First Offense DWI in Minnesota

What are the penalties for a first DWI in Minnesota?

The level depends on the test result, a young child in the vehicle, and refusal. The table assumes no prior incident within 20 years and fewer than two on record.

Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.25 Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.03 Source: Minnesota Statutes 171.178 Source: Minnesota Statutes 171.30

Minnesota recognizes three aggravating factors, and two can apply with no prior incident: an alcohol concentration of 0.16 or more measured within two hours, and a child under 16 in the vehicle who is more than 36 months younger than the driver. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.03 At 0.16 or more, the court may also add a penalty assessment of up to $1,000. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.285 Our high BAC DWI page covers those cases.

What does “first offense” mean for a Minnesota DWI?

A first offense means no qualified prior impaired driving incident, which is broader than no prior conviction. A prior impaired-driving license revocation counts even without a conviction, and a conviction and revocation from the same incident count once. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.03 Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.09

The two cases look back different distances:

• Criminal degree. A prior incident raises the degree only if it falls within the past ten years. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.03
• License consequences. First-incident periods apply only with no prior within 20 years and fewer than two on record. Source: Minnesota Statutes 171.178
• Felony priors. A prior felony DWI conviction, or a prior felony conviction for a listed substance-related criminal vehicular homicide or operation offense, makes any new DWI first-degree DWI regardless of how old it is. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.24

So a driver with one DWI from 15 years ago can face a fourth-degree charge and a repeat-offender license track.

Can you get a DWI in Minnesota below 0.08 or without alcohol?

Yes. The 0.08 limit is only one way to commit DWI. It is a crime to drive, operate or be in physical control of a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, a controlled substance, cannabis, or a combination of them, or under the influence of an intoxicating substance you know or have reason to know can cause impairment. It is also a crime to drive with any amount of a Schedule I or II controlled substance or its metabolite in your body, a rule that excludes cannabis and THC. The limit in a commercial motor vehicle is 0.04. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.20 Using a Schedule I or II drug as prescribed is an affirmative defense to the presence charge. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.46

Minnesota’s statutory term is DWI; DUI is a common term for the same conduct. See our page on marijuana DWI in Minnesota.

Is refusing the breath test a crime on a first offense?

Refusing the evidentiary test is a crime, but refusing the roadside screening test is different. The crime covers refusing a breath test under the implied consent law or a blood or urine test required by a search warrant. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.20 The roadside preliminary screening test is used to decide whether to arrest and whether to require the evidentiary test. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.41 For a warrant test, an officer who directs a blood test must offer a urine test, or the reverse, before a refusal can be acted on. Source: Minnesota Statutes 171.177

A first refusal is third-degree DWI, or second-degree with one aggravating factor. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.26 Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.25 See refusing the breath test in a Minnesota DWI stop.

How long do you lose your license after a first DWI?

For a first incident, the initial revocation is at least 90 days for a test failure and at least one year for a refusal or a result of twice the legal limit or more. It takes effect on notice, and a mailed notice is treated as received three days after mailing. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.52 If blood or urine went to a lab, the notice can come later, after the result is certified. Source: Minnesota Statutes 171.177

When notice is served at the arrest, the officer issues a temporary license good for 14 days. That applies to breath cases and, since July 1, 2026, to search-warrant cases. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.52 Source: Laws 2026, chapter 97, article 2, section 5

A driver under 21 who fails below twice the limit faces at least 180 days. Source: Minnesota Statutes 171.178

What changes if you are convicted?

A conviction carries its own minimum periods: at least 30 days for a DWI conviction, 90 days for a refusal conviction, 180 days if you are under 21 and below twice the limit, and one year at twice the limit or more. At least 90 days are added when department records show injury or death. For a driver with no prior in 20 years who is revoked and convicted for the same incident, a 2026 amendment applies only the conviction-based period. That substitution does not apply when the DWI involved a child under 16 who was more than 36 months younger than the driver. Source: Laws 2026, chapter 97, article 2, sections 6 and 8 Source: Minnesota Statutes 171.178

What does reinstatement require?

Reinstatement after a DWI revocation requires a $250 fee and a $430 surcharge for each revocation, with a statutory installment option that issues a two-year license until the balance is paid. Source: Minnesota Statutes 171.29 Our license revocation defense page explains the hearing.

How do you challenge a first-offense license revocation?

You file a petition for judicial review within 60 days after receiving the notice and order of revocation, in district court in the county of the alleged offense, served on the Commissioner of Public Safety and stating specific grounds. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.53 Search-warrant revocations follow a parallel 60-day petition process. Source: Minnesota Statutes 171.177

• Filing does not pause the revocation, though the court may stay it if no hearing is held within 60 days of filing.
• The hearing must be held within 60 days of filing and may be held at the same time as pretrial motions in the criminal case.
• Administrative review is separate. You may request it in writing at any time, the Commissioner must respond within 15 days, and it does not affect judicial review.

Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.53

Because the cases are separate, a license challenge may be needed while the criminal case is pending. Martine Law can check your notice date and deadline in a free consultation. Phones are answered 24/7.

Can you drive to work after a first DWI in Minnesota?

You may, through a limited license or the interlock program. A limited license is discretionary and, for a first violation, cannot issue until 15 days into the revocation. It covers driving that your livelihood or substance use disorder treatment or counseling depends on, attendance by an enrolled postsecondary student, or a homemaker’s driving needed to prevent substantial disruption of the family’s education, medical or nutritional needs. The Department of Public Safety may require proof that public transit or carpooling would be a significant hardship. Source: Minnesota Statutes 171.30

Limits apply:

• No limited license after a test failure at twice the legal limit or more.
• Drivers under 18 wait at least 90 days.
• No limited license for a Class A, B or C commercial license.

Source: Minnesota Statutes 171.30

Is ignition interlock required for a first DWI?

No, for a true first incident interlock is optional, and you may instead serve the revocation without driving. Source: Minnesota DPS Ignition Interlock Device Program Interlock is mandatory only with a prior incident within 20 years or two or more priors on record. Source: Minnesota Statutes 171.178

An eligible participant 18 or older receives a restricted Class D license after proving a certified device is installed and the vehicle is insured; the device blocks starting at 0.02 or higher. An employer-owned vehicle without a device may be driven only in the normal course of employment, under DPS guidelines and with the employer’s written consent. Participants must follow any treatment recommended in their substance use assessment. Source: Minnesota Statutes 171.306 See how the ignition interlock program works.

Will you get whiskey plates or lose your car on a first DWI?

Plate impoundment applies to a first offense only at twice the legal limit or more, or with a child under 16 in the vehicle who is more than 36 months younger than the driver. Rental vehicles and vehicles registered in another state are excluded. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.60

• The officer seizes accessible plates or invalidates them with a permanent sticker.
• The temporary vehicle permit lasts 14 days if the vehicle is registered to you, or 45 days if it is registered to someone else.
• Plates not seized must be surrendered within 14 days.
• Special plates cannot issue for at least one year, but you can obtain new plates by becoming an interlock participant or if the order is rescinded.

Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.60

Vehicle forfeiture requires first-degree DWI or an offense or revocation within ten years of the first of two prior incidents, so a true first DWI does not qualify. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.63 See our explainer on whiskey plates in Minnesota.

Will you go to jail for a first DWI in Minnesota?

Jail is legally possible up to the maximum, but a true first DWI carries no mandatory minimum jail sentence. Minnesota’s mandatory minimums begin with a violation within ten years of a qualified prior incident. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.275

An officer who decides to proceed with prosecution must still make a custodial arrest when the result is 0.16 or more, when a qualifying child was in the vehicle, on a second-degree charge, or on a third-degree charge against a driver under 19. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.40 Unless maximum bail is imposed, release on those charges requires abstaining from alcohol and, where equipment is available, daily electronic alcohol monitoring. The court need not order monitoring if you become an interlock participant. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.44 See bail and bond in Minnesota.

What happens in the criminal case after a first DWI?

The criminal case starts with a first appearance, where the court informs you of the charge and your rights and sets bail and release conditions. Source: Minnesota Rules of Criminal Procedure, Rule 5 Evidence review, motions on the stop and the testing, negotiation, and trial or plea follow. See what happens at a DWI arraignment in Minnesota.

If you are convicted:

• Assessment. A substance use disorder assessment is required after a DWI conviction or a related conviction from a DWI arrest, except for a person who was a nonresident both at the offense and at the assessment. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.70
• Treatment. At 0.16 or more, the court must order the level of care the assessment recommends. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.275
• Probation. A stayed sentence can last up to two years for a misdemeanor DWI and up to four years for a gross misdemeanor DWI. Source: Minnesota Statutes 609.135

Whether a charge can be dismissed or reduced depends on the evidence and procedural history; no statute guarantees a reduction.

What should you do after a first DWI arrest?

• Find the date on your notice of revocation. The 60-day petition window runs from receipt of that notice.
• Check the temporary license expiration and any plate order.
• Write down your timeline and discuss the case only with your lawyer. See police interviews and your rights in Minnesota.
• Choose a driving option before the temporary license expires.
• Talk with a Minneapolis DWI lawyer or our Minnesota DWI defense team before your first appearance.

What do people ask about a first DWI in Minnesota?

Is a first DWI in Minnesota a felony?

Not for a driver with no felony history. Felony DWI requires three or more qualified prior incidents within ten years, a prior felony DWI, or a prior felony conviction for a listed substance-related criminal vehicular offense. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.24 A first incident is a misdemeanor, or a gross misdemeanor with an aggravating factor or a refusal.

Can a first DWI be expunged in Minnesota?

It can be sealed by petition, not automatically. You may petition two years after discharge of a misdemeanor sentence, or three years after a gross misdemeanor sentence, if you have no new conviction, and the court decides. Source: Minnesota Statutes 609A.02 DWI convictions are excluded from automatic expungement. Source: Minnesota Statutes 609A.015 A past revocation still counts as a prior incident for later charges. See our expungement page.

Does my license come back if the criminal charge is dismissed?

Not automatically. The revocation is a separate civil action, undone through judicial or administrative review. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.53 If the revocation is rescinded and the charge is dismissed with prejudice or you are acquitted, impounded plates are replaced at no cost. Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.60

Do the rules differ for drivers under 21 or with a CDL?

Yes. Drivers under 21 face at least 180 days for a test failure below twice the limit, drivers under 18 cannot join the interlock program, and the commercial vehicle limit is 0.04. Source: Minnesota Statutes 171.178 Source: Minnesota Statutes 171.306 Source: Minnesota Statutes 169A.20 Commercial disqualification follows federal standards. Source: Minnesota Statutes 171.165 See our underage DWI page.

Talk with Martine Law about a first-offense DWI

Martine Law PLLC defends first-offense DWI charges and license revocations across Minnesota. The criminal case, license petition, temporary license and any plate order run on different deadlines, so bring your notice and court date. Phones are answered 24/7. Call 612-294-0650 to request a free consultation.

This content provides general information and should not be considered legal advice. Contact Martine Law for guidance specific to your situation.

Criminal defense services are provided by Martine Law PLLC.