DWI in Missouri: the law, the limits and the device
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Missouri calls it DWI — driving while intoxicated, and you will see DUI and drunk driving used for the same offense. What follows is what this state sets, taken from its own published rules rather than from a national summary.
What Missouri law actually requires
Missouri offers the interlock as a trade: fit the device and you drive immediately on a 90-day restricted privilege, or skip it and sit out a 30-day hard suspension first. The catch is the exit — your installer must certify you finished violation-free before the device comes off, and without that certificate you serve another 30 days.
- First offense: 90 days on an immediate restricted privilege with the device (request within 15 days of the notice), against a 30-day suspension plus 60-day restricted privilege without it
- Lockout threshold: Set by the alcohol setpoint in the state device standard (7 CSR 60-2.030); tampering and circumvention are separately defined violations
- Program run by: Missouri Department of Revenue, Driver License Bureau
Source: dor.mo.gov, checked 2026-08-23
DUI vs DWI in Missouri
Missouri uses DWI, and the difference from plain DUI is worth getting right: both describe driving impaired, and locally the charge is written as DWI — driving while intoxicated
Whatever it is called, the licensing consequence is the same shape: a suspension, then the device as the condition of driving again. All six abbreviations, side by side →
Can you get a DWI on a bike or a horse in Missouri?
It turns on one word in the statute. Where the law says “vehicle”, no engine is required and the charge can reach a bicycle, a horse or a mobility scooter. Where it says “motor vehicle”, the analysis is different. This is decided by your state’s own wording, not by national custom, and it is the first thing to check before assuming a bike ride home is safe.
Where this state departs from the national picture
Most of what people read about drunk driving is written for the country as a whole. These are the points where Missouri does something of its own.
SR-22 for 2 years
Missouri requires the SR-22 to be filed and maintained for two years from the starting date of the suspension or revocation — not from conviction and not from reinstatement, which usually means part of the two years has already run by the time the licence comes back. Alongside it the Department wants a $45 reinstatement fee, proof of completing a Substance Awareness Traffic Offender Program, and, where the record shows more than one alcohol contact or a first offence at 0.15 or above, proof that an interlock is installed.
How often this happens in Missouri
Federal crash records show the scale the state is legislating against, and how it compares with the country.
Cases are heard where the stop happened, and volume shapes local practice. These MO counties record the most:
Source: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System, 2020–2022. Counts crashes where police recorded that a driver had been drinking, which is narrower than the federal 0.08 measure and therefore understates the real figure. Missouri runs above the national share.
What it costs to get driving again in Missouri
Missouri does not publish a price cap we could verify, so the quote is the number and your only leverage is a competitor nearby. The national reference points are installation and a monthly fee, with calibration visits every 30 to 60 days.
The two clocks in Missouri
The court case and the licensing case run separately. The licensing side moves first, and in the strictest states the window to request a hearing is measured in days — it runs whether or not you have hired anyone.
Missouri cities
The county that hears your case is set by where the stop happened, and local practice differs across the state.
DWI questions in Missouri
Is it called DUI or DWI in Missouri?
Missouri uses DWI — driving while intoxicated. You will also see DUI, drunk driving used for the same thing. The label follows the state, not the seriousness of what happened, so paperwork from elsewhere may say something different about identical conduct.
What is the legal limit in Missouri?
0.08% for drivers 21 and over, as in every state except Utah, which sits at 0.05%. Below the limit you can still be charged if an officer documents impairment. The reading that triggers the interlock here is a separate number: Set by the alcohol setpoint in the state device standard (7 CSR 60-2.030); tampering and circumvention are separately defined violations
How long does the interlock stay on after a first offense in Missouri?
90 days on an immediate restricted privilege with the device (request within 15 days of the notice), against a 30-day suspension plus 60-day restricted privilege without it The program is run by Missouri Department of Revenue, Driver License Bureau.
Can you get a DWI on a horse or a bicycle in Missouri?
The answer is in whether the statute says “vehicle” or “motor vehicle”. Where it says vehicle, no engine is needed and the charge can reach a bike or a horse; where it says motor vehicle, it cannot. This is one of the most searched questions in the whole subject and one of the most confidently answered wrongly — the wording of your own state decides it.
A second DWI here →A first DWI here →When a DWI is a felony in Missouri →
When a charge becomes a felony → The test and the refusal → How long it stays on your record →Missouri class requirements →Missouri SR-22 rules →
Attorney advertising. InterlockDeviceNearMe is not a law firm, does not practice law, and does not give legal advice. Nothing here creates an attorney-client relationship. Requesting a consultation connects you with an independent attorney or a legal referral service, who decide separately whether to take your case. Case outcomes depend on facts we do not know, and no result is ever promised. Deadlines in DUI cases are short and vary by state — speak to a licensed attorney in your state before relying on anything you read here.