SR-22 Services

Occupational Driver License and SR-22 in Austin

Texas calls it an essential need licence. You petition a court, and the SR-22 is one of the items DPS requires before it issues.

Licensed in Texas · Serving Travis, Williamson, Hays and Bastrop Counties

Downtown Austin. Photo: Gabriel Guzmán via Google Maps

Quick Answer

Texas calls it an essential need licence. You petition a court, and the SR-22 is one of the items DPS requires before it issues. Call (737) 247-7900 or request a quote.

An occupational driver licence — also called an essential need licence — lets you drive a non-commercial vehicle for work, essential household duties, or school activities while your licence is suspended, revoked or denied.

You do not apply to DPS for it. You petition the Justice of the Peace, county or district court where you live, or the court of original jurisdiction for the offence. Each court sets its own requirements, so ask the specific court what it wants before you file anything.

The deadline that matters: the signed court order is not the licence, but it works as a driver licence for 45 days from the date the judge signs it while DPS processes your request. That 45-day window is the clock you are racing, and DPS asks for 21 business days to process. Do not spend three weeks of it getting insurance sorted.

DPS requires four things: a certified copy of the petition and the order, an SR-22, the occupational licence fee, and payment of all reinstatement fees. Submit them in one envelope with your name, date of birth and driver licence number on every page.

An occupational licence is typically issued for one year or less, with two years the maximum, and beyond one year only if the court grants it. It cannot be issued for a commercial vehicle, for medical-incapacity revocations, or for a delinquent child support revocation.

Sources: Texas Department of Public Safety — Occupational Driver License; Texas Department of Public Safety — Reinstating your Driver License or Driving Privilege.

What is our services?

Here is what applies:

  • How long you need itTexas requires the SR-22 to be maintained for two years from the date of your most recent conviction, or from the date judgment was rendered against you. Not three years, and not two years from the day you file.
  • The clock does not restart when you fileThe two years run from the conviction, not from the filing. The department states it directly: file a year after your conviction and you carry the certificate for one more year, not two more. A new qualifying conviction can extend the requirement.
  • Who files itYour insurance carrier files the certificate with the department. Not every insurance company offers SR-22 filings — the department says so on its own page — so the company you have now may not be able to do it.
  • How long processing takesAllow up to 21 business days for the department to process an SR-22. Reinstatement fees paid online through License Eligibility process in roughly 24 to 48 hours; the compliance documents are the slow part. Plan around the three weeks rather than being surprised by it.
  • Your insurance card will not doA policy card or declarations page does not substitute for the SR-22. The certificate is a separate filing your carrier transmits to the department under the Safety Responsibility Act.
  • If the policy lapsesYour driver license or driving privilege is re-suspended, and you need a new SR-22 plus a $100 reinstatement fee to get it back. Continuity is the part you control.
  • If you do not own a vehicleYou still have to file. A Texas non-owner SR-22 policy satisfies the requirement and is usually the cheapest way to do it.
  • If you were actually insured at the timeYou may not owe a filing at all. If you had coverage on the date of the citation, your carrier can send a letter on company letterhead by fax, email or mail, and the department will review it. Allow 21 days.

Minimum coverage required: Texas’s minimum liability limits are 30/60/25 — $30,000 bodily injury per person, $60,000 bodily injury per accident, and $25,000 property damage per accident (Texas Transportation Code ch. 601 / Texas Dept of Insurance).

Source: Texas Department of Public Safety — Financial Responsibility Insurance Certificate (SR-22). See also Texas Department of Public Safety — Reinstating your Driver License or Driving Privilege.

Ready to get filed?

Most Central Texas drivers get a quote in under 10 minutes and have the filing sent the same business day.

Other SR-22 situations we handle

Page last updated 21 August 2026. We update these pages when the state changes its published guidance.

Get Your Austin SR-22 Quote in Under 10 Minutes

Tell us your conviction and its date, your ZIP code, and whether you own a vehicle. We will compare carriers, give you a real number, and get the filing sent as soon as you are ready.

Or call (737) 247-7900 · Text (737) 247-7900 · Open Monday-Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.. Se habla español. No obligation, no credit card to get a quote.

Submitting this form does not bind coverage and is not an application. Coverage begins only when a carrier issues a policy.