Usually yes, for a short time. At a DUI arrest the officer takes your Illinois license and, if it was valid, hands you a paper receipt. Under 625 ILCS 5/11-501.1(f)(1.5), that receipt lets you drive until the suspension starts on the 46th day after you got notice. After that day, driving without a permit is a crime.
Your deadlines
- Day 46. Your statutory summary suspension starts, counted from the day you got the notice.
- Day 90. The last day to file a petition to rescind that suspension.
What the receipt from the officer does
The officer who arrests you for DUI must confiscate any Illinois driver's license or permit you have on you. If the license was valid, the officer must give you a receipt in a form set by the Secretary of State. The statute says the receipt allows you to drive during the period before the suspension takes effect. The officer then sends your license to the Secretary of State with a sworn report.
So the plastic card is gone, but the paper is your proof. Keep it in the car. If you are pulled over on day 12 and you cannot show it, you will have a harder afternoon than you need to.
The statute does not limit the receipt to work trips or daytime. It does not say where you may go. It simply allows driving until the suspension date. That does not make every trip wise, but the law does not forbid it.
When your right to drive ends
The suspension takes effect on the 46th day after the date the notice was given to you (625 ILCS 5/11-501.1(g)). If the officer handed you the notice at the roadside, that date is the starting point. Count 46 days from there. Your notice date is printed on the paperwork. The Secretary of State also mails a notice of the effective date, so you will see it in writing a second time (11-501.1(h)).
Sometimes the notice arrives later. When a blood or urine result shows an illegal level after the arrest, the officer or agency can give notice by mail, and the suspension begins on the same 46 day rule. Your driving window in that case starts from the date of the mailed notice, not the night of the arrest.
Use the DUI deadline calculator to do the date math, then check it against your paperwork.
Arrested for DUI? Call Jeff now.
The license clock starts the day you get the notice. During office hours, Jeff answers the phone himself.Office hours: Monday to Friday 8:30 AM to 6 PM, Saturday 10 AM to noon. After hours, leave your name, number and the best time to call back.
Jeff McCarthy, Inspired Law Group, 136 E 9th St, Lockport, IL 60441
Who cannot count on the receipt
The receipt only helps a person whose license was valid at the time. A few drivers fall outside it.
- A driver whose license was already suspended, revoked or expired. There is no valid privilege for a receipt to stand in for.
- A driver with a license from another state. The confiscation rule in the statute names Illinois licenses. What your home state does is a separate question. See the page on out of state drivers charged with DUI.
- A driver with a commercial license. The disqualification of commercial driving privileges takes effect on the same 46th day (11-501.1(g)), and a CDL holder's suspension report is not private the way a first offender's usually is (11-501.1(e)). Read the page on CDL DUI cases before you assume anything.
A receipt also does not override a court order. A judge can set conditions when you are released. The Secretary of State suspension and your release paperwork are separate documents. Read both, and ask if they seem to say different things.
What happens if you drive after the suspension starts
Driving while your privilege is suspended is a Class A misdemeanor under 625 ILCS 5/6-303(a). The only exceptions listed there are the specific permits, including a monitoring device driving permit. For a Class A misdemeanor the sentence of imprisonment is less than one year, and the fine can be as high as $2,500 (730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-55).
That is why the 46th day matters more than the arrest night. One more charge, on top of a DUI, turns a bad month into a long one. If you need to keep driving past that day, the lawful route is a permit, not a guess. Read about the monitoring device driving permit and the interlock.
Steps to take in the first days
- Put the receipt and the notice in your glove box, and take a photo of both.
- Write the notice date on a sheet of paper. Add 46 days. Mark that date on your calendar and on your phone.
- Look for the Secretary of State letter. It confirms the effective date and describes the permit process for first offenders.
- Decide whether you want a permit before day 46, not on day 46.
- Line up rides for the days after the suspension starts, in case the permit is not in hand yet.
- Learn what the statutory summary suspension means for your own facts, and what a hearing to rescind it can and cannot do.
What a hearing can and cannot change
You have 90 days from the notice to ask the circuit court for a hearing to rescind the suspension (625 ILCS 5/2-118.1(b)). The statute is plain that asking for the hearing does not stay or delay the suspension. So the receipt runs out on day 46 whether or not your hearing has happened. The hearing is also narrow. It covers whether you were arrested for DUI, whether the officer had reasonable grounds, and whether you refused or failed testing. It is not a trial of the whole case.
The court either sustains or rescinds the suspension and tells the Secretary of State right away. A win does not mean the criminal charge goes away. It means the administrative suspension is lifted.
Questions people ask
Can I drive to work the day after a DUI arrest in Illinois?
If the officer gave you a receipt for a valid license, the statute lets you drive during the period before the suspension starts. It does not limit that driving to work. Keep the receipt with you and watch the date.
Do I get my license back right away?
No. The officer sends it to the Secretary of State. After a suspension ends, driving privileges are restored unless you are otherwise suspended, and reinstatement fees must be paid first (625 ILCS 5/6-208.1(b) and (c)).
What if the officer did not give me a receipt?
Call Jeff before you drive again. A missing receipt could mean the license was not valid, or that the paperwork is wrong. Either way, you should know where you stand before you start the car.
Does a hearing to rescind let me keep driving past day 46?
No. The statute says the hearing request does not stay or delay the suspension. You would need a permit to drive lawfully after the suspension starts.
Is driving on a suspended license really a crime?
Yes. It is a Class A misdemeanor under 625 ILCS 5/6-303(a), except where a listed permit allows the driving.
Sources
- 625 ILCS 5/11-501.1, Illinois General Assembly
- 625 ILCS 5/2-118.1, Illinois General Assembly
- 625 ILCS 5/6-303, Illinois General Assembly
- 625 ILCS 5/6-208.1, Illinois General Assembly
- 730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-55, Illinois General Assembly
Reviewed by Jeff McCarthy, Attorney, Inspired Law Group, 136 E 9th St, Lockport, IL 60441.
This page is general legal information about Illinois law. It is not legal advice, it does not create an attorney client relationship, and it does not account for the facts of any particular case.
