By Jeffrey J. Randa
Clearances for Those Who no Longer Live in Michigan

Clearing a Michigan License Hold: What Out-of-State Residents Need to Know

If your Michigan driving privileges were revoked and you now live in another state, that revocation follows you as a “hold” on your driving record. You cannot get or renew a license anywhere until the hold is cleared — and the only way to clear it is to win a formal clearance appeal through the Michigan Secretary of State.

What You Need to Know

If your Michigan driving privileges were revoked for multiple DUIs, that revocation becomes a “hold” on your driving record the moment you try to get or renew a license in another state.
A Michigan hold can affect people who never held a Michigan license at all — it’s enough to have picked up a qualifying second or third DUI while in Michigan.
The only way to remove a Michigan hold is to win a driver’s license clearance appeal before the Secretary of State’s Office of Hearings and Administrative Oversight (OHAO).
A clearance follows the same legal process as a Michigan driver’s license restoration appeal — the difference is what it accomplishes: a clearance removes the hold so you can get licensed in your new state, rather than reinstating a Michigan license.
Our firm handles clearance and restoration cases statewide and nationwide, and we guarantee to win every first-time case we take.
The entire process, including the hearing itself, is handled remotely over video, so you never have to travel back to Michigan.

If you’ve moved out of Michigan and discovered you can’t get or renew a driver’s license because of something tied to an old Michigan DUI conviction, you’re not alone, and you’re not stuck. As a Michigan driver’s license restoration and clearance law firm, our team helps people in exactly this position resolve it — no matter how long ago the underlying case(s) happened or how far away they’ve moved.

Understanding the Michigan License Hold

Under Michigan law, anyone who accumulates two OWI (Operating While Intoxicated) convictions within seven years, or three within ten years, has their driving privileges revoked. That revocation is not the same as a suspension.

A suspension is temporary. Once the suspension period runs and any outstanding requirements (like a reinstatement fee) are satisfied, driving privileges return on their own.

A revocation has no end date. It does not expire, and no fee or waiting period brings it back. The only way to restore driving privileges after a revocation is to file and win a formal appeal before the Secretary of State’s OHAO.

How a Michigan Revocation Becomes an Out-of-State “Hold”

Consider Dan the Driver, who lived in Michigan before moving to Florida in 2019.

Before moving, Dan picked up two DUI convictions in Michigan — the first in 2012, the second in 2017.
As a result, the Michigan Secretary of State revoked his Michigan driver’s license.
When Dan went to the DMV in Florida, he learned he needed a “clearance” of the Michigan revocation before Florida would issue him a license.

Now consider a variation: suppose Dan’s first DUI happened in Ohio in 2012, while he still lived in Michigan, and his second happened in Michigan in 2017. His Michigan license would still be revoked — two qualifying convictions within seven years, regardless of which state the first one happened in.

The mechanism behind this is a federal system called the National Driver Register, which feeds the Problem Driver Pointer System (PDPS). When you apply for or renew a license in any state, that state checks this system. It flags anyone whose driving privileges have been suspended, revoked, canceled, or denied by another state. Michigan reports to it, which means a Michigan hold surfaces no matter where you go.

In plain terms: once your Michigan license is revoked, you can move anywhere you want, but the hold moves with you. The only way forward is to clear it.

You’ve Never Had a Michigan License — Can You Still Get a Michigan Hold?

Yes. This surprises a lot of people, but a Michigan hold doesn’t require ever having held a Michigan license. It’s enough to pick up a qualifying second or third DUI while driving through Michigan, even as a visitor.

For example: an Ohio driver with one prior DUI who picks up a second DUI while passing through Michigan will have their Michigan driving privileges revoked. Ohio may not even know about it right away — but the next time that person renews their Ohio license, Ohio will check the federal database, find the Michigan hold, and refuse to renew until it’s cleared.

Can Michigan Revoke an Out-of-State Driver’s License?

No. Michigan cannot revoke or suspend a license issued by a different state — no state has that authority over another state’s license. What Michigan can do is revoke a person’s privilege to drive within Michigan after a qualifying second or third DUI conviction here, regardless of where their license comes from. That revoked privilege then shows up as a Michigan hold the next time that person tries to get or renew a license anywhere — even though their actual out-of-state license was never touched.

Restoration vs. Clearance: Why the Distinction Matters

This is the most important distinction in this entire conversation, because it determines what kind of relief to seek when you file an appeal with the Michigan Secretary of State’s Office of Hearings and Administrative Oversight (OHAO), the body that decides these cases.

Current Michigan resident: only eligible for a license restoration — getting an actual Michigan license back, typically a restricted license with an ignition interlock requirement for the first year.
Former Michigan resident living elsewhere: only eligible for a clearance — removing the Michigan hold so your new state can issue you a license. The Secretary of State cannot issue a Michigan license to a non-resident, so getting a clearance is the only available remedy.

People who’ve moved out of state are often relieved to learn that a clearance generally results in a full, unrestricted license in their new state — without the restricted-license and interlock conditions that apply to in-state restorations.

How the Clearance Process Works

Whether you’re filing a restoration case in Michigan or a clearance case from out of state, the legal process is identical:

You must be legally eligible to file, based on your Secretary of State driving record.
You need a clinically accurate, favorable Substance Use Evaluation (SUE).
You need properly prepared letters of support — not character letters, and every one needs careful editing before it’s filed.
Your materials are filed with the Secretary of State’s OHAO.
A hearing officer is assigned to decide your case at a formal hearing, conducted remotely over Microsoft Teams.
You need to be thoroughly prepared for that hearing and for the specific hearing officer assigned to it.

Under Michigan law, anyone with two DUIs within seven years or three within ten years is legally classified as a habitual offender, and the law presumes that person has an alcohol problem. Rule 13 governs every restoration and clearance appeal, and it requires proof, by clear and convincing evidence, of several things — most importantly that the person’s alcohol or substance use problem is under control and likely to remain under control, and that the risk of relapse is low.

In plain English: you have to show you’ve been genuinely alcohol- and drug-free for a meaningful period of time, and that you’re a safe bet to stay that way for good.

Our firm generally requires at least 18 months of genuine sobriety before we’ll move forward with any restoration or clearance case. That kind of commitment to real, lasting sobriety is also why we’re able to guarantee the outcome of every case we take.

What If the Hold Is From a Suspension, Not a Revocation?

Not every hold requires a full clearance appeal. If your underlying issue in Michigan was a suspension rather than a revocation, you generally just need to resolve the outstanding matter — for example, an unpaid ticket or an unresolved violation — rather than filing a formal OHAO appeal.

If you’re not sure whether your situation is a suspension or a revocation, that’s the first thing to find out before doing anything else — it changes everything about the path forward. We’ve written more on that distinction in our article on driving on a suspended or revoked Michigan license.

Don’t Drive While You Wait

If you’re caught driving on a suspended or revoked license anywhere — Michigan or otherwise — Michigan can impose a mandatory additional sanction. This can put off any chance of getting your hold cleared for years.

This is because that additional sanction runs for the same length as your original period of revocation:

Someone originally revoked for one year over two DUIs within seven years will face another full year.

Someone revoked for five years over three DUIs within ten years faces another five.

There’s no way around this except avoiding a new conviction altogether — which is exactly why it matters to have a lawyer working to keep anything new off your record while a clearance case is pending.

Why Work With Jeffrey Randa & Associates

Clearance appeals for out-of-state clients make up roughly a quarter to a third of our license caseload — often more in a given year. Few firms in Michigan see anywhere near that volume of total driver’s license appeal work, much less clearance-specific work, and that volume is exactly why we know the OHAO’s expectations on these cases and can provide a guarantee.

That last part is critical: Our firm guarantees to win every driver’s license restoration and clearance appeal case we accept. We only take cases where we’re confident a person has made a genuine, lasting commitment to sobriety. Note that this includes NOT using recreational marijuana use, which is treated the same as alcohol use by the OHAO and will end a case before it even begins.

We screen every potential client carefully on this point, because genuine sobriety is the foundation the entire case is built on.

That screening means we don’t take every case that comes our way. It also means that when we do take yours, you can move forward with real confidence instead of wondering “what are my chances?”

One more thing worth knowing if you live out of state: you don’t need to travel back to Michigan for any part of this process, including the hearing. Every OHAO hearing, for every petitioner, no matter where they live, is now conducted remotely over Microsoft Teams.

Talk to a Michigan Clearance Lawyer Today

If you have a Michigan hold blocking your ability to get or renew a driver’s license — or if you’re still a Michigan resident and need a license restoration — my team and I can tell you exactly where you stand and what it will take to fix it. We’ve helped clients in this position for more than 30 years, and we handle restoration and clearance cases statewide and nationwide.

Call us for a free, confidential phone consultation, Monday through Friday, 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM, at 586-465-1980. An after-hours answering service is available if you call outside those hours. You can also reach us through the contact form or chat box on our website. To learn more, visit our Michigan driver’s license restoration page.

Frequently Asked Questions

How Do I Look Up My Michigan Driving Record?

You can’t look up your Michigan driving history online for free. You can request your full record through the Secretary of State by mail, phone, fax, or in person, or order it online through the Secretary of State’s driving record request page.

Can I Get a Driver’s License in Another State If I Have a Michigan Hold?

No, not until the hold is cleared. If Michigan revoked your driving privileges, that revocation appears as a hold in every other state. You won’t be able to get or renew a license anywhere until you file and win a clearance appeal in Michigan.

Does Marijuana Use Affect a Clearance Case?

Yes, significantly. Current or recent recreational marijuana use will end a clearance or restoration case before it starts — the Secretary of State treats it the same as alcohol use under the sobriety requirement. There is a narrow medical exception, but only when the use is medically necessary, supervised by a physician familiar with the person’s substance use history, monitored for misuse, and the person can otherwise show they can drive safely.

What’s the Difference Between a Suspension and a Revocation?

A suspension is temporary and ends on its own once the suspension period runs and any outstanding requirements are met. A revocation has no end date — it only ends when you file and win a formal restoration or clearance appeal. Confirming which one applies to you is the first step in figuring out what you actually need to do.