Immediate withdrawal of your driving licence: how long and what to do?

Anyone who has had too much to drink or tests positive for drugs often has to hand over their licence on the spot. This immediate withdrawal (retrait immédiat du permis de conduire) is not yet a penalty: the judge has not yet ruled. It is a safety measure taken by the public prosecutor (parquet). For most people, however, it feels like a punishment, especially if they need to drive for work.

This article complements our guides to drink driving and drug driving.

Temporary driving prohibition and withdrawal: two different measures

After a positive check, two measures are possible, and they are often applied together:

• The temporary driving prohibition (interdiction temporaire de conduire). This is a ban on driving for a short period, which since 1 July 2026 is always 12 hours in the case of driving under the influence. It applies to all vehicles. The police impose it on the spot.
• The immediate withdrawal of the driving licence (Article 55 of the Road Traffic Act, loi relative à la police de la circulation routière). It lasts in principle 15 days and applies to vehicles for which a licence is required. The public prosecutor decides, usually by telephone after contact with the police at the scene.

When can the public prosecutor withdraw your licence?

For alcohol

• a breath analysis of 0.35 mg/l EAA (0.8 per mille) or more. Since February 2026, the prosecution offices have applied this threshold across the country. Until then, in most judicial districts a withdrawal only followed from 0.50 mg/l, and before 2023 from 0.65 mg/l;
• a refusal without a legitimate reason of the breath test, the breath analysis or the blood test;
• drunkenness;
• clear signs of alcohol consumption, where no test was possible for a reason other than a refusal;
• a hit-and-run (délit de fuite) combined with drunkenness or a concentration of at least 0.35 mg/l EAA.

For drugs

• a positive saliva test;
• a refusal without a legitimate reason of the saliva test or saliva analysis;
• a refusal for a legitimate reason, or the impossibility of collecting enough saliva, combined with a positive checklist;
• a negative saliva test, but drunkenness or a similar state has been established.

Other cases

Article 55 also applies outside alcohol and drugs, in particular in case of hit-and-run, serious speeding, certain serious breaches of the Highway Code (Code de la route) and an accident causing serious injury or death due to serious fault.

How long does the withdrawal last?

In principle 15 days, starting from the day you hand over your licence.

The public prosecutor can ask the police court to extend the withdrawal up to a maximum of three months (Article 55bis). The court rules within 15 days. You are summoned and can put forward your point of view, preferably with a lawyer. In this procedure, it can be useful to show why you need your licence and why an extension is not necessary.

Judges see the extension as a temporary safety measure, not as a penalty. This has consequences for your defence. On 22 January 2026, the West Flanders police court (Bruges division) extended to three months the withdrawal of a driver’s licence after an accident and a positive saliva test for cocaine. She had herself stated that she used drugs every week. The judge rejected her arguments based on the right to a fair trial (Article 6 ECHR), precisely because it is not a penalty, and refused to refer questions to the Constitutional Court. What matters is whether you currently pose a danger on the road. So above all, provide documents that show you do not.

How do you get your licence back?

When the period expires, your licence is returned to you (Article 56). The letter from the public prosecutor or the police states where you can collect it, usually from the police zone or the court registry that holds it.

In some cases, you can ask the public prosecutor to return your licence earlier, for example for urgent professional reasons. The public prosecutor has full discretion. A well-supported request does, however, make a difference.

Driving during the withdrawal

Driving during a withdrawal is a separate offence that is severely punished (Article 30, §3 of the Road Traffic Act). This applies not only to the first 15 days, but also to the extension period decided by the police court (Cass. 26 January 2016, P.15.0590.N). Since a statutory amendment in 2016, this has also been expressly written into the law. The judge generally sees it as an aggravating circumstance in the main case. So always wait until you have actually got your licence back. See also our article on driving during a driving ban.

The withdrawal and the later penalty

The withdrawal is not a penalty. The police judge can still impose a driving ban later. How that ban works is explained in our guide to the driving ban. The period during which your licence was already withdrawn is, however, deducted from that later ban. Someone who was without their licence for 15 days and then receives a one-month ban therefore has to do without it for roughly another 15 days. So keep the documents showing when you handed in your licence and when you got it back.

The withdrawal and the new prosecution policy

Because the withdrawal threshold for alcohol has been set at 0.35 mg/l since 2026, far more drivers lose their licence immediately than before. A withdrawal is often followed by a summons (citation) to appear before the police court rather than an out-of-court settlement (transaction pénale). Prepare for this in good time. See also our article on the breath test and breath analysis, because a correct calculation of the result can determine whether you are just above or below the threshold.

Frequently asked questions

Have your case reviewed

Has your licence been withdrawn, or are you facing an extension? We assist you, including in the extension procedure before the police court. Contact us.

Law as at 30 September 2026. We update this article when the rules change.