Iowa · OWI

Iowa OWI laws and penalties

Iowa's legal BAC limit is 0.08%. For a first offense, Iowa's statute provides jail of 48 hours to 1 year and a fine of $1,250. The license hearing, the ignition interlock rule and the statute behind every figure are below.

In Iowa the offense is called OWI (operating while intoxicated). It is the offense most states call DUI.

Figures read from official pages on Oct 26, 2026.

Legal BAC limit: 0.08%; Standard US limit
Enhanced penalty BAC: None; No higher tier in the law
Zero tolerance (under 21): 0.02%; Limit for drivers under 21
Lookback period: 12 years; Prior OWI offenses that count

License hearing: ask within 10 days

Return the form that comes with the notice of revocation within 10 days of receiving it, or the right to a hearing is lost. Count the days with the license-hearing window calculator.

Ignition interlock required in some cases

Higher BAC level. No high-BAC tier changes the penalty for a first offense.

Ignition interlock. Required as a condition of a temporary restricted license; on conviction the court may also order devices on all vehicles the defendant operates.

Lookback. Priors count for 12 years, because convictions and revocations are deleted from the driving record after that.

First offense is a serious misdemeanor ($1,250 fine, 48 hours to 1 year in jail, 180-day to 1-year revocation); a second is an aggravated misdemeanor with a 7-day jail minimum and a $1,875 to $6,250 fine. Priors count for 12 years because OWI convictions and revocations are deleted from the driving record after that, and the request for an administrative hearing is due within 10 days of receiving the notice of revocation.

01Penalties

Iowa OWI penalties

Statutory ranges for standard OWI convictions (no accident, no minor in vehicle).

Iowa statutory OWI penalties, first and second offense
Penalty	1st offense	2nd offense
Jail (minimum)	48 hours	7 days
Jail (maximum)	1 year	2 years
Fine (minimum)	$1,250	$1,875
Fine (maximum)	$1,250	$6,250
License suspension	180 days to 1 year revocation	1 year revocation (2 years if test refusal)

Statutory ranges only. Actual outcomes vary by county, judge, and attorney. Does not include court fees, surcharges, or program costs.

02Compare

How Iowa compares

Of the 49 states with a confirmed BAC limit, 48 (Iowa among them) use 0.08%; Utah has 0.05%.

On this site's reading of the statutes, of the 49 states with a confirmed rule, 21 require an ignition interlock after every first conviction, 18 in some cases and 8 leave it to the judge; 2 do not require one. Iowa requires one in some cases.

The 40 states with a fixed deadline give from 6 to 90 days to ask for a license hearing (the middle one is 10); Iowa gives 10.

Iowa and the states that border it, first-offense figures side by side
State	BAC limit	Hearing request	Interlock, first offense	Jail, first offense	Fine, first offense	License, first offense
Illinois	0.08%	90 days	In some cases	Less than 1 year	$75 to $2,500	Revocation; may not apply for a new license until 1 year after the revocation takes effect
Iowa (this page)	0.08%	10 days	In some cases	48 hours to 1 year	$1,250	180 days to 1 year revocation
Minnesota	0.08%	60 days	In some cases	Up to 90 days	Up to $1,000	30 days minimum on conviction; 90 days minimum if revoked after a failed test
Missouri	0.08%	15 days	In some cases	Up to 6 months	Up to $1,000	30 days suspension, then 60 days restricted driving privilege
Nebraska	0.08%	10 days	Required	7 days to 60 days	$500	6 months
South Dakota	0.08%	No fixed deadline	Not required	Up to 1 year	Up to $2,000	30 days minimum
Wisconsin	0.08%	10 days	In some cases	None	$150 to $300	6 to 9 months

Every figure is the statute's own, read from the same kind of page. See DUI laws and penalties for all 50 states.

03The process

How an OWI case moves through the system in Iowa

The typical sequence, in general terms. Timing and details differ by county and by case.

Arrest and booking
Police arrest a driver on suspicion of OWI and take the person to the local jail, where booking records the arrest, the charge and the times.
Release
A person is released after posting bail, on their own recognizance, or after a hold. Amounts and timing differ by county.
License action
Return the form that comes with the notice of revocation within 10 days of receiving it, or the right to a hearing is lost.
Arraignment
The first court appearance, where the charge is read and a plea (guilty, not guilty or no contest) is entered.
Pretrial resolution
A case can end in a plea to a reduced charge, in a diversion or deferred program where the state has one, in a trial, or in a dismissal, depending on the state and the facts.
Sentencing or trial
For a first offense, Iowa's statute provides jail of 48 hours to 1 year and a fine of $1,250. See the penalties table above.

04Sources

Where Iowa's figures come from

Each figure was read on the official page linked here on Oct 26, 2026, and the quoted words were checked against the page the day it was read. The exact words are below so you can check them. Found a mistake? Write to hello@duiarrested.com with the state and the figure.

Iowa Code § 321J.2 (legis.iowa.gov)Main statute · BAC limit, age 21 and over · Higher BAC level · Ignition interlock, first offense · First offense: jail, minimum · First offense: jail, maximum · First offense: fine, minimum · First offense: fine, maximum · First offense: license · Second offense: jail, minimum · Second offense: jail, maximum · Second offense: fine, minimum · Second offense: fine, maximum · Second offense: license
Iowa Code § 321J.2A(1) (legis.iowa.gov)BAC limit under 21
Iowa Code § 321.12(4); § 321J.2(8)(a) (legis.iowa.gov)Lookback period
Iowa Code § 321J.13(2) (legis.iowa.gov)License hearing request

Show the exact words behind each figure

Main statute

Iowa Code § 321J.2

321J.2 Operating while under the influence of alcohol or a drug or while having an alcohol concentration of .08 or more (OWI).

BAC limit, age 21 and over

0.08%

Iowa Code § 321J.2(1)(b)

b. While having an alcohol concentration of .08 or more.

Higher BAC level

None set by the law

Iowa Code § 321J.2(3)(b)(2)(a)

2. A person who violates subsection 1 commits: a. A serious misdemeanor for the first offense. b. An aggravated misdemeanor for a second offense. c. A class "D" felony for a third offense and each subsequent offense. 3. A first offense is punishable by all of the following: a. A minimum period of imprisonment in the county jail of forty-eight hours, but not to exceed one year

BAC limit under 21

0.02%

Iowa Code § 321J.2A(1)

A person who is under the age of twenty-one shall not operate a motor vehicle while having an alcohol concentration, as defined under section 321J.1, of .02 or more.

Lookback period

12 years

Iowa Code § 321.12(4); § 321J.2(8)(a)

a conviction or revocation under section 321J.2 or 321J.2A that is not subject to 49 C.F.R. pt. 383 shall be deleted from the operating records twelve years after the date of conviction or the effective date of revocation.

License hearing request

10 days

Iowa Code § 321J.13(2)

The department shall grant the person an opportunity to be heard within forty-five days of receipt of a request for a hearing if the request is made not later than ten days after receipt of notice of revocation served pursuant to section 321J.9 or 321J.12.

Ignition interlock, first offense

Required in some cases

Iowa Code § 321J.2(3)(d); § 321J.4(1), (8)

The department shall require the defendant to install an ignition interlock device of a type approved by the commissioner of public safety on all vehicles operated by the defendant if the defendant seeks a temporary restricted license.

First offense: jail, minimum

48 hours

Iowa Code § 321J.2(3)(a)

A minimum period of imprisonment in the county jail of forty-eight hours, but not to exceed one year, to be served as ordered by the court

First offense: jail, maximum

1 year

Iowa Code § 321J.2(3)(a)

Same passage as above.

First offense: fine, minimum

$1,250

Iowa Code § 321J.2(3)(c)

c. Assessment of a fine of one thousand two hundred fifty dollars.

First offense: fine, maximum

$1,250

Iowa Code § 321J.2(3)(c)

Same passage as above.

First offense: license

180 days to 1 year revocation

Iowa Code § 321J.2(3)(d)

for a minimum period of one hundred eighty days up to a maximum revocation period of one year

Second offense: jail, minimum

7 days

Iowa Code § 321J.2(4)(a)

A minimum period of imprisonment in the county jail or community-based correctional facility of seven days but not to exceed two years.

Second offense: jail, maximum

2 years

Iowa Code § 321J.2(4)(a)

Same passage as above.

Second offense: fine, minimum

$1,875

Iowa Code § 321J.2(4)(b)

Assessment of a minimum fine of one thousand eight hundred seventy-five dollars and a maximum fine of six thousand two hundred fifty dollars.

Second offense: fine, maximum

$6,250

Iowa Code § 321J.2(4)(b)

Same passage as above.

Second offense: license

1 year revocation (2 years if test refusal)

Iowa Code § 321J.2(4)(c)

for a period of one year, if a revocation occurs pursuant to section 321J.12, subsection 1. If a revocation occurs due to test refusal under section 321J.9, or pursuant to section 321J.4, subsection 2

05Related

MapUS DUI Arrest Rate MapEvery state as one tile, colored by DUI arrests per 100,000 residents.
CalculatorDUI License-Hearing WindowThe hearing request window listed for each state, counted from a date you enter.

Note: This page summarizes state statutes and published figures. It is general information, not legal advice, and it may be out of date or incomplete. Penalty ranges are statutory ranges; actual outcomes depend on the case. See the Disclaimer.

Iowa OWI laws at a glance