Updated July 2026
In New Mexico, driving means you have already agreed to take a breath or blood test if you are lawfully arrested for DWI. This is the Implied Consent Act. Refusing the official chemical test triggers an automatic license revocation of one year, and the refusal can be used against you and can make the DWI aggravated. But a refusal only counts if the rules were followed. Call (505) 247-1973 now.
The 10-day clock. If you were arrested for DWI, you have only 10 days from the date of arrest to ask for an MVD hearing. Miss that deadline and the revocation of your license becomes automatic, no matter what happens in court. See how the MVD hearing works →
Maybe you said no because you were scared. Maybe you were confused about which test the officer meant. Maybe you asked for a lawyer first. Whatever happened, a refusal changes the case, and not usually in a way that helps. The good news is that a refusal is not automatic proof of anything, and there are real ways to challenge whether a refusal legally occurred at all.
What the Implied Consent Act Means
New Mexico’s Implied Consent Act says that by driving on the state’s roads, you have already consented to chemical testing of your breath or blood if you are lawfully arrested for DWI. If you then refuse that test, two things happen:
- The MVD revokes your license for one year, longer than the 6-month revocation for simply failing the test on a first offense.
- The refusal can be used as evidence in court, and it can make your DWI aggravated, which adds a mandatory 48 hours in jail.
As with any DWI, you have just 10 days to request an MVD hearing to fight the revocation.
Refusing Roadside Tests Is Different
This trips people up, so it is worth being clear. There are two very different kinds of tests:
- Roadside field sobriety tests — the balance and eye tests before arrest. These are voluntary, and declining them is not a refusal under implied consent. See field and breath tests.
- The official chemical test — the breath or blood test after a lawful arrest. This is the one covered by implied consent, and refusing it carries the one-year revocation and other penalties.
If you declined a roadside balance test, that is not the kind of refusal that triggers these consequences. Getting this distinction right can matter a lot in your case.
Talk to Mr. Nieto. The first call is free, and he answers it himself.
Call (505) 247-1973Is This You?
You are worried that saying no made everything worse. Now you are facing a full year without a license on top of the DWI, and it feels like you were punished for not cooperating. It is a stressful spot, but do not assume the refusal is airtight. Officers make mistakes in how they request the test and how they warn you, and those mistakes can undo a refusal.
When a Refusal Does Not Count
A refusal only holds up if the officer did everything right. It can be challenged when:
- The arrest was not lawful. Implied consent applies only after a valid arrest. If the stop or arrest was illegal, the refusal falls with it.
- You were not properly warned. The officer must clearly advise you of the consequences of refusing. A confusing or incomplete warning can invalidate the refusal.
- It was not a real refusal. Asking for a lawyer, being confused about instructions, or a medical inability to complete the test is not always the same as refusing.
How Mr. Nieto Defends Refusal Cases
Mr. Nieto examines whether the arrest was lawful, whether you were properly advised of the consequences, and whether what happened was actually a refusal under the law. He fights the one-year revocation at the MVD hearing and challenges the underlying DWI in court. If the refusal is being used to make the charge aggravated, knocking it out can remove the mandatory jail. Because a DWI cannot be expunged in New Mexico, keeping the conviction off your record is worth the fight.
A refusal after an Albuquerque arrest still leaves only 10 days for the license hearing. Start with an Albuquerque DWI lawyer if the stop was in Bernalillo County.