Washington enforces impaired driving law aggressively, and the penalties are largely written into statute rather than left to a judge's discretion. That makes a DUI charge different from most misdemeanors: the leverage is in the evidence and the process, not in an appeal to sympathy.
It also makes speed matter. The license side of a DUI is triggered by the arrest itself, not by a conviction, and it moves on a strict deadline that starts running immediately. People who wait to "see what happens in court" often lose their license before the criminal case is ever resolved.
Whether this is a first offense or you have prior convictions, we look at every stage — the reason for the stop, the field sobriety tests, the breath or blood testing, and the paperwork — for the defects that create real options.
What happens after a DUI arrest in Washington?
Two entirely separate proceedings begin at once. They are decided by different bodies, on different timelines, and winning one does not win the other — which is why both need attention from the first week.
| Aspect | Criminal case | License case (Department of Licensing) |
|---|---|---|
| What starts it | The charge filed by the prosecutor | The arrest itself — no conviction required |
| Who decides | A municipal, district or superior court judge | The Department of Licensing |
| Your deadline | Your arraignment date | A short statutory deadline running from the arrest |
| If you do nothing | The case proceeds; you may be defaulted | Suspension takes effect automatically |
| What is at stake | Jail, fines, probation, treatment, a permanent record | Your license, and an interlock requirement to keep driving |
The licensing deadline is the one people miss, because it runs long before the first court date.
What is the legal BAC limit in Washington?
Under RCW 46.61.502, a driver is over the limit at an alcohol concentration of 0.08 or higher within two hours of driving. Different thresholds apply to specific drivers and substances:
| Driver or substance | Limit |
|---|---|
| Drivers 21 and over | 0.08 alcohol concentration |
| Drivers under 21 | 0.02 alcohol concentration |
| Commercial drivers (CDL) | 0.04 alcohol concentration |
| THC (cannabis) | 5.00 nanograms per millilitre of whole blood |
You can be charged below these numbers. The State can prosecute on evidence of actual impairment — driving, appearance, statements and field sobriety tests — with no test result at all.
A 2026 bill to lower Washington's limit to 0.05 passed the state Senate but did not become law, so the limit remains 0.08.
What are the penalties for a DUI in Washington?
Washington does not leave DUI sentencing to a judge's discretion. RCW 46.61.5055 sets mandatory minimums, and the Washington Courts publish a sentencing grid that courts across the state apply. What tier you fall into depends on two things: how many prior offenses you have within the look-back period, and whether your alcohol concentration was below 0.15, or was 0.15 or higher, or you refused the test.
The first grid below applies where the result was under 0.15 or there was no test result.
| BAC under 0.15, or no test | No prior offense | One prior offense | Two prior offenses |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mandatory minimum / maximum jail | 24 consecutive hours / 364 days | 30 days / 364 days | 90 days / 364 days |
| Electronic home monitoring alternative | 15 days in lieu of jail | 60 days mandatory | 120 days mandatory, with 8 days jail minimum |
| Alternative to mandatory jail + EHM | Not applicable | 180 days EHM, or 120 days of 24/7 sobriety monitoring | 360 days EHM, or 360 days of 24/7 sobriety monitoring |
| Mandatory minimum / maximum fine | $990.50 / $5,000 | $1,245.50 / $5,000 | $2,095.50 / $5,000 |
| Driver licensing action | 90-day suspension | 2-year revocation | 3-year revocation |
| Each passenger under 16 — extra jail | Additional 24 hours consecutive | Additional 5 days consecutive | Additional 10 days consecutive |
Mandatory minimum fines may be reduced, waived or suspended where the person is indigent.
What if my BAC was 0.15 or higher, or I refused the test?
The penalties step up materially. This is the second half of the same official grid:
| BAC 0.15 or higher, or refusal | No prior offense | One prior offense | Two prior offenses |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mandatory minimum / maximum jail | 48 consecutive hours / 364 days | 45 days / 364 days | 120 days / 364 days |
| Electronic home monitoring alternative | 30 days in lieu of jail | 90 days mandatory | 150 days mandatory, with 10 days jail minimum |
| Alternative to mandatory jail + EHM | Not applicable | 6 months EHM, or 120 days of 24/7 sobriety monitoring | 360 days EHM, or 360 days of 24/7 sobriety monitoring |
| Mandatory minimum / maximum fine | $1,245.50 / $5,000 | $1,670.50 / $5,000 | $2,945.50 / $5,000 |
| Driver licensing action | 1-year revocation (2 years if the test was refused) | 900-day revocation (3 years if refused) | 4-year revocation |
| Each passenger under 16 — extra jail | Additional 24 hours consecutive | Additional 5 days consecutive | Additional 10 days consecutive |
Source: the Washington Courts DUI sentencing grid (CrRLJ 4.2(g) Attachment 1, January 2026 revision), reflecting RCW 46.61.5055 as amended effective 1 January 2026. Mandatory minimums may not be suspended unless the court finds that imposing them would pose a substantial risk to the person's physical or mental well-being.
A second DUI or physical control conviction within seven years of a prior offense also makes it unlawful for that person to possess a firearm.
What changed in Washington DUI law in 2026?
RCW 46.61.5055 was amended effective 1 January 2026, and the Washington Courts sentencing grid was reissued to match. The mandatory minimum jail, fine and licensing figures above were not changed. What did change matters most to people with older convictions:
| What changed | Before | From 1 January 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Felony DUI look-back | Three prior convictions within 10 years | Three prior convictions within 15 years |
| Deferred prosecution and offender score | Not specified in the grid | A deferred prosecution for a second or subsequent DUI or physical control counts as one point toward an offender score |
| Driving while suspended, cured within 30 days | Suspension imposed | The court may decline to impose a suspension where the violation is cured within 30 days and proof is provided |
| Interlock license during suspension | Not stated in the grid | The grid states you may apply for an ignition interlock driver's license during the suspension period |
| Employer interlock exemption | Applied to employer-owned vehicles | Does not apply to a self-employed person unless the vehicle is used exclusively for that employment |
The seven-year window for counting prior offenses under the sentencing grid did not change. It is only the felony threshold that widened — which means convictions that had aged out under the old ten-year rule can now count toward a felony charge.
How long is the ignition interlock requirement?
After any period of suspension or revocation, the Department of Licensing imposes an ignition interlock restriction. Its length depends on whether you have had one before:
| Prior interlock history | Restriction |
|---|---|
| No previous restriction | 1 year |
| Previous 1-year restriction | 5 years |
| Previous 5-year restriction | 10 years |
| Each passenger under 16 | An additional 12 months (BAC under 0.15) or 18 months (0.15 or refusal) |
The alcohol set point is 0.020 unless the court orders otherwise, and there is a $21 monthly fee plus the cost of the device — waivable if you are indigent. Time with a device already installed counts day-for-day toward the post-conviction requirement, and the clock is tolled for any period you do not have one installed.
What counts as a prior DUI offense?
Penalties escalate sharply with each prior, and "prior" is broader than most people expect:
| Counts as a prior offense | Does not, by itself |
|---|---|
| A previous DUI conviction | An arrest that was never charged |
| A previous physical control conviction | A charge that was dismissed outright |
| Vehicular assault or vehicular homicide | An out-of-state infraction that is not equivalent |
| Reckless or negligent driving 1st, where the charge began as a DUI | — |
| A deferred prosecution granted on a prior impaired driving charge | — |
The look-back is seven years, measured from arrest date to arrest date (RCW 46.61.5055(14)(c)). The reduced-charge row surprises people most: a first case that was resolved as reckless or negligent driving still counts as a prior, so someone who believes this is their first DUI may legally be facing a second.
What happens if you refuse a breath test in Washington?
By driving in Washington you are deemed to have consented to breath or blood testing when an officer has reasonable grounds to believe you were driving impaired (RCW 46.20.308). Refusing does not make the case disappear:
| Consequence | Failed test | Refusal |
|---|---|---|
| License action | Suspension | Longer revocation than a failed test |
| Used as evidence at trial | The result itself | The refusal itself can be introduced |
| Criminal penalty tier | Standard tier | Treated at the higher tier |
| Ignition interlock | Generally required | Generally required |
It is still worth having an attorney examine whether the implied consent warnings were properly given — defective warnings can undermine the refusal finding.
Can I keep driving after a DUI arrest?
Usually yes. Washington generally allows drivers facing suspension to keep driving with an ignition interlock driver's license, which requires installing a functioning interlock device on the vehicles you drive, carrying SR-22 proof of financial responsibility, and paying the associated fees. For many clients this is the most urgent practical issue in the case — the difference between keeping a job and losing one — and it is worth addressing in the first days rather than after sentencing.
Because the criminal and licensing cases are independent, winning a reduction in court does not by itself resolve the licensing action. That proceeding has its own deadline and has to be handled on its own terms.
Can a DUI charge be reduced or dismissed?
These are the realistic paths, and which one applies depends on facts we cannot know until we review the discovery, including the video:
A DUI charge is not a foregone conclusion, but reductions are rarely granted as a courtesy. They happen because the prosecutor sees genuine risk in taking the case to trial — a stop that lacked justification, an observation period that was not properly kept, calibration and maintenance records with gaps, field sobriety tests administered incorrectly, or video that does not match the report. Finding those problems is the work that creates leverage.
Deferred prosecution deserves particular thought. It is a treatment-based alternative in which a person with a qualifying condition agrees to a rigorous, lengthy program, and the charge is ultimately dismissed on completion. It is available only once in a lifetime, which is exactly why it should not be spent casually on a first offense without considering what a second case would look like.
| Outcome | When it becomes realistic |
|---|---|
| Dismissal | The stop lacked legal justification, or critical evidence is suppressed |
| Suppression of the test result | Testing procedure, machine maintenance or the observation period was not properly followed |
| Reduction to reckless driving | Lower alcohol concentration, no priors, no collision, or evidentiary problems |
| Reduction to negligent driving 1st | The same factors, with a stronger mitigation picture |
| Deferred prosecution | A qualifying condition and a genuine treatment commitment — available once in a lifetime |
| Trial | The State cannot prove impairment beyond a reasonable doubt |
A reduced charge protects you from a DUI conviction, but it still counts as a prior offense if there is ever a later impaired driving case.
What does a reduced charge actually carry?
Reckless driving and negligent driving in the first degree are the two common reductions. Both are materially lighter than a DUI, but neither is nothing:
| Consequence | Reckless driving | Negligent driving 1st degree |
|---|---|---|
| Maximum jail | 364 days | 90 days |
| Maximum fine | $5,000 | $1,000 |
| Driver licensing action | 30-day suspension | As imposed by the Department of Licensing |
| Ignition interlock | 6 months | 6 months |
| Counts as a prior offense later | Yes, where the charge began as a DUI | Yes, where the charge began as a DUI |
No mandatory minimum jail, no mandatory DUI fine schedule, and no DUI conviction on your record — which is why a reduction is worth real effort.
Can you get a DUI without driving?
Yes. Under RCW 46.61.504, being in actual physical control of a vehicle while impaired is its own offense — which is why people are sometimes charged after pulling over to sleep it off, or while parked with the keys accessible. The penalties largely mirror DUI, but physical control has defenses of its own, including that the vehicle was moved safely off the roadway before the officer arrived.
What does a DUI cost beyond the fine?
- Insurance — SR-22 filing and years of substantially higher premiums
- Employment — CDL disqualification, and problems for anyone who drives for work
- Travel — Canada can refuse entry to people with impaired driving convictions, which matters in Spokane
- Permanence — a Washington DUI conviction is not eligible to be vacated, so it stays on your record for life
- Treatment and monitoring — alcohol assessment, required programs, interlock and monitoring costs
Frequently asked questions
What happens if I get a DUI in Washington?
Two things at once: a criminal case in court and an administrative action against your license through the Department of Licensing. The license action is triggered by the arrest and runs on a short deadline, so it needs attention immediately — well before your first court date.
Will I automatically lose my license?
Not automatically, but the suspension takes effect unless you request a DOL hearing within the statutory deadline after your arrest. Even when a suspension applies, most drivers can continue driving with an ignition interlock driver's license.
Can I refuse a breath test in Washington?
You can physically refuse, but Washington's implied consent law attaches consequences: a longer license revocation than a failed test, the refusal being used as evidence against you at trial, and higher mandatory penalties on conviction.
Is the legal limit in Washington still 0.08?
Yes. A bill to lower it to 0.05 passed the state Senate in early 2026 but did not clear the House, so the limit remains 0.08 for drivers 21 and over — with 0.02 for drivers under 21 and 0.04 for CDL holders.
Can a first DUI be reduced or dismissed?
It is possible. Reductions to reckless or negligent driving, suppression of a test result, and outright dismissal all happen in the right circumstances — usually because of a problem with the stop, the testing, or the State's ability to prove impairment. No attorney can promise a result before reviewing the evidence.
Do I need a lawyer for a first offense DUI?
Washington's DUI penalties are largely mandatory, a conviction cannot later be vacated, and the license case is lost by default if the deadline passes. Those three facts are why first offenses are worth defending properly.
Ready to talk through your situation?
Reach a Schwab Law attorney in Spokane today.