Virginia High BAC DUI: What 0.15 and 0.20 Mean

Source review: September 22, 2026. Virginia Code § 18.2-270 addresses additional mandatory minimum confinement when a qualifying alcohol result falls within one of two elevated-result bands. The exact result, test path, underlying DUI conviction, prior-offense history, and other record details all matter.

This statewide guide explains the two statutory bands, why the boundary at exactly 0.20 matters, how the rules differ for a conviction governed by subsection A and for a second offense within 10 years, and which records help identify the issue. It does not decide whether a result is accurate or admissible, whether a prior conviction qualifies, whether a charge can be proved, or what sentence will be imposed in an individual case.

What “High BAC” Means in This Guide

“High BAC” is a convenient description, not the name of a separate offense in Virginia Code § 18.2-270. The statute is a penalty provision tied to an underlying conviction under § 18.2-266. It uses exact alcohol-level bands and describes additional mandatory minimum periods of confinement when its conditions are satisfied.

A reported number should not be rounded into or out of a statutory band. The statute refers to a blood alcohol level indicated by a chemical test administered as provided in the DUI-testing article or by another scientifically reliable chemical test performed on whole blood under circumstances reliably establishing the source person’s identity and the result’s accuracy. Whether a particular result satisfies that language requires review of the actual record.

The Two Elevated-Result Bands in § 18.2-270

At least 0.15, but not more than 0.20

For a conviction governed by subsection A, a qualifying result of at least 0.15 but not more than 0.20 carries an additional mandatory minimum period of confinement of five days. For a second offense within 10 years of a prior offense, subsection B(3) provides an additional mandatory minimum period of confinement of 10 days.

More than 0.20

For a conviction governed by subsection A, a qualifying result of more than 0.20 carries an additional mandatory minimum period of confinement of 10 days. For a second offense within 10 years of a prior offense, subsection B(3) provides an additional mandatory minimum period of confinement of 20 days.

Subsection B(3) also states that a person convicted of a second offense within 10 years with a qualifying elevated result shall receive an additional mandatory minimum fine of $500. The baseline punishment for the underlying conviction and other possible consequences are separate questions. The Phoenix guides to a first DUI offense in Virginia, a second DUI offense, and felony DUI allegations address those distinct stages.

Why Exactly 0.20 Is an Important Boundary

The first band includes a qualifying level that is exactly 0.20 because it extends through “not more than 0.20.” The higher band begins only when the qualifying level is more than 0.20. A shorthand statement that the higher period begins “at 0.20” would not preserve the statutory boundary.

The additional periods are not descriptions of the total possible sentence. Section 18.2-270(F) states that mandatory minimum punishments imposed under the section are cumulative and that mandatory minimum terms of confinement are served consecutively, subject to the applicable statutory maximum. The complete sentencing analysis depends on the offense stage, qualifying history, other statutory provisions, and the judgment entered in the actual case.

The Underlying Charge and the Elevated-Result Issue Are Different Questions

Section 18.2-266 describes several ways the Commonwealth may prosecute a DUI charge. Section 18.2-270 supplies penalty rules after a conviction. An alleged elevated result does not by itself resolve operation, identity, the applicable clause, the validity or admissibility of a test, the effect of other evidence, or every element of the underlying charge.

Prior-offense treatment also requires the actual records. Section 18.2-270 contains rules addressing the timing and types of convictions that may count, including certain Virginia ordinances and substantially similar laws from another state or the United States. A label in a database or a person’s memory of an earlier case is not a substitute for reviewing the charging document, conviction order, date, jurisdiction, and applicable law.

A Roadside Preliminary Breath Reading Is Not the Same Test Event

Virginia Code § 18.2-267 governs a preliminary roadside breath analysis. Subsection E states that the result is not admitted into evidence in a prosecution for the listed offense and explains that the test’s purpose is preliminary analysis. Section 18.2-268.2 separately addresses post-arrest testing under Virginia’s implied-consent framework.

Those test events should not be treated as interchangeable. The exact source of every reported number should be identified before applying § 18.2-270. The separate Phoenix guide to Virginia breath testing and refusal issues addresses that procedure in greater depth. Blood collection, transmission, retained-sample, and retesting issues require their own record-specific analysis.

Records That Help Define the Issue

A useful review begins by identifying the source and procedural role of the number rather than assuming every document reports the same thing. Preserve complete, unedited copies of:

• the warrant, summons, indictment, or other charging document, including the exact statute and every prior-offense allegation;
• the breath-test printout, certificate, blood certificate, and any document identifying when and how the sample was collected or analyzed;
• documents identifying whether a number came from a roadside preliminary test, a post-arrest breath test, a blood analysis, or another source;
• every prior charging document and final order that may bear on the alleged offense history;
• the incident report, body-camera or other available video, timestamps, and notices relating to the test; and
• bond papers, court notices, license documents, and every approaching deadline.

Do not alter an original file or rely only on a cropped screenshot when a complete record is available. Do not upload test records, medical information, or confidential case details through an unapproved form or automated assistant.

The Test Result Is Not the Entire Evidentiary Record

Virginia Code § 18.2-268.10 states that admission of a blood or breath result does not limit other relevant evidence and that the court considers other relevant admissible evidence concerning the accused’s condition. That rule does not create a particular defense or predict an outcome. It means a reported number should be reviewed within the full charging and evidentiary record.

This guide does not make claims about a device model, instrument transition, testing accuracy, measurement uncertainty, absorption or elimination, retrograde extrapolation, mouth alcohol, medical conditions, or physiological effects. Those subjects may require current instrument records, governing legal authority, and qualified scientific review. No general webpage can determine their relevance to an individual matter.

Related DUI Issues Have Separate Owners

This page is limited to the two elevated-result bands and the records needed to identify that issue. It does not replace the broader Hampton Roads DUI guide, the stage-specific first-, second-, or felony-DUI pages, the breath-and-refusal guide, or the separate guide to Virginia DUI license suspension, VASAP, restricted driving, and ignition interlock.

Field-sobriety testing, drug or prescription allegations, underage DUI, traffic-stop and body-camera issues, blood-sample provenance, crash or injury charges, and civil claims involving an impaired driver also require separate analysis. They are not folded into the phrase “high BAC.”

Use Current Sources and Advice Tied to the Actual Record

Virginia statutes can change, and the precise charge, test source, prior history, evidence, and court record may change the analysis. Review the current official sources and obtain advice tied to the actual documents and alleged facts.

This page provides general legal information, not legal advice for a particular matter. It does not create an attorney-client relationship or promise a result, fee, response time, availability, or acceptance of representation.