Texas›Ticket dismissal›Who qualifies
Can you take defensive driving for your Texas ticket? Most drivers can.
If you hold a Texas license, have insurance, haven't used a dismissal course in the last 12 months, and your ticket is an ordinary moving violation, the court has to let you take the course. That's the law, not the judge's mood.
The people who get denied usually trip on one detail: the speed on the ticket, a CDL, a course from last year, or asking too late. Four questions (five for a speeding ticket) tell you which, if any, applies to you.
By Road Ready Safety, TDLR provider CP1234 · Checked against Tex. Code Crim. Proc. arts. 45A.351–.353 · Updated October 6, 2026
Who qualifies, and who doesn't?
Four conditions you have to meet (Code Crim. Proc. art. 45A.352), and a short list of tickets the law excludes outright (art. 45A.353).
You need all four
- A valid Texas driver license or permit. Active-duty military and their spouses and dependent children can use any state’s license.
- Proof of insurance. Your current card listing you as a driver.
- No dismissal course in the 12 months before this ticket. Counted from the day you finished that course to the day of this offense.
- A request to the court by your appearance date. In person, by certified mail, or by the court’s email or portal. The course comes after the court says yes.
The course is ruled out for
- Speeding 25+ over, or 95 mph and up. Options at 25+ over
- A work zone with workers present. Construction zone guide
- Passing a stopped school bus, or leaving the scene. Deferred disposition instead
- Holding a CDL, now or when you got the ticket. What works for CDL drivers
Also excluded: serious traffic violations as defined for commercial vehicles. Course ruled out? Deferred disposition usually isn't.
What if you're under 25, from out of state, or on a CDL?
The three situations where the general rules bend, one way or the other.
Does your ticket qualify? Four questions, five for speeding.
Answer them and you'll get your route: the course, deferred disposition, or something else. If you're eligible, we'll also show your court's own instructions for asking.
What type of violation do you need dismissed?
Select the option that best describes your ticket.
Step 1 of 4
A general estimate based on the statute's conditions, for information only. Your court applies them to your citation; confirm with the clerk before you enroll.
Eligible isn't the same as approved. What's the difference?
Eligible means the law lets the court grant the course. Approved means the court said yes to you, in writing, with a deadline. The order below is the whole game.
- 1Ask the courtBy the appearance date on your citation. Plea of no contest plus a request for a driving safety course.Before anything else
- 2Wait for the orderThe court checks the four conditions and sends back approval with your deadline, usually 90 days.Don’t start the course yet
- 3Take the course6 hours, online. $28 with us, certificate the moment you finish.Within 90 days
- 4Submit and it’s dismissedCertificate plus a $12 Type 3A record if the court asks. By law the charge can’t be on your record.Before day 90
Choose Your Course
Read it or listen to it. Same certificate.
Texas Defensive Driving Course
Great Value$28.00
- Official 6-hour course to dismiss a ticket or get an insurance discount
- Accepted by every Texas court
- Free instant digital certificate
- Phone, tablet or computer: start, stop and resume anytime
- No final exam, unlimited quiz attempts
- Real customer support
Texas Defensive Driving Course + Audio
Hands-Free$32.99
- Official 6-hour course to dismiss a ticket or get an insurance discount
- Accepted by every Texas court
- Free instant digital certificate
- Phone, tablet or computer: start, stop and resume anytime
- No final exam, unlimited quiz attempts
- Real customer support
- Narrated audio for every lesson
- Autoplay keeps it going hands-free
- Pauses only when it’s time for a quiz
Quick answers
Who can take defensive driving to dismiss a ticket in Texas?
Anyone with a valid Texas driver license or permit (active-duty military and their families can use any state’s), proof of insurance, no dismissal course in the 12 months before the offense, and an eligible moving violation, who asks the court by the appearance date on the ticket.
Which tickets are excluded?
Speeding 25 mph or more over the limit or 95 mph and up, a work zone with workers present, passing a stopped school bus, leaving the scene of a crash, serious traffic violations as defined for commercial vehicles, and any ticket held by a CDL holder.
I took a course last year. Can I take it again?
Only if the course you finished was more than 12 months before the date of this new offense. The clock runs from completion date to offense date, not from ticket to ticket. A judge can still allow a course inside the 12 months before the case is finally resolved, so ask. How the 12-month rule counts
Does eligible mean I’m approved?
No. Eligible means the law lets the court grant the course. The court still has to say yes, and you have to ask by the appearance date. Take the course before approval and the certificate usually won’t count. How to ask
What if I don’t qualify?
Deferred disposition is usually open: up to 180 days of court probation, then dismissal. It has no speed cutoff and no Texas-license rule. The exceptions are CDL holders and work-zone tickets with workers present. How deferred disposition works
Where to go from here
General information, not legal advice. Eligibility is set by statute; whether and how to grant the course is applied by the court on your citation, so confirm with the clerk. Road Ready Safety is a TDLR-licensed course provider (CP1234), not a court. Sources: Tex. Code Crim. Proc. arts. 45A.351, 45A.352, 45A.353; 49 CFR 384.226. Last updated October 6, 2026.