Licence disqualification

You cannot drive in Queensland if your licence has been disqualified by a court anywhere in Australia. You may be able to apply to remove a disqualification by a court in Queensland if it has been more than 2 years.

When you need legal advice

 Get legal advice if you:

  • have been charged with a traffic offence
  • want to apply to have a driver licence disqualification removed, especially if you have more than one disqualification.

How to get legal advice

 Driver licence disqualification

 Your driver licence may be disqualified if you are found guilty of certain traffic offences, including:

  • drink driving
  • drug driving
  • dangerous driving
  • driving while disqualified
  • breaching the interlock condition on your driver licence.

The disqualification may:

  • range from a few months to several years, depending on the offence
  • prevent you from driving in other states or overseas, depending on where you received the penalty.

 Removing a licence disqualification

You may be able to apply to a court to have your disqualification removed if all of the following apply:

  • a Queensland court has disqualified you from holding or getting a driver licence for more than 2 years (if you have a disqualification in another state, you need to get advice from a lawyer in that state about whether you can apply to have that disqualification removed)
  • it has been more than 2 years since you were disqualified from driving
  • you haven’t made a similar application in the past 12 months.

How to apply

You must apply to the court that disqualified your licence. For example, if you were disqualified by:

  • the Supreme Court—you must apply to the Supreme Court
  • the District Court—you must apply to the District Court.
  • the Magistrates Court
    • if you live in Queensland—you must apply to the Magistrates Court near your home
    • if you live interstate—you must apply to the Brisbane Magistrates Court
  • the Magistrates Court and the District or Supreme Court—you must make separate applications to each court.

You can’t apply for a driver licence until your disqualification periods end.

To apply, you must:

 If you have been convicted of a criminal offence in another state, you must get a national police check.

 If your application is approved

If your application is approved, the court will order your disqualification to be removed. This order is not a licence.

Before you can drive again, you must apply for a driver licence at the Department of Transport and Main Roads and show your court order. You may also have to pass a driver licence test.

Licence disqualifications overseas or interstate

It is a criminal offence to apply for a Queensland driver licence if you have been disqualified in Queensland or interstate.

It is also illegal to drive in Queensland with an overseas or interstate licence if:

  • an Australian court has disqualified you from holding or getting a driver licence
  • your overseas licence has been disqualified, suspended, cancelled or expired.

Even if you have a valid overseas or interstate licence, you may not be allowed to drive in Queensland. Get legal advice.

Alcohol Ignition Interlock Program

If your licence was disqualified for a drink driving offence, you may have to participate in the Alcohol Ignition Interlock Program.

An alcohol ignition interlock is a device that connects to the vehicle ignition and requires a breath sample from the driver before starting the engine. The vehicle won’t start if alcohol is detected in your breath.

Find out more about the Alcohol Ignition Interlock Program.

How to get legal advice

We may give legal advice about licence disqualification.
 

Other places to get legal advice:

Related information

Disclaimer: This content is for general purposes only and not legal advice. If you have a legal problem, please contact us or speak to a lawyer. View our full disclaimer.

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