The United States Constitution guarantees many rights for American citizens, such as the right to free speech, to protest, and to bear arms. Though many people think driving is a right, it is not. It is a privilege. There is nothing that guarantees your right to drive a vehicle. 

In Illinois, there are multiple ways you can lose your license, some that have nothing to do with moving violations. Before a driver’s license suspension, the Illinois Secretary of State will send you a written notice in the mail. 

Here are a few ways you can lose your driving privileges in Illinois:

There are several DUI-related reasons why you could lose your driver’s license in Illinois - you could have been pulled over for a suspected DUI and refused chemical testing for your BAC, you may have failed a chemical test (meaning your BAC was .08 or greater), or you could have been convicted of a DUI. 

Regardless of why you lost your driving privileges, before your license can be reinstated, you must attend a license reinstatement hearing at the Illinois Secretary of State’s Office, where your case will be examined by a hearing officer. There are two types of hearings that the Office conducts: formal and informal. The type of hearing that you must attend is entirely dependent on the nature of the suspension or revocation. Each type of hearing has different requirements, which is why it is important to be prepared and know which type of hearing you will be required to attend.

Informal Hearings

Like their name suggests, informal hearings are not as intense as formal hearings. You can attend an informal hearing to have your license reinstated if:

If your Illinois driver’s license has been revoked for driving under the influence, you anxiously await the day when you are free to drive again with no restrictions. However, Illinois does not make it easy to get your license reinstated after a DUI conviction. 

If you live in Illinois, you will have to appear in person before a Secretary of State hearing officer, who will consider your request for reinstatement, and they may choose to deny your request for any number of reasons. Good preparation is key to success at these hearings. Here are a few of the important steps you must complete before you can even have that hearing:

Determine if You Are Eligible to Apply Yet 

You cannot apply for reinstatement of your driver’s license until your revocation period is up. For example, let us assume that you received the usual six-month statutory summary suspension of your driver’s license for testing over the legal limit for drugs or alcohol at the time of your DUI arrest. Then, at your sentencing, your license was revoked for a minimum of one year. On that date, you had already served three months of your suspension. Those three months will be credited toward your minimum period of revocation, leaving you with nine more months of revocation to serve. At the end of that nine months, you can apply for reinstatement.