Impaired driving in New Brunswick: what to do with your notice or charge

Which documents did you receive?

The New Brunswick impaired-driving guide describes several provincial suspension categories. The breath reading alone does not tell you the whole process. Match the heading, category and dates on your actual notice before relying on a general summary.

Scroll the tables sideways to compare all columns.

More than one row may apply. An administrative notice is not itself a criminal conviction, but a lower breath reading does not guarantee that no criminal impairment charge is possible.

Prepare a roadside-suspension review promptly

The official two-page review application covers specified roadside suspensions of seven days or more, excluding 24-hour suspensions. It gives a 15-day application window. Record both service and suspension-start dates; ask the Motor Vehicle Branch or a lawyer which date controls your notice and how to submit in time. Do not wait for the criminal court date.

The form says applying does not stay the suspension and warns that a suspension may finish before a decision is rendered. Keep complying while the review is pending. If a period may already have passed, obtain advice promptly about any available route rather than assuming every possible remedy has disappeared.

Scroll the tables sideways to compare all columns.

1. Read the entire form and identify the matching category and grounds. Prepare the relevant evidence; needing a licence for work is not a substitute for establishing the applicable review ground.
2. Follow the signature, licence-surrender, payment and submission instructions. Keep the completed documents, supporting material, proof of payment and proof of delivery.
3. Ask Motor Vehicle Branch on 506-453-2410 about current procedural requirements. A lawyer consultation does not submit the application for you unless that work is expressly agreed.

Court fines, towing, storage, courses, reinstatement and interlock charges are separate costs. A successful review does not necessarily cancel outstanding impoundment-facility fees.

Impairment, 80 mg or more, and refusal are different

Criminal Code section 320.14(1)(a) concerns ability impaired to any degree by alcohol, a drug or both. It does not require a particular blood-alcohol reading. A reading below 80 mg per 100 mL therefore does not establish immunity from a criminal impairment charge.

The separate alcohol-concentration offence includes 80 mg or more per 100 mL within two hours after ceasing operation, subject to statutory qualifications. Drug and combined alcohol/drug offences have different elements. Do not treat the shorthand “over 80” as excluding a reading of exactly 80.

Section 320.15 addresses knowing that a testing demand has been made and failing or refusing to comply without reasonable excuse. The demand, what happened and the evidence matter. A failed attempt is not something this guide can classify as guilt or a defence.

Roadside screening and further testing demands have different statutory requirements. Preserve test documents and a private chronology for your lawyer. This guide does not determine whether a particular stop, demand or test was lawful.

Criminal penalties and driving prohibitions

For the ordinary no-bodily-harm offences under sections 320.14(1) and 320.15(1), section 320.19 provides different summary and indictable maximums, minimum punishments and higher first-offence fines in specified cases. The exact charge and relevant previous convictions matter.

The ordinary first minimum is C$1,000. For the specified alcohol-concentration offence, it rises to C$1,500 at 120 to below 160 mg of alcohol per 100 mL of blood, and C$2,000 at 160 mg or more per 100 mL of blood; a first ordinary refusal offence has a C$2,000 minimum. Ordinary second and subsequent minimums are 30 and 120 days of imprisonment respectively. These figures are not a prediction or a total bill.

Section 320.24 ordinarily requires a first prohibition of one to three years, a second of two to ten years, and a subsequent prohibition of at least three years, plus any period of imprisonment, for those specified offences. The court order and applicable interlock provisions must be checked; a first conviction does not invariably mean exactly one year.

The lower drug-concentration offence has different penalties and a discretionary prohibition. Section 320.23 also provides a conditional approved-treatment exception; this does not establish availability or eligibility in an individual New Brunswick case.

Bodily-harm offences are hybrid and carry a higher indictable maximum; death offences can attract life imprisonment. Do not apply the ordinary no-harm summary to those cases or assume the same court route without checking the charge.

A criminal punishment, a provincial administrative penalty and licensing conditions are different. Prior administrative occurrences and prior criminal convictions are not interchangeable; bring the actual dates and orders to the consultation.

Before driving again: interlock and reinstatement

The official interlock guide describes eligibility, restricted licences and reinstatement conditions. It does not support treating every notice as a universal “90 days plus 12 months” rule. A three-month period is not necessarily 90 days, and category, prior history and other orders matter.

Federal interlock provisions and minimum prohibition requirements operate alongside provincial licensing requirements. Installation alone is not permission to drive. Obtain confirmation that you are lawfully enrolled, any required period has passed and the licence permits the proposed driving.

1. Identify every current provincial suspension and criminal prohibition, including any unrelated restriction. Ask what must expire or be resolved before the proposed reinstatement.
2. Confirm eligibility, any course requirement, outstanding fees, the required application and the restricted-licence conditions with Motor Vehicle Branch.
3. Check the vehicle’s inspection, registration and insurance and any required owner permission before arranging an approved installation.
4. Get a written quote separating installation, monitoring, taxes and any special-vehicle costs. Keep towing, storage, courses, reinstatement and legal fees separate in your budget.
5. Confirm the licence status and permitted vehicle before driving. Keep the written conditions and follow the programme requirements.

Prepare for the criminal court date

The Provincial Court information explains disclosure and the opportunity to seek advice before a plea. Bring all court and release papers and find out what evidence has been provided. A first appearance is not invariably the trial or sentencing.

Ask about duty counsel and any necessary adjournment early. An adjournment is a request for the court to decide; an email, lawyer booking or pending licence review does not itself excuse attendance. Keep complying with release conditions unless lawfully changed.

For a permanent resident or foreign national, a conviction can have serious immigration consequences under section 36 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, subject to its qualifications. Raise immigration status before a plea. Obtain specific advice about proposed travel rather than assuming a charge or conviction automatically decides entry to another country.

Six steps to organise your papers

1. Keep the complete suspension notice, category, envelopes and issue, service, start and end dates. Record the exact review instructions without substituting an online countdown.
2. Gather breath or analysis printouts, any second-test request and result, and a private chronology of the stop and testing. Identify relevant medication or medical evidence for confidential legal advice.
3. Keep the charge, summons or release papers, conditions, court date and any disclosure. Separate the criminal case from the provincial review paperwork.
4. Collect the impoundment notice, towing and storage records, vehicle ownership details and any interlock or reinstatement correspondence.
5. Identify your licence class and issuing province, previous suspension and conviction dates, and all current orders. Do not guess how an earlier event is counted.
6. Write the questions needing an answer: exact review deadline, grounds and evidence, available hearing format, next court step, lawful driving status, and who will prepare and submit any application.

Keep admissions, identity documents and case papers private. This checklist prepares you for the official process or legal advice; it does not file a review, change a court date or restore a licence.

Official help and free legal information

Free information, duty assistance and an ongoing lawyer are different services. Ask about the help available for the criminal case and the licensing review separately.

Common questions about impaired driving in New Brunswick

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