Hays County ALR Hearing Guide
How to request your Administrative License Revocation (ALR) Hearing and protect your driving privileges after a DWI arrest.
Last verified: September 12, 2026
15-Day Deadline
You have exactly 15 days from your arrest to request a hearing. Miss this deadline and your license is automatically suspended. No exceptions.
Enter your arrest date to see your deadline:
If You Request in Time
- • Temporary permit until hearing
- • Chance to keep your license
- • Gather evidence for defense
If You Miss the Deadline
- • Automatic 90-180 day suspension
- • No hearing, no appeal
- • Starts after waiting period
How to Request Your Hearing
Online Request
Fee: Typically $50-$125
Available: 24/7
Instant confirmation
Phone Request
Fee: Same as online
Hours: Business hours only
Expect hold times
Information You'll Need
From Your Notice:
- • Driver License Number
- • Date of Arrest
- • Arresting Agency
- • Arresting Officer Name
Personal Information:
- • Full Legal Name
- • Current Address
- • Date of Birth
- • Phone Number & Email
After You Request
Temporary Permit
ImmediateDrive legally until your hearing
Hearing Notice
20-40 daysDate, time, and format mailed to you
Prepare Defense
Before hearingGather evidence, hire attorney
Attend Hearing
Scheduled dateUsually phone or video
Decision
Same dayWin: keep license. Lose: suspension starts
Temporary Permit
Immediate
Drive until hearing
Hearing Notice
20-40 days
Date mailed to you
Prepare
Before hearing
Gather evidence
Attend Hearing
Scheduled
Phone or video
Decision
Same day
Win or suspension
What to Expect at the Hearing
Most hearings are by phone or video
You usually don't need to travel. When you receive your hearing notice, it will specify whether it's phone, video, or in-person.
Duration
30-60 minutes typically
Who's There
You, your attorney (optional), state attorney, hearing officer
What They Review
Probable cause for stop, proper arrest procedure, test validity
Evidence That Can Help
- Dashcam or bodycam footage showing procedural errors
- Breathalyzer calibration records (if not current)
- Witness statements about your sobriety
- Medical conditions affecting field sobriety tests
Should You Hire an Attorney?
With an Attorney
- Can subpoena arresting officer
- Knows how to challenge evidence
- Uses hearing to strengthen criminal defense
- Higher success rate at hearings
Without an Attorney
- State has experienced attorney present
- May not know proper objections
- Can't effectively cross-examine officers
- Lower win rate statistically
If You Lose Your Hearing
Losing the hearing isn't the end. You still have options to maintain limited driving privileges:
Ignition Interlock
Drive with device installed
Occupational License
Limited driving for work/essentials
Frequently Asked Questions
Related Guides
Refusing the breath or blood test at the scene in Hays County costs more than failing it. A test result of 0.08 or higher triggers the standard suspension, but a flat refusal automatically triggers a 180-day suspension, more than double, and it's the state's main lever for pushing compliance during the county's aggressive No Refusal enforcement weekends.
The 15-day window
The arresting officer keeps the physical license and hands over a DIC-25, a temporary permit. From the arrest date there are exactly 15 calendar days to request an ALR hearing, filed with Texas DPS in Austin online, by fax, or by certified mail. There's no fee to file. Miss the deadline and the license is automatically suspended on day 40, no further recourse.
The upside of requesting the hearing anyway
Filing on time forces a stay on the suspension until an administrative law judge from the State Office of Administrative Hearings rules, and because SOAH's docket runs 60 to 120 days out, that stay routinely buys months of fully legal driving on the temporary permit while the criminal case works through the courts. Most hearings now happen by Zoom, so there's no need to travel to a physical office.
Getting an appointment is its own fight
If the license is suspended, or an Occupational Driver's License is needed to keep working, everything runs through the Texas DPS appointment system, no walk-ins. The scheduling portal releases a small batch of same-day slots at exactly 7 a.m., and they're gone within minutes. Being logged in and ready right at 7 is the only realistic way to get one without waiting weeks.
If the suspension holds
A $125 reinstatement fee applies once the suspension is finalized, along with an SR-22 filed directly by the insurer to DPS, no separate paperwork or office visit required on the driver's end.
Last updated: September 12, 2026
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