How to get your license reinstated in Delaware
Checked against official Delaware sources · Last reviewed October 5, 2026
Getting a suspended or revoked Delaware license back means serving the full period, meeting any course, test, or insurance requirements, and paying the reinstatement fee. The Delaware Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) Driver Improvement section handles suspensions and reinstatement. [1]
- SR-22 required?
- No, uses FR-19
- Base reinstatement fee
- $50
Step by step
-
Call the DMV to learn your requirements
For questions about a suspension, call 302-744-2509. For a revocation, call 302-744-2508. Both lines also take reinstatement fee payments by phone. [1][2]
-
Serve the full period
The length depends on the offense. If you are convicted of driving during the suspension or revocation, it is extended for a like period (up to one year for a suspension, per the DMV's suspension page), and you get no driving authority for the rest of it. [1][2]
-
Ask about an occupational or conditional license
You can apply under the DMV's rules once you have no other holds on your license and have served the required waiting period without driving. For a points suspension of 4 months or more, an occupational license may be possible for extreme hardship, but not in the first month. Call Driver Improvement at 302-744-2509 for details. [1][3]
-
Finish any required course or tests
After a points suspension of 4 months or more, you must complete a behavior modification course, taken within the previous 2 years, to reinstate. The DMV may also require the written, road, and eye-screen tests. [2][3]
-
Show proof of insurance, if asked
At reinstatement, the DMV may require evidence, certified by your insurer or agent on a DMV form, that vehicles registered to you are insured. A suspension over an unpaid crash judgment requires certified proof of financial responsibility, and an operator's policy qualifies if you don't own a vehicle. [4][5]
-
Pay the reinstatement fee
It costs $50 to reinstate a suspended license and $200 to reinstate a revoked one, not counting the new license fee. A child support suspension also needs a release from the agency that asked for it. [1][2][6]
-
Fix any insurance lapse on your vehicles
If your insurance lapsed, your registration stays suspended until you get insurance, your insurer certifies it on a DMV form, and you pay the uninsured motorist penalty. That penalty is $100 per vehicle for 1 to 30 days, plus $5 per vehicle per day after that. [7]
After a DUI arrest
-
Request a hearing within 15 days, if you want one
The officer takes your license and gives you a temporary license good for 15 days. You can request a hearing online, by mail or fax, or in person at a DMV office, and your temporary license may be extended if you are eligible. If you don't ask, your license is revoked when the 15 days end. [3]
-
Get a DUI screening and finish your program
Contact DUI Referral Services at 302-421-7330 for a free screening. You are referred to 16 hours of DUI education, 16 hours of treatment, or 27 hours of extended treatment. Education starts at $400, and treatment costs $1,000 (16 hours) or $1,700 (27 hours). [8]
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Pay the revocation fee
A DUI is a mandatory revocation. Reinstating a revoked license costs $200, not counting the new license fee, and you may need to pass the written, road, and eye-screen tests. [2][6]
Not legal advice. Rules change; confirm your own requirements with Delaware Division of Motor Vehicles (DelDOT). Driver Improvement handles suspensions and reinstatement; the Uninsured Motorist unit handles insurance audits. before you drive.
SR-22 rules in Delaware · If your SR-22 lapses · Reinstatement in other states
Sources
- Delaware DMV - Driver Improvement: Suspension (fee amounts rendered from the DMV's DMVFees.js: DL suspension reinstatement $50, revocation reinstatement $200) (official agency page, accessed Oct 5, 2026)
- Delaware DMV - Driver Improvement: License Revocations (official agency page, accessed Oct 6, 2026)
- Delaware DMV - Driver Improvement FAQs (point system, occupational license, DUI administrative hearing) (official agency page, accessed Oct 6, 2026)
- 21 Del. C. 2118 - Requirement of insurance for all registered motor vehicles; penalty (statute, accessed Oct 5, 2026)
- 21 Del. C. Ch. 29 Subch. III - Proof of Future Responsibility (2941-2955) (statute, accessed Oct 5, 2026)
- 21 Del. C. 2737 and 2738 - Fees for return of suspended / revoked license (statute, accessed Oct 5, 2026)
- Delaware DMV - Vehicle Liability Insurance FAQs (official agency page, accessed Oct 5, 2026)
- Delaware DMV - Driver Improvement: Driving Under the Influence (DUI evaluation and programs) (official agency page, accessed Oct 6, 2026)