Implied consent — Utah Permit Test

By driving a vehicle or a motorboat in Utah a person consents to a chemical test of their breath, blood, urine, or oral fluids when a peace officer asks for it.

Consent is given by the act of driving. Refusing at the roadside is refusing something you already agreed to.

When you drive a vehicle or a motorboat in Utah, it is implied that you will submit to a chemical test of your breath, blood, urine, or oral fluids to determine the alcohol or drug content if asked to do so by a peace officer.

Refusing a chemical test in Utah revokes the driver license for 18 months on a first offense and 36 months on a second or subsequent offense.

Refusing costs more than most first convictions do. The test is not a choice worth declining.

If you refuse to do so, your driver license would be revoked for 18 months for the first offense and 36 months for the second or subsequent offenses.

A Utah driver under 21 who refuses a chemical test is revoked for two years or until they reach 21, whichever is longer.

Under 21 the revocation runs to an age rather than a date, so it can be far longer than two years.

If under 21, the license will be revoked for two years or until 21 whichever is longer for the first offense, and for the second or subsequent offenses, it would be 36 months or until the age of 21, whichever is longer.

The officer selects or designates which chemical test a Utah driver must submit to.

A driver does not get to pick the test they are most likely to pass. The officer names it and you take that one.

you must submit to the chemical tests selected or designated by the officer

After an alcohol-related suspension or revocation ends, a Utah driver may apply for a new license by paying the reinstatement and license fees and taking the required examinations.

The license does not come back by itself. Waiting out the suspension is only the first half of getting it back.

Any time your driver license is suspended/revoked for an alcohol-related offense, you may apply for a new driver license after the suspension/revocation period by paying the reinstatement and the regular license fees and by taking the required examinations.

What does a Utah driver consent to by driving?

A chemical test when an officer asks. Consent is given by the act of driving. Refusing at the roadside is refusing something you already agreed to. Utah Driver Handbook 2026-2027, p.53: “When you drive a vehicle or a motorboat in Utah, it is implied that you will submit to a chemical test of your breath, blood, urine, or oral fluids to determine the alcohol or drug content if asked to do so by a peace officer.”