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New York · DWI

New York DWI laws and penalties

New York's legal BAC limit is 0.08%. For a first offense, New York's statute provides jail of up to 1 year and a fine of $500 to $1,000. The license hearing, the ignition interlock rule and the statute behind every figure are below.

In New York the offense is called DWI (driving while intoxicated). It is the offense most states call DUI.

Figures read from official pages on .

New York DWI laws at a glance

Legal BAC limit
0.08%
Standard US limit
Enhanced penalty BAC
0.18%
Where the penalties step up
Zero tolerance (under 21)
0.02%
Limit for drivers under 21
Lookback period
10 years
Prior DWI offenses that count

License hearing: no fixed request deadline

New York sets no request deadline. After a test refusal the driver is given a DMV hearing date at arraignment (with a form to waive it); the DMV must hold the hearing within 15 days of arraignment or the license is reinstated. A missed hearing counts as a waiver, and a new one can be asked for with no time limit.
Ignition interlock required after a first conviction

Higher BAC level. Aggravated DWI at 0.18 or more: a first offense is a misdemeanor with a fine of $1,000 to $2,500, up to 1 year in jail and at least a 1-year revocation.

Ignition interlock. Ordered as a condition of the sentence for every DWI conviction, for at least 12 months (Leandra's Law).

DWI at .08 to .17 is a misdemeanor ($500 to $1,000, up to 1 year, 6-month minimum revocation); .18 or more is aggravated DWI ($1,000 to $2,500, up to 1 year, 1-year minimum revocation); a second conviction within 10 years is a class E felony ($1,000 to $5,000, up to 4 years, 1-year minimum revocation). DWAI (more than .05 up to .07) is a traffic infraction and is not covered by these figures. The court suspends the license at arraignment or revokes it at sentencing, and the DMV decides reinstatement. The words are as the Assembly's bills reprint existing law.

01Penalties

New York DWI penalties

Statutory ranges for standard DWI convictions (no accident, no minor in vehicle).
New York statutory DWI penalties, first and second offense
Penalty1st offense2nd offense
Jail (minimum)NoneNone (5 days in jail or 30 days of community service if the earlier DWI was within 5 years)
Jail (maximum)1 year4 years
Fine (minimum)$500$1,000
Fine (maximum)$1,000$5,000
License suspension6 months minimum revocation1 year minimum revocation

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

Published figure for New York

Published figure · 2015–2025

28,628 arrests of adults for fingerprintable DWI offenses in 2025

177.8 per 100,000 adults · +6.8% from 26,797 in 2024 · −27.7% from 39,618 in 2015

Source: New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services, as of Oct 20, 2026. Arrests of people 18 or older for DWI (felony and misdemeanor), by county, from the Division of Criminal Justice Services table 'Adult Arrests 18 and Older by County: Beginning 1970'. The Division counts arrests for fingerprintable offenses only. Population: U.S. Census Bureau, county population estimates, Vintage 2025 (July 1, 2025), all residents and residents 18 or older.

  • Counts are arrests, not people, and only people 18 or older. Because the table counts adults only, a rate per 100,000 should divide by the number of residents 18 or older, not by all residents.
  • Fingerprintable offenses only, by the Division's definition: a lesser impaired-driving charge that is only a traffic infraction is not in the table, so this is narrower than every impaired-driving arrest.
  • County is where the arrest was recorded, not where the person lives.
Show 3 more notes
  • The five New York City counties together had 3,386 DWI arrests in 2025; the New York City Police Department's own arrests for intoxicated and impaired driving are within 1.3% to 2.5% of the Division's count in every year 2019 to 2025.
  • The table does not say whether the latest year can still change.
  • Population is the Census Bureau's estimate for July 1, 2025 (county population estimates, Vintage 2025), not a Division number. The same figure is used for every year, so a rate for an earlier year is only approximate, and the further back, the less so.

New York adult DWI arrests by county, year by year

02Compare

How New York compares

Of the 49 states with a confirmed BAC limit, 48 (New York 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. New York requires one after every first conviction.

New York and the states that border it, first-offense figures side by side
StateBAC limitHearing requestInterlock, first offenseJail, first offenseFine, first offenseLicense, first offense
Connecticut0.08%7 daysRequired48 hours to 6 months$500 to $1,00045 days
Massachusetts0.08%15 daysIn some casesUp to 2.5 years$500 to $5,0001 year
New Jersey0.08%No fixed deadlineRequiredUp to 30 days$250 to $400Until an ignition interlock device is installed
New York (this page)0.08%No fixed deadlineRequiredUp to 1 year$500 to $1,0006 months minimum revocation
Pennsylvania0.08%30 daysIn some casesUp to 6 months$300None
Vermont0.08%7 daysIn some casesUp to 2 yearsUp to $75090 days

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 a DWI case moves through the system in New York

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

  1. Arrest and booking

    Police arrest a driver on suspicion of DWI and take the person to the local jail, where booking records the arrest, the charge and the times.

  2. Release

    A person is released after posting bail, on their own recognizance, or after a hold. Amounts and timing differ by county.

  3. License action

    New York sets no request deadline. After a test refusal the driver is given a DMV hearing date at arraignment (with a form to waive it); the DMV must hold the hearing within 15 days of arraignment or the license is reinstated. A missed hearing counts as a waiver, and a new one can be asked for with no time limit.

  4. Arraignment

    The first court appearance, where the charge is read and a plea (guilty, not guilty or no contest) is entered.

  5. 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.

  6. Sentencing or trial

    For a first offense, New York's statute provides jail of up to 1 year and a fine of $500 to $1,000. See the penalties table above.

04Counties

Counties in New York

5 counties have a page here, with the state's arrest counts where it publishes them.
County pageNew York County (Manhattan)341 adult DWI arrests in 2025 (state count)
County pageKings County (Brooklyn)1,026 adult DWI arrests in 2025 (state count)
County pageQueens County1,121 adult DWI arrests in 2025 (state count)
County pageBronx County620 adult DWI arrests in 2025 (state count)
County pageRichmond County (Staten Island)278 adult DWI arrests in 2025 (state count)

05Sources

Where New York'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.
Show the exact words behind each figure
Main statute

N.Y. Veh. & Traf. Law § 1192

N.Y. Veh. & Traf. Law § 1192(2), (3), (2-a)(a); penalties § 1193(1)(b)(i)

A violation of subdivision two, three, four or four-a of section eleven hundred ninety-two of this article shall be a misdemeanor and shall be punishable by a fine
BAC limit, age 21 and over

0.08%

NY DMV Driver's Manual ch. 9 (Veh. & Traf. Law § 1192(2))

In New York State, you can be arrested for any of these offenses: aggravated driving while intoxicated (Agg-DWI), driving while intoxicated (DWI), driving with a blood alcohol content of .08 percent or more (.08 BAC)
Higher BAC level

0.18%

NY DMV Driver's Manual ch. 9 (Veh. & Traf. Law § 1192(2-a)(a))

AGGRAVATED DRIVING WHILE INTOXICATED AGG-DWI (0.18 and higher Blood Alcohol Content [BAC]) CONVICTION FINE ONLY * JAIL SENTENCE REQUIRED LICENSE ACTION ** 1st Offense (Misdemeanor) Minimum $1,000 Maximum $2,500 Up to 1 year Minimum 1-Year Revocation
BAC limit under 21

0.02%

NY DMV Driver's Manual ch. 9 (Veh. & Traf. Law § 1192-a)

Under the state's "zero tolerance" law, it is a violation for a person under 21 to drive with any BAC that can be measured (.02 to .07).

Also stated in N.Y. Veh. & Traf. Law § 1192-a

For purposes of this section, a person under the age of twenty-one is deemed to have consumed alcohol only if such person has .02 of one per centum or more but not more than .07 of one per centum by weight of alcohol in the person's blood
Lookback period

10 years

NY DMV Driver's Manual ch. 9 (Veh. & Traf. Law § 1193(1)(c)(i))

DWI (.08 and higher Blood Alcohol Content [BAC]) or DWAI-Drug CONVICTION ... 2nd Offense (Class E Felony) Within 10 Years Minimum $1,000 Maximum $5,000 Up to 4 years

Also stated in N.Y. Veh. & Traf. Law § 1193(1)(c)(i)

(c) Felony offenses. (i) A person who operates a vehicle (A) in violation of subdivision two, two-a, three, four or four-a of section eleven hundred ninety-two of this article after having been convicted of a violation of subdivision two, two-a, three, four or four-a of such section ... within the preceding ten years ... shall be guilty of a class E felony
License hearing request

No fixed deadline

N.Y. Veh. & Traf. Law § 1194(2)(b)(4), (2)(c)

(c) Hearings. Any person whose license or permit to drive or any non-resident driving privilege has been suspended pursuant to paragraph (b) of this subdivision is entitled to a hearing in accordance with a hearing schedule to be promulgated by the commissioner.
Ignition interlock, first offense

Required after a first conviction

NY DMV Driver's Manual ch. 9, The Ignition Interlock Program and Leandra's Law (Veh. & Traf. Law § 1193(1)(b)(ii); § 1198)

Courts must order all persons convicted of driving while intoxicated or aggravated driving while intoxicated, or of a penal law offense for which an alcohol related violation of any provision of section 1192 of the Vehicle & Traffic Law is an essential element to install and maintain an ignition interlock on any vehicle owned or operated by such driver for at least 12 months.
First offense: jail, minimum

None

N.Y. Veh. & Traf. Law § 1193(1)(b)(i)

shall be a misdemeanor and shall be punishable by a fine of not less than five hundred dollars nor more than one thousand dollars, or by imprisonment in a penitentiary or county jail for not more than one year
First offense: jail, maximum

1 year

NY DMV Driver's Manual ch. 9 (Veh. & Traf. Law § 1193(1)(b)(i))

DWI (.08 and higher Blood Alcohol Content [BAC]) or DWAI-Drug CONVICTION FINE ONLY * JAIL SENTENCE REQUIRED LICENSE ACTION ** 1st Offense (Misdemeanor) Minimum $500 Maximum $1,000 Up to 1 year Minimum 6-Month Revocation (DWI); Minimum 6-Month Suspension (DWAI-D)

Also stated in N.Y. Veh. & Traf. Law § 1193(1)(b)(i)

Same passage as above.

First offense: fine, minimum

$500

NY DMV Driver's Manual ch. 9 (Veh. & Traf. Law § 1193(1)(b)(i))

Same passages as above.

First offense: fine, maximum

$1,000

NY DMV Driver's Manual ch. 9 (Veh. & Traf. Law § 1193(1)(b)(i))

Same passages as above.

First offense: license

6 months minimum revocation

NY DMV Driver's Manual ch. 9 (Veh. & Traf. Law § 1193(2)(b)(2))

Same passage as above.

Second offense: jail, minimum

None (5 days in jail or 30 days of community service if the earlier DWI was within 5 years)

NY DMV Driver's Manual ch. 9 (Veh. & Traf. Law § 1193(1-a)(a))

2nd Offense (Class E Felony) Within 10 Years Minimum $1,000 Maximum $5,000 Up to 4 years (DWI & DWAI-D); minimum 5 days jail or 30 days of community service (for DWI within prior 5 years) Minimum 1-Year Revocation
Second offense: jail, maximum

4 years

NY DMV Driver's Manual ch. 9 (Veh. & Traf. Law § 1193(1)(c)(i); Penal Law § 70.00(2)(e))

DWI (.08 and higher Blood Alcohol Content [BAC]) or DWAI-Drug CONVICTION ... 2nd Offense (Class E Felony) Within 10 Years Minimum $1,000 Maximum $5,000 Up to 4 years

Also stated in N.Y. Veh. & Traf. Law § 1193(1)(c)(i) ("a period of imprisonment as provided in the penal law"); N.Y. Penal Law § 70.00(2)(e)

(e) For a class E felony, the term shall be fixed by the court, and shall not exceed four years.
Second offense: fine, minimum

$1,000

NY DMV Driver's Manual ch. 9 (Veh. & Traf. Law § 1193(1)(c)(i))

Same passage as above.

Also stated in N.Y. Veh. & Traf. Law § 1193(1)(c)(i)

shall be guilty of a class E felony, and shall be punished by a fine of not less than one thousand dollars nor more than five thousand dollars or by a period of imprisonment as provided in the penal law
Second offense: fine, maximum

$5,000

NY DMV Driver's Manual ch. 9 (Veh. & Traf. Law § 1193(1)(c)(i))

Same passages as above.

Second offense: license

1 year minimum revocation

NY DMV Driver's Manual ch. 9 (Veh. & Traf. Law § 1193(2)(b)(3))

2nd Offense (Class E Felony) Within 10 Years Minimum $1,000 Maximum $5,000 Up to 4 years (DWI & DWAI-D); minimum 5 days jail or 30 days of community service (for DWI within prior 5 years) Minimum 1-Year Revocation

06Related

Related pages

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.