Being convicted of a DWI brings with it a litany of consequences. However, for most people, the primary concern is their licensing privileges and the ability to drive. This becomes even more complicated when you are convicted of a DWI in South Carolina but have a North Carolina Driver’s License. You may be wondering: how do I get a limited driving privilege in NC?

How Do I Get a Limited Driving Privilege in North Carolina After Being Convicted of a DWI in South Carolina?

The first thing to note is that in order for a person to get a Limited Driving Privilege in North Carolina, the North Carolina DMV must have received notification from South Carolina that there has been a DWI conviction in South Carolina. Because both North Carolina and South Carolina are members of the Driver’s License Compact, South Carolina will notify North Carolina of the conviction. However, the time frame on that can be a bit fuzzy. Oftentimes, the process is relatively quick, with a North Carolina resident receiving notice from the NC DMV of the suspension of their North Carolina Driving Privileges within a couple weeks. However, when dealing with multiple bureaucratic agencies, paperwork can oftentimes be delayed or even lost. As such, notification of suspension can sometime take months or even years to arrive.

What You Need To Get Your Limited Driving Privilege in NC

Once you have received notification from the DMV that your North Carolina licensing privileges are going to be suspended, that is your cue to start gathering paperwork for your Limited Driving Privilege. The documents that you will need to obtain are:

  • A North Carolina DWI Assessment from an Assessment Agency;
  • A form from your Car Insurance company called a DL-123;
  • A Certified Copy of your Driving Record from the North Carolina DMV; and
  • Any paperwork that shows a need for employment related driving outside of the standard working hours of 6AM to 8PM, Monday  through Friday, (i.e. proof showing you need to drive on nights or weekends);

Once that information is gathered, a Petition for the Limited Driving Privilege and the Limited Driving Privilege can be filled out. Once that is done, the legal process of obtaining a Judge’s signature on the documents can begin.

Filing for Limited Driving Privilege in NC after receiving a DWI in SC

Because you have received a DWI in another state, the process for obtaining the Limited Driving Privilege in NC is different than the normal Limited Driving Process. Instead of the Privilege being filed through the Criminal Clerk of Court’s Office, this privilege is instead considered a Civil Action. As such, a Civil File with the Civil Clerk of Court must be created for the Privilege. As such, a $150 Civil Filing Fee will be required, as well as the standard $100 for the Limited Driving Privilege Filing Fee.

Once the Civil File has been created, Notice must be given to the District Attorney’s Office that you are intending to file the Petition for the Limited Driving Privilege and get the actual Limited Driving Privilege in NC signed. This notice requirement is in place so the District Attorney’s Office has the opportunity to look over the privilege and be heard (i.e. the opportunity to object). However, the District Attorney’s Office also has the ability to Waive their right to notice and the opportunity to be heard. As such, if you can get the District Attorney’s office to Waive that right,  it will make the process faster and help eliminate any potential issues with obtaining the Limited Driving Privilege.

Once the District Attorney’s Office has either had an opportunity to look over the Petition for the Limited Driving Privilege or has waived that right, the Limited Driving Privilege can be presented to a Judge for signature. If all the documents are in order and the Judge has no issues, the Judge will affix their signature to the document. Once that signature has been obtained, the Limited Driving Privilege can then be filed with the Clerk’s Office and sent to the DMV. At that point, the Limited Driving Privilege is valid and you are able to drive within the restrictions of the privilege for the stated period of the Suspension / Privilege.

If, on the other hand, you’re from out of state but receive a DWI in North Carolina, read our post here to get help.

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