New York BAC Limits & DUI Consequences

0.08

Source: New York State Driver's Manual (MV-21), Chapter 2, p. 20, 'Alcohol and Drug Violations'; Chapter 9, p. 55, 'Alcohol, Other Drugs and the Law' · Verified Sep 2026

0.02

Source: New York State Driver's Manual (MV-21), Chapter 2, p. 21, 'Drivers Under Age 21'; Chapter 9, p. 57, 'Zero Tolerance for Drivers Under Age 21' · Verified Sep 2026

A commercial driver is over the limit at 0.04, half the 0.08 that applies to a passenger-car driver. New York grades it: 0.04 up to 0.06 is one offense level and above 0.06 but under 0.08 is a higher one, and at 0.08 the ordinary DWI charge applies to a commercial driver as it does to anyone else. The passenger manual does not carry this figure; it says only that the standards for commercial drivers are tougher and refers the reader to the Commercial Driver's Manual.

Source: NY VTL § 1192(5) (".04 of one per centum or more but not more than .06") and § 1192(6) ("more than .06 ... but less than .08"). The MV-21 passenger manual defers to the Commercial Driver's Manual and prints no figure. · Verified Sep 2026

Under New York's Implied Consent law, driving in the state is treated as consent to a chemical test (breath, blood, urine, or saliva) when an officer requests one after arresting you for an alcohol- or drug-related violation. Refusal is handled separately from the underlying charge, as a license matter rather than a second crime. At arraignment your license is immediately suspended, and if a DMV hearing later confirms the refusal your license is revoked for at least one year (18 months if the refusal falls within five years of a prior refusal revocation or any alcohol- or drug-related conviction). A first refusal by a driver under 21 also carries a minimum one-year revocation. Refusal further carries a $500 civil penalty ($550 in a commercial vehicle, $750 if within five years of a prior alcohol/drug/refusal revocation). The fact of the refusal can be introduced against you at trial on the underlying charge, and a police officer's testimony about your driving, appearance, and behavior can support a conviction even without a chemical test result. Refusing also triggers a Driver Responsibility Assessment of $250 each year for the next three years, the same assessment a conviction carries, and non-payment suspends your license on its own.

Source: New York State Driver's Manual (MV-21), Chapter 2, pp. 20–23, 'Chemical Test Refusals' and 'Fees and Civil Penalties'; Chapter 9, pp. 55–56, 'Alcohol, Other Drugs and the Law' and 'Chemical Tests' Refusal framing and the assessment corrected 2026-09-07: MV-21 lists chemical-test refusal among required revocations and civil penalties ("Chemical test refusal: $500 civil penalty"), not as a separate criminal offense, and its Driver Responsibility Assessments section states that a driver convicted of Agg-DWI, DWI, DWAI, DWAI by Drugs, DWAI-alcohol combined with drugs, "or if you refused to submit to a chemical test, you will be required to pay a driver responsibility assessment of $250 each year for the next three years." · Verified Sep 2026

A first DWI conviction (0.08 BAC or higher) or DWAI-Drug is a misdemeanor: minimum $500 and maximum $1,000 fine, up to one year in jail, and a minimum six-month license revocation. DWAI-Drug and DWAI-Combination carry the same six-month minimum revocation. Aggravated DWI (0.18 BAC or higher) raises the first-offense fine to $1,000–$2,500 and the minimum revocation to one year. A first DWAI infraction (0.05–0.07 BAC) carries a $300–$500 fine, up to 15 days in jail, and a 90-day license suspension. Every conviction also triggers a Driver Responsibility Assessment of $250 each year for three years, plus a mandatory surcharge and a crime-victim assistance fee. For DWI, Aggravated DWI and the other covered alcohol-related offenses, the court must order an ignition interlock on any vehicle the driver owns or operates for at least 12 months. That order is not attached to a low-level first DWAI infraction. If a passenger under 16 was in the vehicle, an intoxicated or drug-impaired offense (DWI, Aggravated DWI, DWAI-Drug or DWAI-combination) may be charged as a Class E felony under Leandra's Law, punishable by up to four years in prison. The low-level first DWAI infraction is not one of the covered offenses.

Source: NY VTL § 1193(2), quoted from the statute rather than the manual. § 1193(2)(a)(1): a license "shall be suspended" for "Ninety days, where the holder is convicted of a violation of subdivision one of section eleven hundred ninety-two" (DWAI). § 1193(2)(b)(2): a license "shall be revoked" for a minimum of "Six months, where the holder is convicted of a violation of subdivision two, three, four or four-a of section eleven hundred ninety-two" (DWI, DWAI-Drug and DWAI-Combination), and "One year where the holder is convicted of a violation of subdivision two-a" (Aggravated DWI). Fines, jail exposure and the Leandra's Law felony from NY VTL §§ 1192, 1193(1) and 1198-a. Driver Responsibility Assessment from NY VTL § 1199. Note for the next editor: MV-21 Chapter 9's penalties table describes the DWAI-Drug action as a six-month suspension; § 1193(2)(b)(2) makes it a revocation, and the statute governs. Statute text checked 2026-09-27. · Verified Sep 2026

yes

Source: New York State Driver's Manual (MV-21), Chapter 9, p. 59, 'The Ignition Interlock Program and Leandra's Law' · Verified Sep 2026