What happens if I refused a breath or blood test in Pennsylvania?

Last updated October 4, 2026.

Refusing a chemical test after a DUI arrest leads to a PennDOT suspension of 12 months, or 18 months if you had an earlier refusal suspension or an earlier DUI sentence, and PennDOT says that suspension applies even if you are found not guilty of DUI. If you are later convicted of DUI under the general impairment section, refusing a breath test, or a blood test under a valid warrant, moves you into the highest penalty tier. The refusal can also be used as evidence at trial.

A refusal therefore creates two separate problems: a civil license case with PennDOT and a heavier criminal case. This page takes them one at a time. For the criminal penalty chart, see our main DUI defense page.

What was the officer required to tell me?

Pennsylvania's implied consent law says anyone who drives in the state is deemed to have consented to breath or blood testing when an officer has reasonable grounds to believe they were driving under the influence (75 Pa.C.S. 1547(a)). Before a refusal counts, the officer must tell you two things (1547(b)(2)):

• that your operating privilege will be suspended if you refuse, and that you will owe a restoration fee; and
• that if you refuse breath testing and are convicted under 3802(a)(1), you will face the penalties in 3804(c), the highest tier.

Whether those warnings were given, and how, is one of the first things to check in a refusal appeal. One related point: refusing the small roadside breath test that an officer may ask for before an arrest does not count as a refusal for the suspension or as evidence (1547(k)).

How long is the refusal suspension?

PennDOT's manual gives an example: a driver with a prior DUI who refuses faces 18 months for the refusal plus 18 more months for the DUI conviction, three years in all. Suspensions start on the effective date printed in PennDOT's notice, not when you surrender your license; our page on when PennDOT suspends your license after a DUI sorts out the refusal, ARD and conviction notices.

How does a refusal change the criminal DUI case?

The refusal is not a separate crime, but it raises the grade and penalties of a DUI under 3802(a)(1), the general impairment charge based on being unable to drive safely. The statute applies this to a refused breath test or a refused blood test under a valid search warrant, court order or other constitutional basis.

At trial, the prosecution may introduce the fact that you refused, along with the circumstances. The statute says no presumption arises from it, but it may be considered along with the other evidence (1547(e)). You were also entitled to the results of any test that was done, and to have a physician of your choosing run an additional test (1547(g) and (h)).

Can I still get ARD after refusing?

Yes, a refusal does not bar ARD by law. In Delaware County, the DA's September 2026 application puts refusal cases in Tier III, with 12 months of probation, 32 hours of community service and a 60-day ARD license suspension. The PennDOT refusal suspension is separate and runs in addition. Read who is eligible for DUI ARD in Delaware County for the full list of local disqualifiers.

Can I appeal the refusal suspension?

Yes. PennDOT says a suspension may be appealed to the Court of Common Pleas, Civil Division, in your county of residence, within 30 days of the mailing date on the department's notice. The petition must be served on PennDOT's legal office along with a copy of the notice (75 Pa.C.S. 1550(a)). For a suspension appeal, filing and serving the petition generally puts the suspension on hold until the court decides (1550(b)(1)(i)), and the court sets a hearing on 60 days' written notice to PennDOT (1550(c)).

The 30-day clock runs from the mailing date, not from when you open the envelope, so call a lawyer as soon as the letter arrives.

Can I drive during a refusal suspension?

Not with an Occupational Limited License: PennDOT's FAQ says it can no longer issue one for a refusal suspension under 1547. The route is an ignition interlock license, and the rules are changing:

• Now: under 75 Pa.C.S. 1556, as it reads until its repeal, a driver suspended for refusal may apply for an Ignition Interlock Limited License after serving 6 months of a 12-month suspension, or 9 months of an 18-month suspension.
• After the change: Act 36 of 2026 repeals 1556 and creates an ignition interlock driver's license (new 75 Pa.C.S. 3805.1), effective 16 months after the act was signed on July 20, 2026. A driver suspended for refusing chemical testing may apply once PennDOT sends the suspension notice, but no sooner than 30 days from the report of refusal.

Either way, getting your full license back after a refusal suspension requires an ignition interlock on any vehicle you will drive, unless an exception applies (75 Pa.C.S. 3805). Our page on driving during a DUI suspension and the new interlock license walks through both systems. Our guide to what a DUI costs beyond the fine covers the refusal restoration fee and the interlock.

What if my blood was drawn without a refusal?

If you agreed to a test, the question shifts to the result and its timing. Pennsylvania measures blood alcohol within two hours of driving, with an exception the prosecution must prove; see the two-hour rule for DUI tests.

The test itself has rules. Breath tests must be run on devices approved by the Department of Health, calibrated and checked for accuracy on a set schedule, by an operator trained in an approved program; blood tests done in Pennsylvania must be run by a licensed clinical laboratory or a State Police lab (1547(c)). Those records are part of what a lawyer reviews, whether you refused or not.

What changes the answer?

• Whether you were under arrest when asked. The refusal suspension applies to a person placed under arrest for DUI and asked to submit to testing (1547(b)(1)). Declining the small roadside breath test before an arrest is not counted (1547(k)).
• What you were told. The officer must give both warnings in 1547(b)(2). Whether they were given, and in a way you understood, is often the center of a refusal appeal.
• Breath or blood. The highest criminal tier applies to a refused breath test, or a refused blood test under a valid warrant, court order or other constitutional basis. A refusal can also lead police to seek a warrant, since nothing in the statute limits their ability to obtain testing that way (1547(b.3)).
• Your history. A prior refusal suspension or a prior DUI sentence turns 12 months into 18 (1547(b)(1)(ii)). Our page on how prior drunk driving convictions affect a new case covers the rest of the repeat-offense picture.
• A commercial license. Commercial drivers face separate disqualification rules for a refusal under the commercial driver chapter; see what a DUI means for a commercial driver's license.
• How the criminal case ends. PennDOT says the refusal suspension stands even after an acquittal, but the criminal penalties in 3804(c) apply only on a conviction or plea under 3802(a)(1).

For example: a refusal at the station in Media

Here is a hypothetical. A driver with no record is arrested for DUI in Media and taken to the station, where the officer reads the implied consent warnings and asks for a breath test. The driver declines. No blood is drawn. The criminal case goes forward on the officer's observations, and the refusal itself can be described at trial.

A few weeks later PennDOT mails a notice of a 12-month refusal suspension with an effective date. Within 30 days of the mailing date, the driver's lawyer files an appeal in the Court of Common Pleas in the county where the driver lives and serves it on PennDOT's legal office, which generally puts the suspension on hold until the hearing. Meanwhile the driver applies for ARD; Delaware County places refusal cases in Tier III. If the appeal later fails, the 12-month suspension runs in addition to the 60-day ARD suspension. This example is only an illustration; every case depends on its own facts.

What mistakes do people make after a refusal?

• Assuming a refusal means no DUI case. Police can rely on other evidence of impairment (1547(f)), and the refusal itself is admissible (1547(e)).
• Waiting on the PennDOT letter. The 30-day appeal period runs from the mailing date on the notice.
• Filing the appeal but not serving it. The petition and a copy of the notice must be served on PennDOT's legal office (1550(a)).
• Driving after the effective date without an appeal or an interlock license. Driving during a refusal suspension is its own offense, and even a first conviction carries a $500 fine and 60 days in jail (75 Pa.C.S. 1543(b)(1)(i)).
• Expecting ARD to cancel the refusal suspension. It does not; the two run separately.
• Forgetting the evaluation. Every DUI case, including a refusal, starts with the CRN evaluation, and our first-week checklist after a DUI arrest in Delaware County shows when to book it.

What should I do this week?

1. Write down what the officer said before asking for a test, where you were, and whether a roadside device was used first.
2. Keep every page you were given at the station or hospital.
3. Watch the mail for PennDOT's notice and keep the envelope with the mailing date.
4. Count 30 days from that mailing date and put the appeal deadline on your calendar.
5. Do not drive after the suspension's effective date unless an appeal has put it on hold.
6. Talk with a lawyer about the appeal and the criminal case together, since the timelines overlap. Our page on what happens after a DUI arrest in Delaware County lays out the court side.

Frequently asked questions

Can police still take my blood if I refuse?

The statute says the requested test is not conducted after a refusal, but it does not limit police from getting a test through a valid search warrant, a court order or another constitutional basis (1547(b) and (b.3)). Refusing a blood test ordered under a warrant counts the same as refusing breath for the criminal penalties.

Can I ask for my own test?

Yes. A person arrested for DUI may request a breath or blood test, and the request is honored when reasonably practicable (1547(i)). You may also have a physician of your choice run an additional test, though the police test is not delayed while you arrange it (1547(h)).

Who pays for the chemical test?

The person tested pays if convicted of DUI or placed into a preadjudication program such as ARD. The requesting authority pays if the person is found not guilty or the charges are dismissed or withdrawn (1547(g.1)).

Which court hears a refusal appeal?

The Court of Common Pleas, Civil Division, in the county where you live, according to PennDOT. For Delaware County residents that is the Courthouse in Media; our guide to what to expect at the Delaware County Courthouse explains how license appeals are scheduled there.

Is it worth fighting a DUI when I refused?

It depends on the evidence of impairment, how the warnings were given, and the penalties at stake. With a refusal, a conviction under 3802(a)(1) carries the highest tier, so the choice between ARD and trial matters more; see whether to accept ARD or fight a DUI.

Does the suspension start the day I refuse?

No. PennDOT suspends upon notice from the officer, and the suspension begins on the effective date printed in the department's letter. An appeal filed and served in time generally holds it until the court decides (1550(b)).

Call Giribaldi Law at (610) 891-8303 or contact us online for a free consultation about a refusal suspension or a DUI charge.