposes. Read the labels before signing and submitting a section; do not assume that completing any detachable portion contests the administrative action. Include the requested identifying information, signature, and attorney information when applicable. The sample form on the website explains the structure, but the issued notice contains the driver's case-specific information. Preserve a complete copy of both sides because instructions, permit conditions, and mailing details may appear on the reverse.

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Select the hearing format deliberately

The administrative FAQ provides in-person and telephone hearing options. A request that does not select an in-person hearing is scheduled by telephone under the published instructions. DOR also links its regional hearing-location list, but the actual scheduling notice controls the assigned setting. Provide a working contact number and current mailing address, and retain the hearing date and time in a place accessible to the driver and any representative. Before a telephone hearing, DOR says it supplies the officer's arrest report without charge. Review that material in advance rather than encountering its identification or chronology for the first time during the hearing.

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Send the request through the hearing channel

The published administrative hearing mailing address is Department of Revenue, Attention General Counsel's Office, PO Box 475, Jefferson City, MO 65105-0475. This is not the reinstatement payment address or the address used for an immediate RDP request. The web FAQ and downloadable sample form display different hearing fax numbers in the materials reviewed; confirm the current fax destination with the department's driver licensing contacts before relying on that method. The shared mailing destination is consistent. Retain evidence that the request was submitted through the chosen channel within the applicable period, rather than relying on an unsaved confirmation screen.

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Check whether a temporary permit actually authorizes driving

A fifteen-day permit on the notice is conditional. The form excludes drivers whose license is expired or already suspended, revoked, or denied, as well as people not licensed to drive in Missouri. Requesting a hearing does not cure an unrelated disqualification. If a hearing is granted, DOR describes issuance of a continued permit to eligible drivers who surrendered their license, extending through fifteen days after the decision is mailed. Check the issued permit itself, the current driver record, and any other open notices. A printed permit cannot be treated as unrestricted authority without reading its eligibility and date conditions.

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Prepare for the actual licensing issues

Administrative review concerns the licensing action supported by the arrest and chemical-test record, not every issue in the criminal prosecution. The Missouri licensing statutes contain the administrative alcohol provisions and explain the statutory setting for the hearing. Organize the notice, reports, test information, correspondence, and any relevant record corrections in chronological order. Identify discrepancies specifically rather than submitting unrelated character letters as a substitute for addressing the record. DOR explains that administrative records often provide the officer's testimony, although the officer may be subpoenaed in some circumstances. A representative should know which evidence is available before the scheduled proceeding.

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Address scheduling problems before the hearing passes

DOR publishes 573-751-2580 for requests to speak with Administrative Hearings staff about a continuance. Asking for a change does not itself establish that the original setting has been canceled. Obtain and retain the department's response. For an in-person hearing, the FAQ explains that failure to appear without the specified written election to submit on the record or waive the hearing can result in default and a decision sustaining the action. Keep the notice available while making the request so the correct case and hearing setting can be identified. Do not replace attendance with an unconfirmed assumption that another proceeding caused a postponement.

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Distinguish the post-hearing court procedure

After an adverse administrative decision, section 302.535 provides for a trial de novo in the circuit court of the county where the arrest occurred. It is not merely another call to the hearing officer. Read the decision promptly for the applicable filing instructions and deadline. The statute states that filing the court petition does not itself stay the suspension or revocation. Use the Missouri judiciary's official court information to identify the proper court and its filing process. Any available restricted privilege must be separately supported; a stamped petition alone should not be used as a driving permit.

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Route chemical-refusal review to court

The chemical-revocation FAQ directs a petition to the circuit or associate circuit court where the arrest or stop occurred, within thirty days after the Notice of Revocation is issued. It identifies Cole County for the specified out-of-state arrest situation. The governing refusal statute and the actual notice should be read together. This is not the fifteen-day DOR administrative hearing process used for a BAC test result. A court-issued stay can affect driving while the refusal case is pending, but filing alone and receiving a stay are different events. Retain the signed order and verify its terms.

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Keep restricted driving separate from contesting the action

An eligible driver considering the administrative alcohol RDP route must follow that application's conditions, including interlock and insurance where required. The LDP procedure applies to different circumstances and has its own exclusions. Review both the action type and any other open suspension before choosing a route. The August 2026 interlock changes also matter when a qualifying first conviction involves high BAC, injury, or property damage. An immediate restricted privilege is not a declaration that the arrest record was incorrect, and a hearing request is not automatically an application for every form of hardship driving.

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Track the decision through reinstatement

If the action remains in force, the DOR reinstatement requirements determine what must be completed after the applicable period. Required SATOP services, insurance filings, fees, or interlock evidence may remain necessary even where the criminal case has a different result. Record the decision's mailing date, the privilege's effective dates, and the status of any separate court review. After DOR receives the documents, confirm that the action has been cleared before resuming unrestricted operation. Keep the complete administrative file so later questions can be answered from the actual notices rather than a recollection of what occurred at a hearing.

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Frequently asked questions

What is the Missouri deadline to request a BAC administrative hearing?
DOR specifies fifteen days from issuance of Form 2385, using its written-request receipt or postmark requirements.

Does selecting the immediate RDP section of Form 2385 also request a hearing?
The form separates those requests; complete the section that corresponds to the procedure being sought.

Can a driver with an already suspended license rely on the notice's temporary permit?
The form's permit conditions exclude an existing suspension and other specified ineligibility, so the printed notice does not override them.

Is a Missouri chemical-refusal appeal filed with the DOR hearing office?
Refusal review proceeds through the designated circuit court, with the thirty-day notice deadline described by DOR.

Does filing a trial-de-novo petition automatically pause a BAC suspension?
Section 302.535 states that the petition itself does not stay the administrative suspension or revocation.

Which address does DOR publish for an administrative alcohol hearing request?
The hearing request goes to the General Counsel's Office at PO Box 475, Jefferson City, MO 65105-0475, rather than the reinstatement payment address.

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More Missouri DMV guides

The other Missouri DMV guides, 52 of them:

Where this subject meets the courts and the county records: looking up a Missouri court case and how an arrest is recorded in Missouri.

DUI in the largest Missouri counties, each with the local court and office that holds the file: St. Louis, Jackson, St. Charles, Greene, St. Louis City and Clay.