DUI Under 21 in Virginia: 0.02% Means a Year Without a License

Virginia treats underage drinking and driving as a crime even below the adult DUI limit: 0.02% is enough for a misdemeanor and a year-long license forfeiture.

The offense

Va. Code § 18.2-266.1 makes it unlawful for anyone under 21 to drive after illegally consuming alcohol. A chemical test showing a BAC of 0.02% or more but less than 0.08% is a violation. At 0.08% or more, the adult DUI law applies instead.

Penalties

• It's a Class 1 misdemeanor (up to 12 months in jail and a $2,500 fine under § 18.2-11).
• The punishment must include forfeiting your license for one year from the date of conviction, on top of any administrative suspension.
• It must also include a mandatory minimum $500 fine or at least 50 hours of community service.

What happens at the stop

The roadside preliminary breath test is voluntary, and its result isn't used as evidence — it only helps establish probable cause to arrest. Once you're arrested, though, chemical testing becomes mandatory under Virginia's implied-consent law, which names this offense specifically. Separately from the criminal case, an immediate 7-day administrative license suspension takes effect the moment you're charged — not when you're convicted — under a statute that applies the same way to DUI and to this offense.

ASAP isn't automatic here the way it is for adult DUI

This is a common point of confusion: Virginia's law only makes ASAP mandatory for a full adult DUI conviction. For this offense, the statute makes you eligible to attend ASAP, not required to — though a judge can still order it as a condition of probation. Where it applies, the real numbers are: a $300 program fee plus a $100 intervention fee ($400 total, payment plans available), 10 hours

Restricted license

You can get a restricted license during the suspension, but only with an ignition interlock installed, for up to one year. We didn't find a mandatory waiting period before a court can grant it — unlike some other states, the court can authorize it for good cause at sentencing itself.

Don't confuse this with the underage-possession law

Virginia has a separate offense, § 4.1-305, for underage purchase, possession, or consumption of alcohol with no driving involved — it carries the same $500 fine or 50 hours community service, but a shorter 6-to-12-month license suspension (not a flat year), and unlike this driving offense, a juvenile charged under § 4.1-305 does go through the state's general juvenile disposition process. If your case involves driving, § 18.2-266.1 — the one this page covers — is what applies, with its own one-year forfeiture.

Reinstatement fee

The base license reinstatement fee is $30, and it increases by another $30 specifically because the suspension resulted from this offense — $60 total from those two components.

What it does to your insurance rates

We didn't find comparable published insurance rate data for an under-21 alcohol violation in Virginia. Two things are true everywhere: teen drivers already pay the highest premiums of any age group, and an alcohol-related violation on a young driver's record makes that worse. See what teens normally pay in our Virginia teen driver guide, and what an adult DUI does to rates in our Virginia DUI guide.

Related: Car insurance after a DUI in Virginia · FR-44 in Virginia