Got unpaid non-criminal traffic fines? You may be able to get your license back.

As of 2023, your license can no longer be suspended only for the failure to pay non-criminal traffic fines. If your license was suspended prior to 2023 because of failure to pay non-criminal traffic fines, you can now ask the court for payment plan to pay the old fines.

This will help you learn how to get your license back if it was suspended for unpaid fines from non-criminal traffic tickets, also sometimes called "civil traffic infractions."

If you don't know whether your ticket was criminal or non-criminal or if your license was suspended for something that wasn't traffic ticket related, read this fact sheet first to learn about the different types of tickets and suspensions:

• My license might be suspended. What can I do?

If your license was suspended because of unpaid fines related to a criminal traffic ticket or conviction, you should read this fact sheet instead:

• Got unpaid criminal traffic fines? You may be able to get your license back.

As of 2023, DOL can no longer suspend licenses based only on a failure to pay non-criminal traffic fines.  

If you can't pay your fine in full at one time, you can ask the court for a payment plan or to do community service instead. There are specific timelines and steps to follow. Even though your license can't be suspended for a failure to pay the fines, it can still be suspended for other things like a failure to appear.

You should read this fact sheet to learn how to respond to a new non-criminal traffic ticket:

• I just got a traffic ticket. What can I do to avoid license suspension?

As of 2023, DOL can no longer suspend licenses based only on a failure to pay non-criminal traffic fines. If your license was suspended because you didn't pay fines, you can ask for a payment plan even if the tickets were old. Read more below to learn about what you can do.

To confirm that your license is suspended, check the status of your license online or call 360-902-3900. You will need your Washington driver's license number and your date of birth. No account or login information is needed. You do not need to pay for a copy of your complete driving record to see if your license is suspended.

To confirm that DOL suspended your license because of unpaid non-criminal traffic fines, register online for a License eXpress account with the DOL. 

Do not try to get this information from a collection agency. Different courts use different agencies. A collection agency only has information about tickets assigned to it.

*Out-of-State Suspensions: If your license from another state is suspended, Washington also suspends your license. This is true even if Washington DOL has issued you a license that looks valid. You must contact that state's driver's license agency to find out how to fix your suspension.

DOL cannot suspend your license based on these types of traffic tickets:

• Traffic tickets for a moving traffic violation, such as speeding or for a non-moving violation, such as parking tickets or faulty equipment violations cannot suspend your license. However, if you do not respond to the ticket or do not appear at court when ordered to, your license can be suspended.

• Missing a payment or not being able to pay your traffic tickets for moving traffic violations, such as speeding, cannot suspend your license. However, if you do not respond to the ticket or do not appear at court when ordered to, your license can be suspended.

• Traffic tickets issued before July 1, 2005 cannot suspend your license. It does not matter if they are still unpaid.

However, if you do not pay them, they can still be sent to collection agencies, or cause your wages or bank account to be garnished, and lower your credit rating. Do not ignore these.

If tickets in these categories are suspending your license, you can ask the DOL to lift the suspensions.

A new law effective in 2023 makes it possible to ask the court for a chance to set up a payment plan for unpaid fines related to non-criminal traffic tickets.

You can only ask for payment plan or community service relief if your license was suspended solely because of your inability to pay the fines. And you can only ask for a payment plan one time for each fine.

If your license was suspended for other reasons, like for failure to appear, you should read the section of this resource called "How do I reinstate my license that was suspended for something other than fines?".

A new law stops those kinds of suspensions. There are some important things to know about this new law:

• It stops suspensions that are based on the inability to pay non-criminal (or "civil") traffic fines.

• You can ask for a payment plan at any time, even if the tickets were old.

• You can only ask for a payment plan one time for each fine.

• Courts have discretion about whether they will pull the fines out of collection or garnishment.

• You can ask for community service instead of paying a fine if you can't afford a payment plan. However, some courts might not grant your request if the court doesn't have a community restitution program.

• If you fail to complete a payment plan or community service agreement, the fine could be sent to collections.

• If you fail to keep up with a payment plan, you might have to go back to court and prove your inability to pay the fine.

If you want to try to get relief from old traffic fine that resulted in a suspension, you can ask for relief at the District Court where the ticket came from. As long as you haven't asked for before a payment plan for that specific fine, you can file a petition that asks the court to grant you relief from the traffic fine.

There is a Petition and Proposed Order you can use by downloading the sample forms.

Complete the Petition according to your specific situation and which relief you are seeking. You can ask the Court to do the following:

• Review jurisdiction because more than 10 years have passed since the ticket

• Waive all unpaid interest on the traffic infraction fines

• Waive or reduce any discretionary fines

• Grant you additional time to pay the fines

• Remove your fine from collections and waive collection fees

• "Convert" the unpaid traffic infraction fines to community service hours through a community restitution program

• To modify an existing payment plan or community service agreement

Complete the "Declaration" section of the Petition based on your financial situation.

If you already failed a payment plan or community service agreement, you can use the "Declaration" section to ask the court to consider any circumstances that impacted your ability to complete the plan.

You can also use the Declaration section to ask the court to modify an existing payment plan or community service agreement.

Complete and sign the Petition. File the forms with the Clerk at the District Court where the fines came from. If you asked for a hearing or the Judge requires one, you will have to appear for a hearing on your Petition.

DOL can still suspend licenses for reasons other than unpaid non-criminal traffic fines. If you failed to respond to your infraction or failed to appear in court if it was required, your license could be suspended for those reasons.

You can try to ask the court to set aside the judgment if you had "good cause" for not responding to the ticket or appearing in court. "Good cause" means a reasonable excuse, like you were in the hospital or never received the ticket.

To do this, you can write a letter to the court. The letter should include whatever case or citation information you have for the original traffic ticket. In the letter you can request a hearing or ruling to establish good cause to set aside the suspension and judgment. You should say that you are asking for this judgment to be set aside under Rule IRLJ3.2(b).

Even if the fines are in collection, you can still ask the court to pull them out of collections so you can enter a payment plan. You can use the sample Petition and Order that are included with this resource.

To ask the court to pull the fines out of collections, follow the Petition instructions in the section of this resource called "My license was suspended solely because of my inability to pay the fines on my non-criminal traffic ticket. What can I do?".

If the court will not pull it from the collection agency because the judge made a ruling about it, you may have limited options. You could get legal help. To learn more about where to get legal help, read the part of this resource called "Get Legal Help".

You can also try to deal with the collection agencies directly. Here are some tips for dealing with collection agencies:

• Keep records. Keep records of all your phone calls, letters and interactions with collection agencies.

• Offer a Payoff. Collection agencies will often take less than the full amount owed if you offer to pay a lower amount in full immediately. "Full amount" means the original fine amount, collection fees, and interest. Half the full amount is usually a good first offer. If the first person you talk to does not offer a payoff amount you can afford, ask for a supervisor. They will often offer something better.

• Offer a Monthly Payment Plan. If you set up a payment plan, you will probably end up paying more than you would through a "payoff." With a payment plan, you must pay off the full fine amount. This includes fees and interest. On the upside, the agency will release your license as soon as you make the first payment.

• When setting up a payment plan, you may have to make a down payment of about 10% of the total owed and show proof you can make future payments.

• Do not agree to pay more than you can afford. If you miss a payment, your license will be re-suspended. The collection agency might not want to work out a new agreement.

• Avoid Garnishment. Collection agencies can "garnish" your wages and bank accounts to pay your unpaid fines. (See below for an explanation.) Keep this from happening by making payments.

• Do not give a collection agency unnecessary info about your job, bank accounts, or other sources of income. Try to avoid specific account numbers or identifiers. You don't have to tell debt collectors where you work or how much you make.

• Do not pay by check or with a debit card. There is a risk of being overcharged by a collection agency if they have your account or debit card information. It may be difficult to prove any unauthorized charges if a collection agency charges you more or more often than you authorized.

• Make payments by credit card or money order if you can. This can prevent overcharging by the collection agency.

Once a court has issued a writ of garnishment, a collection agency can directly take money from your wages, bank accounts, or certain other sources of income. Certain amounts of your income might be protected depending on how much you earn. Garnishment and exceptions to garnishment can be complicated.

Learn more about garnishment in this fact sheet:

• Money that cannot be taken from you ("garnished") to pay off a debt

Learn more about what kinds of property and income are protected from garnishments in these fact sheets:

• How to Claim Personal Property Exemptions

• Should I File a Declaration of Exempt Income and Assets

Even if the fines are in garnishment, you can still try to ask the court to pull them out of collections so you can enter a payment plan. You can use the sample Petition and Order that are included with this fact sheet.

To ask the court to pull the fines out of collections, follow the Petition instructions in the section of this resource called "My license was suspended solely because of my inability to pay the fines on my non-criminal traffic ticket. What can I do?".

If your wages or bank account are garnished, the court might not be able to pull that ticket from collections even if you ask them to.

You can try to work out a payment plan with the collection agency. If you have a low income, apply for legal help. Certain kinds of income are protected and cannot be garnished.

Maybe. While your driver's license is suspended or revoked, you may be eligible to receive an Occupational/Restricted Driver License (ORL).

For information about restricted licenses, contact the Department of Licensing: dol.wa.gov/driverslicense/orl.html.