Florida D-6 Clearance: Court, FLHSMV, and Reinstatement Fees

To clear a Florida D-6 clearance hold, contact the clerk of court in the county that issued your citation, resolve whatever the court is waiting on (unpaid fines, a missed court date, or an incomplete traffic school), and then pay the reinstatement fee to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Until the clerk sends that electronic clearance to the FLHSMV and you pay the state’s fee, your license stays suspended.

What a D-6 Hold Actually Is

A D-6 is the notification a Florida court sends the FLHSMV once you’ve satisfied an outstanding traffic court obligation. The flag itself is the suspension; the clearance is what lifts it. Three things typically trigger the underlying suspension: missing a court date, not paying fines or court costs, and not completing a court-ordered traffic school course on time.¹

Knowing which of those applies to you matters, because the fix is different for each one.

Step 1: Find Every County Holding Your License

You can’t clear anything until you know where the flag came from. Pull up the FLHSMV’s online driver license check, which shows every active hold on your record.² Write down the county, case number, and citation number for each one.

If more than one county appears, each has to be cleared separately through its own clerk of court. There’s no single office that handles them all. Most Florida clerks offer online case search tools if you’ve lost the original ticket, and you can always call the clerk’s office directly.

Step 2: Satisfy the Court Requirement

What the clerk needs from you depends on why the suspension happened.

If you owe money, pay the full fine plus any late charges and the delinquency fee (up to $25) the clerk added when you missed the original deadline.¹ If a collection agency is now involved, expect a markup of up to 40% on top of the original balance. Resolving directly with the clerk before that stage saves real money.

If you missed a traffic school deadline, complete a state-approved course and turn the certificate in to the clerk. If you missed a court date, call the clerk to find out whether you need to reschedule the hearing or whether the case can be closed by paying the fine.³

If You Can’t Pay In Full

Florida law requires the FLHSMV’s suspension order to tell you that a payment plan is available through the clerk of court.¹ Terms vary by county, but most clerks charge a setup fee (commonly $25) and require monthly payments. Getting on a plan usually clears the D-6 flag; missing a payment on the plan can trigger new fees and put the suspension right back.

Step 3: Confirm the Clearance Reached the FLHSMV

Once you’ve satisfied the court, the clerk generates the D-6 clearance and transmits it to the FLHSMV. Dozens of counties, including Broward, Hillsborough, Miami-Dade, Orange, and Pinellas, only accept electronic clearances.⁴ Ask the clerk which method their office uses before you leave.

Check the FLHSMV driver license check tool again after a few days. When the status reads “Court Requirements Met,” the clearance has posted.² Your license is still suspended at this point. One more step remains.

Step 4: Pay the FLHSMV Reinstatement Fee

The state charges a separate reinstatement fee before your license goes active again. You can pay:³

Online through the FLHSMV portal at mydmvportal.flhsmv.gov, once the clerk has marked your record “Requirements Met.”
By phone at 850-617-3000 with a credit card.
In person at any Florida driver license service center, or at a Tax Collector’s office in counties where they handle driver license services.
By mail with a check or money order payable to the Division of Motorist Services, marked with your Florida driver record number, sent to Bureau of Motorist Compliance, P.O. Box 5775, Tallahassee, FL 32314-5775. Allow at least 10 business days.

Some clerks can process the reinstatement at the same window where you pay off the court, which saves a separate trip. Ask before you leave.

Fees to Budget For

Clearing a D-6 involves money going to two different places, and the numbers stack up.

Delinquency fee to the clerk: up to $25.¹
D-6 clearance processing fee, per citation, paid to the clerk. The amount varies by county.
The original fine plus any accrued civil late charges.
The FLHSMV reinstatement fee, listed on the state’s fees page.⁵
A license renewal fee if your license expired during the suspension: $48 for a standard Class E, $75 for a CDL, with a $6.25 service fee possible at Tax Collector offices.⁵

Paying the court doesn’t cover the state’s fee, and paying the state doesn’t cover the court. Plan for both.

Don’t Drive Until It’s Cleared

Driving on a suspended Florida license is a criminal offense, and the penalties climb fast:⁶

First offense with knowledge: second-degree misdemeanor, up to 60 days in jail and a $500 fine.
Second offense with knowledge: first-degree misdemeanor, up to one year in jail and a $1,000 fine.
Third offense with knowledge: first-degree misdemeanor with a mandatory minimum of 10 days in jail.
Third offense tied to DUI, fleeing, or a traffic fatality: third-degree felony, up to five years in prison.

If you genuinely didn’t know about the suspension, the charge drops to a moving violation. That defense is hard to win once the FLHSMV has mailed you a suspension order. Check your status online before you drive if there’s any doubt.

If You Need to Drive While You Sort It Out

Florida offers restricted driving privileges in some cases. A “business purposes only” license permits driving to work, on-the-job travel, and educational, church, and medical trips. An “employment purposes only” license is narrower, covering just the commute and required work driving.⁷

You have to show the suspension creates a hardship that prevents you from supporting yourself or your family. The FLHSMV may require proof that you’ve completed an approved driver improvement course and may ask for letters of recommendation.⁷ Not every suspension qualifies, and DUI-related revocations follow separate rules.

If You Hold a CDL

Driving a commercial motor vehicle on a suspended license is a first-degree misdemeanor on the first offense and a third-degree felony on the second under Florida law.⁶ Federal rules add a one-year disqualification from all commercial driving on a first conviction and a lifetime disqualification on a second.⁸ Clear the D-6 before you get back behind the wheel of a commercial vehicle.

If a DUI Was Involved

Most D-6 suspensions have nothing to do with DUI. If yours does, Florida requires you to file an FR-44 certificate proving liability coverage of $100,000 per person and $300,000 per crash for bodily injury, plus $50,000 for property damage.⁹ You have to keep that coverage for three years from the date of reinstatement. If the policy lapses, your insurer notifies the FLHSMV and the license is suspended again.

1
Florida Senate. Florida Code Title XXIII – 322.245 Suspension of License Upon Failure of Person Charged With Offense to Comply With Directives of Court
2
Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Driver License Check
3
Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Traffic Citations or Court Suspensions
4
Manatee County Tax Collector. Florida Traffic Citation Suspension (D6)
5
Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Fees
6
Online Sunshine. Florida Statutes 322.34 – Driving While License Suspended, Revoked, Canceled, or Disqualified
7
Florida Senate. Florida Statutes Chapter 322 Section 271 – Authority of Department to Reinstate
8
eCFR. 49 CFR Part 383 Subpart D – Driver Disqualifications and Penalties
9
Online Sunshine. Florida Statutes 324.023 – Financial Responsibility for Bodily Injury or Death