Dallas County · TDLR CP018
Defensive driving for a Dallas ticket. Six hours, online, TDLR-approved.
Cited in Dallas? Our course is approved by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation for use anywhere in Texas. What changes from city to city is the court, so this page is about City of Dallas Municipal Court and what it asks for.
What City of Dallas Municipal Court asks for
Verified against the court's own page on . Courts change their procedures, so confirm anything below with the clerk before you rely on it.
| Deadline to ask | Within 21 days of the citation. Dallas states that once you are past 21 days the amount may be higher, or the course option may no longer be available at all. |
|---|---|
| Time to complete | On or before the 90th day after the court APPROVES the request, not 90 days from the citation. Dallas says twice on the same page that no extension is allowed. |
| Court costs | $144.00 for an offense outside a school zone and $169.00 for one inside a school zone, payable when you make the request. Dallas notes the amounts are set by state law and can change. |
| Phone | 214-670-0109 |
What to submit
- A valid Texas driver license or permit. Proof of active military duty status also qualifies, as does being the spouse or dependent child of someone on active duty. Dallas does not accept another state's license
- Proof of financial responsibility, meaning car insurance valid on the day of the request that names you as a driver. A commercial policy is not accepted unless you are named on it
- Payment of the state and administrative fees at the time of the request
- For the dismissal itself: the signed court copy of the completion certificate, your Type 3A driving record, and a NOTARIZED affidavit
Does Dallas want your driving record?
Yes, and this court spells it out. City of Dallas Municipal Court lists the driving record in its own published requirements, above. That matches Tex. Code Crim. Proc. art. 45A.356(a), which has you present both (a)(1) your certificate of completion and (a)(2) your Department of Public Safety driving record. The statute qualifies the record with "if any", and a judge may instead proceed under art. 45A.359, in which case the court will not ask you for one. Your court clerk is the authority on your own case.
What this court will not allow
- An approved driving safety course or motorcycle operator course completed in the 12 months before the offense. Dallas makes you swear to this in an affidavit
- Speeding 25 mph or more over the limit
- Driving 95 mph or more
- An offense in a construction or maintenance zone with workers present
- Passing a school bus loading or unloading children
- Leaving the scene of a collision after damaging a vehicle that was driven or attended
- Serious traffic violations
- Holding a commercial driver license at the time of the offense or at the time of the request, even when you were driving your own car
Worth knowing about Dallas specifically
Dallas will not accept the request by fax, email or live chat, only post or in person.
The postmark counts as the received date, so posting on day 21 still works. Certified post is recommended but not required.
Unlike Fort Worth, Dallas wants the fees paid at the time of the request.
THE ONE THAT COSTS PEOPLE THE DISMISSAL: submitting the form is a REQUEST ONLY. Dallas replies by mail in 5 to 7 business days and states you are NOT able to take the class until you are approved. It also says it can revoke or deny the option if you completed the course, or bought your driving record, before approval. Wait for the letter, then enroll.
Dallas names two course providers that are NOT approved: the National Safety Council and AARP.
The affidavit has to be notarized, which is a separate errand people discover late.
The website may still show a balance after the option is approved. That clears once the court reviews your paperwork and is not a sign anything is wrong.
Source: City of Dallas Municipal Court.
If your citation was written outside the Dallas city limits, it will be heard by a Dallas County justice of the peace rather than the municipal court. See Dallas County's justice courts. The procedure is the same statute either way.
You need two documents, not one
The court asks for your certificate of completion and a certified Type 3A driving record. We can send you both, in one order.
Tex. Code Crim. Proc. art. 45A.356(a) names them together: (a)(1) your uniform certificate of completion, and (a)(2) a copy of your driving record showing you have not completed a driving safety course for dismissal in the previous 12 months. They are consecutive items in the same subsection.
- Document 1 Certificate of completion Issued the moment you finish the six-hour course, with nothing extra to pay for it. Comes with the course
- Document 2 Certified Type 3A driving record We place the order with DPS for you after checkout, and Type 3A is the only record type DPS allows for a driving safety course. Added to your order
Buy the course on its own and the clerk can still send you back for the record. Ordering both now means there is no second order to place later.
The statute qualifies the record with "if any", and a judge may instead proceed under art. 45A.359, in which case the court will not ask you for one. Your court clerk is the authority on your own case.
Course + Type 3A driving record
Both documents in one order for your Dallas citation: the six-hour approved course and the certified DPS record you have to file with it.
Course only
The approved six-hour course on its own, only if you already hold your Type 3A record.
Driving record only
The certified Type 3A record, ordered from DPS on your behalf.
How it works, wherever you were cited
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Ask the court first
Enter a plea of no contest or guilty by the date on your citation and request a driving safety course. Taking the course before the court grants it does not qualify you.
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Complete the six hours
Online, at your own pace, on any device. Six hours is the TDLR minimum, so no approved provider can offer shorter.
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Order your Type 3A record
The certified DPS record is the second document the court needs. It is the only record type DPS permits for a driving safety course.
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File both with the court in time
For Dallas: On or before the 90th day after the court APPROVES the request, not 90 days from the citation. Dallas says twice on the same page that no extension is allowed.
Dismissal is the court's decision, not ours. We are accountable for a TDLR-approved course and a valid certificate on time. Source: Tex. Code Crim. Proc. art. 45A.352.