Alcohol, Drugs, Points, Insurance, Titling, Registration and Inspections: Blood Alcohol Limits, the 15-Day Notice and Administrative Actions, Court Penalties for DWI, Abuse and Lose, Minor in Possession, SR-22 Filings, Refusing a Chemical Test, Reinstatement and the Ignition Interlock, How Drugs and Medicines Impair, the Point Values and When Points Suspend or Revoke, How Points Come Off, Failure to Appear, Titles and Odometer Disclosure, Registering and Renewing, Selling a Vehicle, Liability Minimums, Insurance Suspensions, Safety and Emissions Inspections and Required Equipment

Written for aiforu2 as the source for a practice-test bank and the on-device tutor for the Missouri written test. The facts follow the official manual; the wording is ours.

Source: Missouri Driver Guide (Department of Revenue, revised August 2026), Chapter 10 "Alcohol, Drugs, and Driving" (pages 67–72), Chapter 11 "The Point System" (pages 73–74), Chapter 12 "Vehicle Titling and Registration" (pages 75–78), Chapter 13 "Mandatory Insurance" (pages 79–81) and Chapter 14 "Safety and Emissions Inspections & Required Equipment" (pages 83–86).

Drinking, drugs and driving

Driving is a privilege that alcohol, drugs (including medicine) and fatigue all undermine, and it is your job to know when you are not fit to drive. Even a small amount of alcohol affects driving; if you drink, let a sober person drive. Injuring or killing someone while driving drunk or drugged can mean two to seven years in jail, a $5,000 fine and losing your license for five years. An officer who suspects drinking may give field tests such as walking heel to toe or standing on one leg, then a chemical test of breath, blood or urine that gives your blood alcohol content (BAC).

Administrative actions

If your BAC is .08 percent or more (.02 percent for a minor), the officer takes your license and gives you a notice saying your privilege will be suspended or revoked after 15 days; the notice can serve as a 15-day driving permit if the officer marks it. You may request a hearing or, if eligible, an immediate 90-day Restricted Driving Privilege, and while a hearing is pending you may drive until 15 days after the decision is mailed. A first offense brings a license suspension; a second offense within five years brings a one-year revocation, and an ignition interlock device is required to be reinstated.

Court-convicted actions

A conviction for driving while intoxicated (DWI) or with a BAC of .08 percent or more takes effect when the ticket reaches the Department, adds points, and the Department mails you the date you must stop driving. Jail and fines: first offense up to six months and $500; second up to one year and $1,000; third up to four years and $5,000; fourth up to seven years and $5,000; fifth five to 15 years. License actions: first offense a 90-day suspension (with possible eligibility for a 90-day or 60-day restricted privilege); second a one-year revocation; second within five years a five-year denial (only BAC convictions dated August 28, 2009 or later count); third or later a ten-year denial.

Under 21: Abuse and Lose, and Minor in Possession

A driver under 21 loses the license for 90 days for any intoxication-related traffic offense, for possessing or using alcohol or drugs while driving, for altering or misrepresenting a license, or, if under 18, for a second alcohol-possession charge. A driver 21 or older who possesses or uses drugs while driving loses the license for one year, and gets it back by paying $45, completing a Substance Awareness Traffic Offender Program (SATOP) or equivalent, filing proof of insurance for two years (SR-22), and retaking the complete driver exam.

A person older than 15 and under 21 can have the license suspended or revoked by a court for buying or trying to buy liquor, possessing it (drinking counts as possession), being visibly intoxicated, or a BAC over .02 percent: a 30-day suspension for a first offense, 90 days for a second, and a one-year revocation for a third, with reinstatement by the $45 fee and SATOP, plus an SR-22 for two years and a new driver exam after a one-year revocation.

Proof of insurance, refusal and reinstatement

After a DWI or BAC action you must keep proof of insurance, usually an SR-22 filing, on file with the Driver License Bureau for two years; if it lapses, your license is suspended for the rest of the two years unless you refile and pay $20. A minor with a .02 percent BAC does not need the SR-22 on a first offense. Refusing a chemical test costs your license for one year. Reinstatement after an intoxication-related action requires a $45 fee, proof of completing SATOP, an SR-22 for two years, and an ignition interlock device (IID) for at least six months if you have had more than one intoxication-related contact, a conviction with a BAC of .15 percent or higher, or caused property damage or injury.

The IID is wired to the ignition, horn and headlights and requires a breath sample before starting and periodically while driving. It must be kept at least six months from reinstatement with no violations in the last three months, at your own cost for installation and monthly service; failing to maintain it re-suspends your privilege, and reinstating again costs $20 plus proof of service. A court may also order an IID for a first DWI or for longer than six months. Driving without a required IID brings a one-year revocation on a first conviction and five years on a second.

How alcohol and drugs impair

Missouri charges DWI for impairment by alcohol, illegal drugs, prescription or over-the-counter medicine or any mix, and the penalties are the same whatever the substance. Alcohol slows reflexes and reaction time, harms vision (including night vision), causes drowsiness and poor concentration, and weakens coordination, comprehension and judgment. The legal limit is .08 percent, .04 percent for commercial drivers and .02 percent under 21; one drink is likely to affect you and two could put you over. All medicines can impair even when taken as directed; cold and allergy medicines cause drowsiness, stimulants and diet pills give a short boost then nervousness, dizziness and poor concentration; never take another person's prescription or mix medicines with alcohol. Marijuana is the second most cited drug in crashes after alcohol; medical marijuana became legal in 2020, but driving under its influence never did, and it causes lane weaving, slow reaction and poor judgment of time and distance, worse still with alcohol. Help for a substance use disorder is available through the SAMHSA National Helpline, 1-800-662-HELP.

The point system

Points go on your record when you are convicted of a moving violation. Examples: speeding 3 points (two or three depending on the court), careless and imprudent driving 4, knowingly letting an unlicensed driver operate a vehicle 4, failing to stop for a school bus 5, and 12 each for a felony involving a motor vehicle, obtaining a license by misrepresentation, driving while suspended or revoked, and leaving the scene of a crash (which also brings a revocation).

Four points in 12 months brings an advisory letter. Eight or more in 18 months suspends your privilege: 30 days the first time, 60 the second, 90 for a third or later. Your privilege is revoked for one year at 12 points in 12 months, 18 in 24 months or 24 in 36 months. A non-alcohol suspension or revocation is reinstated with an SR-22 and a $20 fee; an alcohol-related one requires the intoxication reinstatement steps. When you are reinstated your total drops to four points, and each clean year removes more: one-third after one year, one-half after two, and zero after three, though some convictions stay on the record permanently.

Driving while suspended can bring a one-year revocation on conviction, and driving while revoked can be a felony with another one-year revocation. If you fail to appear in court for a traffic violation the court gives you 30 days to pay before notifying the Bureau, after which your privilege is suspended until you show the ticket is paid and pay a $20 fee.

Titling a vehicle

You have 30 days after buying a vehicle, or after moving to Missouri, to apply for a title, or you pay a penalty. The title costs $8.50 plus a $9 processing fee and all state and local sales tax, comes by mail, and should never be kept in the vehicle. For a new vehicle bought in Missouri the dealer supplies a title application and the Manufacturer's Statement of Origin with the odometer disclosure on the back; for a used vehicle you need a properly assigned title from the seller (buyer's name and address, odometer reading, price, date, lienholder, sellers' signatures and printed names, buyer's printed name and signature). Odometer disclosure is required for model year 2011 and newer vehicles until they are 20 years old, and an out-of-state title needs an identification number and odometer verification by a licensed inspection station. Out-of-state purchases need the dealer's invoice or bill of sale with the MSO, or the assigned title, or where the state issues no title, a bill of sale and the last registration.

Registering a vehicle

A new resident registers within 30 days and surrenders the out-of-state title. Passenger-vehicle fees depend on taxable horsepower, commercial fees on zone and gross weight, plus a processing fee. You may register for two years when the model year and the calendar year are both even or both odd. A renewal notice arrives about two months before expiry, but you must renew on time even without it. Bring the notice, last year's receipt or a copy of the title; a paid personal property tax receipt or statement of non-assessment for the previous registration period (two years' receipts for a two-year registration); a current insurance card; a safety and/or emissions certificate from the last 60 days if required; and the fees. Report the sale of a vehicle or ATV on a Notice of Sale (Form 5049) within 30 days. Stolen plates or tabs are replaced free up to twice a year (plus the $9 processing fee) with a notarized affidavit; a replacement title, plate or set of tabs costs $8.50 each plus $9.

Mandatory insurance

Every operator and owner must carry liability insurance, called financial responsibility, and show proof when registering or renewing plates: an insurance ID card, the policy or binder, a paid receipt, a certificate of self-insurance (available to those with more than 25 vehicles), a Department ID card backed by a $75,000 bond, deposit or securities ($150,000 for a real estate bond), a $75,000 cash deposit with the State Treasurer, or an electronic copy on a handheld device. Minimum coverage is $25,000 per person and $50,000 per crash for bodily injury and $25,000 per crash for property damage, plus uninsured-motorist coverage of $25,000 per person and $50,000 per crash. Keep proof in the vehicle; an officer who asks and is not shown proof will write a ticket, and the Department can demand proof at any time, including after a crash.

If you let the insurance lapse you receive a notice of suspension. A first suspension lasts until you pay $20 and file proof of insurance, which you must keep on file for three years; a second within two years is 90 days plus $200 and three years of proof; a third or later is one year plus $400 and three years of proof. Failing to pay for damage you caused in a crash suspends your license and plates for one year, lifted early by a $20 fee and proof the damages were settled.

Safety inspections

A safety inspection is good for two registration years unless the vehicle is sold: even model years are inspected when the registration expires in even calendar years, odd in odd. Stations may charge up to $12 ($10 for a motorcycle), and the certificate is good for 60 days (90 days on a Missouri dealer's sale inspected within 60 days before purchase). Exempt: vehicles for the first ten years after their model year with under 150,000 miles (out-of-state titles included), all trailers, vehicles in intrastate commerce registered with MoDOT, historic plates, vehicles sold for junk, salvage or rebuilding, dealer-to-dealer sales, low-speed vehicles, and vehicles registered at 26,000 pounds or more for less than 12 months.

The inspection checks brakes; at least two white headlights; at least two red taillights and reflectors visible from 500 feet; turn signals and brake lights as built; steering without excessive play; tires that are neither bald nor mismatched; safety glass in vehicles built after January 1, 1936; a windshield that is not badly broken and carries nothing that reduces visibility beyond required stickers; working wipers; two sets of front seat belts in cars built after June 30, 1964; a horn others can hear; an exhaust pipe, muffler and tailpipe; inside and outside mirrors on vehicles built after 1967; factory pollution controls on non-diesel vehicles built after 1967; a leak-free fuel system; mud flaps on trucks over 24,000 pounds without rear fenders; and passenger-car bumpers no higher than 22 inches.

Other required equipment

Plates must be securely fastened, clean and fully visible, with no frame covering any part. Two plates go front and back; a trailer or motorcycle gets one at the rear; a truck licensed over 12,000 pounds gets one for the front. A white light must show the rear plate from 50 feet. A load projecting more than five feet behind needs a red flag or cloth at least 16 inches square by day and a red light from half an hour after sunset to half an hour before sunrise. A towline must keep towed vehicles within 15 feet, with lights on both at night. A vehicle moving 25 mph or slower from sunset to half an hour before sunrise must carry the reflective slow-moving vehicle sign at the rear center, at least four feet up. Studded snow tires are allowed only from November 1 to April 1. Window tint is permitted on side and rear windows, with front door windows blocking no more than 65 percent of light.

Emissions inspections

Vehicles in St. Louis City and St. Louis, St. Charles, Franklin and Jefferson counties also need a two-year emissions inspection under the Gateway Vehicle Inspection Program, on the same even/odd schedule, and every vehicle sold in that area is inspected at sale regardless of age. Exempt: new vehicles during their model year and the following year (and the first retail sale with under 6,000 miles), gasoline vehicles from 1995 and older, diesels from 1996 and older, vehicles over 8,500 pounds GVWR, new vehicles for four years after their model year with under 40,000 miles at the first biennial check, vehicles driven under 12,000 miles between safety inspections, vehicles running on fuels other than gasoline, ethanol or diesel, historic, school bus, shuttle bus, motorcycle, motortricycle and street rod plates, gasoline low-speed vehicles in Franklin County, and vehicles registered in the area but based and operated outside it for 24 consecutive months.

Practise this with Missouri Driver License questions

More of this guide