Georgia record
Georgia DUI administrative license suspension deadline
- What the state calls it
- DUI at 0.08 BAC or above for most adult drivers
- Administrative action
- Administrative License Suspension (ALS), started when the arresting officer completes DDS Form 1205, the notice of intent to suspend
- Deadline to contest
- 30 calendar days
- What starts the clock
- Georgia rule 375-1-1-.06(f)(i), quoted in the DDS Traffic Court Reference Manual, makes an appeal timely if "received or postmarked within thirty (30) calendar days of the issuance or serve date of the notice of intent to suspend (1205 or 1205s)." Thirty calendar days from service of the 1205, not from any court date.
- Agency
- Georgia Department of Driver Services. A timely paid request is then docketed with the Office of State Administrative Hearings.
- How to request
- Complete form DDS-1206, attach a copy of your DDS Form 1205, and submit it with the 150 dollar nonrefundable filing fee, either online through a DDS Online Services account, by mail to DDS at P.O. Box 80447, Conyers GA 30013, or in person at a DDS Customer Service Center. DDS will not accept hearing requests by fax.
- If the deadline passes
- The right to a hearing is waived and the suspension stands. DDS states that a request not fully completed and submitted within the appeal period will be rejected and the right to appeal waived. The DDS manual adds that the suspension is then upheld as the department's final decision by operation of law, and the arresting officer may not withdraw it afterwards.
- If the test was refused
- The 30 day deadline and the 150 dollar fee are the same either way. The consequence is not. Refusing the state test brings a one year suspension with no limited driving permit available, and the DDS manual notes that a DUI conviction from the same arrest will not avoid that hard suspension. Taking the test and exceeding the limit brings a 30 day minimum suspension with a limited permit available for 25 dollars.
- Statute
- O.C.G.A. § 40-5-67.1, O.C.G.A. § 40-5-55, O.C.G.A. § 40-5-64.1, Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. r. 375-1-1-.06
What this means after an arrest in Georgia
An arrest in Georgia normally starts two separate processes. The criminal DUI case goes to court on its own timetable. Separately, Georgia Department of Driver Services. A timely paid request is then docketed with the Office of State Administrative Hearings. can act against your license, and you have 30 calendar days to contest that.
The clock is described in the source as: Georgia rule 375-1-1-.06(f)(i), quoted in the DDS Traffic Court Reference Manual, makes an appeal timely if "received or postmarked within thirty (30) calendar days of the issuance or serve date of the notice of intent to suspend (1205 or 1205s)." Thirty calendar days from service of the 1205, not from any court date. That wording matters, because the date on your notice is what counts, not the date you got around to reading it.
What is different about Georgia
Georgia runs two separate 30 day clocks off the same piece of paper, and they cancel each other out. You can appeal the suspension, or you can elect an ignition interlock limited driving permit under O.C.G.A. § 40-5-64.1, but not both. The DDS manual is explicit that the interlock permit must be requested within 30 days of service of the 1205, that failing to request it in time waives the hearing right, and that being issued one waives the hearing at OSAH. So the choice is between fighting the suspension and keeping restricted driving, and it has to be made inside the same 30 days. We have deliberately left the length of the temporary permit blank: the 45 day figure repeated on many sites could not be confirmed in any primary source, because DDS does not publish the 1205 form itself.
What to do first
- Find the paperwork you were given at the roadside and check the date printed on it.
- Contact Georgia Department of Driver Services. A timely paid request is then docketed with the Office of State Administrative Hearings. or a Georgia defense attorney about the hearing request before the deadline above.
- Keep a copy of everything you send, with the date you sent it.
- Read what to do after a DUI arrest for the wider picture, including the criminal case.
Sources
- Administrative License Suspension (ALS) Hearing Requests — Georgia Department of Driver Services (accessed 2026-08-20)
- DDS-1206 Appeal/Hearing Request form — Georgia Department of Driver Services (accessed 2026-08-20)
- Traffic Court Reference Manual (quotes Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. r. 375-1-1-.06) — Georgia Department of Driver Services (accessed 2026-08-20)
Change history
- 2026-08-20 — Record created from Georgia DDS ALS pages, form DDS-1206, and the DDS Traffic Court Reference Manual. Temporary permit length left unverified rather than repeating the common 45 day claim. (casey-meraz)