How to Reinstate a Driver's License in Vermont

Getting your Vermont license back isn't a matter of waiting out a suspension period and showing up at the DMV. Except for historical civil-traffic-debt suspensions subject to H.53's 30-day cap, Vermont suspensions carry no statute of limitations — a suspension from another unresolved cause stays active indefinitely until every underlying requirement is satisfied, every applicable fee is paid, and the DMV mails you a written Notice of Reinstatement. For an H.53 historical debt suspension, the 30-day period technically expires, but you still need to resolve the debt, pay the applicable fee, and receive the notice before driving. Driving before that letter arrives is criminal Driving with a License Suspended (DLS), even if you've already paid your court fines.

Here's the actual reinstatement process, broken into the sequence that matters.

Step 1: Inventory Every Active Hold on Your Record

Most people who get stuck have multiple holds from different agencies, and they only know about one. Your first move is finding all of them.

You have three ways to check:

• myDMV online portal (mydmv.vermont.gov) — free for basic status viewing. Shows active suspensions, reinstatement fees owed, and digital requirement letters.
• Paper request using Form VG-116 — $14 for a 3-year record, $20 for a complete operating history. Submit by mail to the DMV in Montpelier.
• In-person appointment at the Montpelier main office (120 State Street) — a Driver Control specialist will walk through your record and produce a physical checklist of what's needed.

The myDMV portal is the fastest starting point. If your record shows multiple suspension entries, you're dealing with multiple hold owners — and each one needs to be resolved separately before the DMV will reinstate.

Step 2: Resolve Each Hold with the Correct Agency

This is where people waste months. Paying the DMV doesn't clear a court hold. Paying the court doesn't clear a child support hold. Each cause of suspension has its own resolution path and its own agency:

• Unpaid traffic tickets → Vermont Judicial Bureau (VJB). Pay in full online, set up a $30/month payment plan under 4 V.S.A. § 1109, or enroll in the Civil DLS Diversion Program through a local restorative justice center.
• DUI/alcohol-related holds → Vermont Department of Health's IDRP program plus the DMV. Complete CRASH education, clinical therapy if indicated, sign the Release of Confidential Information form, and get an SR-22 filed with the DMV.
• Child support delinquency → Office of Child Support (OCS). Pay in full or establish an approved repayment plan. OCS has five business days to notify the DMV once you're compliant.
• Insurance lapse → Your insurance carrier. Have them file an SR-22 electronically with the DMV. If insurance is the only active suspension, no reinstatement fee is due.
• Medical review → DMV Medical Review Board. Get the required physician evaluation forms (VS-017 for vision, VS-113 for medical conditions), pass re-examination testing.
• Out-of-state/NDR holds → Vermont DMV Driver Control Unit (802-828-2061). Request a clearance requirement letter, complete any approved reciprocal treatment, submit Form VS-076 if you're a non-resident.
• Points accumulation → DMV Driver Control. Serve the suspension period and retake knowledge/road tests if ordered.

The critical rule: clearing the hold with the originating agency does not automatically restore your license. Each resolution triggers a notice to the DMV, but you still need to complete the final reinstatement step.

Step 3: Pay the Reinstatement Fee and Get Your Notice

Once every hold is cleared, pay the $80 reinstatement fee, if required, to the DMV. You can pay online through myDMV, by mail, or in person at the Montpelier office.

After payment processes, the DMV issues an official written Notice of Reinstatement. This is the document that makes your driving legal again. Until you have it in hand — not just a receipt for the fee — you are not legally cleared to drive.

There is no grace period, no interim permit, and no verbal confirmation that counts. The notice is the trigger.

What H.53 Changed (and Didn't Change)

Since June 2023, Vermont can no longer suspend your license solely for failing to pay civil traffic violations. That's the H.53 reform.

What it didn't do: automatically reinstate licenses that were already suspended before the law took effect. For historical civil-traffic-debt suspensions, H.53 imposed a 30-day maximum duration; after that period the suspension technically expires, but you still need to resolve the underlying debt (or enter a VJB payment plan), pay the $80 reinstatement fee, and receive the DMV's written Notice of Reinstatement before driving.

The VT TRIPS System and Legacy DUI Holds

In November 2025, the DMV overhauled its data systems (the VT TRIPS modernization). One consequence: unresolved historical DUI records from 1980 through 2020 were pushed to the National Driver Register, triggering sudden license holds for former Vermont residents across the country. If you left Vermont decades ago and just got blindsided by a hold, that's likely the cause. Contact the DMV's RDL Unit at 802-828-2061 for a clearance requirement letter.

Vermont Does Not Have a Hardship License

One last thing worth knowing before you plan your timeline: Vermont law does not provide any form of hardship, work, or school driving permit. The only restricted driving option is the Ignition Interlock Restricted License (RDL), and it applies exclusively to alcohol-related suspensions. If your suspension is for unpaid tickets, child support, or points — there is no restricted driving available during the suspension period.

The Vermont Driver's License Reinstatement Guide walks through each hold type with the exact forms, contact numbers, fee amounts, and agency sequences needed to get your license back without missteps.

See more Vermont guides →