Texas DWI programs · DWI Education
Texas DWI Education Program (12 Hours)
The DWI Education Program is Texas's standard first-offense course: 12 hours, delivered by a TDLR-licensed provider, online or in person. The part that trips people up is not the class — it is the 180-day deadline attached to community supervision, and the license suspension that follows if you miss it.
Quick answer: hours, deadline, and online
12 hours, generally within 180 days, and online is allowed if the provider is TDLR-licensed. Texas permanently authorized instructor-led online delivery in 2021, but your court or probation officer still has to accept it for your case. Miss the deadline without an extension and the court notifies DPS, which suspends your license until you finish.
Which Texas program applies to you
Texas has four court-ordered drug and alcohol education programs. You do not pick between them — your order names one. This is the neutral comparison:
| Program | Hours | Who it is for |
|---|---|---|
| DWI Education Program (DWIE) | 12 hours | First-offense DWI, usually as a condition of community supervision |
| DWI Intervention Program (DWII) | Minimum 30 hours | Offenders with multiple DWIs, or others whose first-offender program did not address their alcohol or drug problems |
| Drug Offender Education Program (DOEP) | 15 hours | People with a current or prior drug conviction |
| Alcohol Education for Minors | 6 hours | Minors convicted of alcohol offenses (MIP) |
If your paperwork says "DWI Education" or "DWIE," this page is the right one. If it says "DWI Intervention" or "DWII," see our Texas DWI Intervention Program guide instead. When the order is ambiguous, ask your probation officer or attorney rather than guessing — enrolling in the wrong program means paying twice.
The 180-day deadline
This is the detail worth putting in your calendar. For a first-offense DWI defendant placed on community supervision, Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Art. 42A.403 generally requires the program to be completed within 180 days unless the court grants an extension. Miss it without an extension and the court notifies the Department of Public Safety, which suspends the driver license until the program is finished. Deadlines can differ by case and by court, so confirm yours rather than assuming the general rule applies to your order.
What the 12 hours cover
TDLR describes the DWI Education Program as designed to educate offenders about alcohol and drugs and their relation to driving skills, help them identify their own drinking or drug use and driving patterns, and build plans to reduce the chance of a repeat. Course topics include alcohol and drug traffic safety problems, Texas DWI law, the effects of alcohol and drugs on the body, driving task abilities, chemical dependency and its symptoms, sources of assistance, the costs of a DWI, and decision-making.
Online is allowed — but the licence is what matters. Texas permanently authorized instructor-led online delivery of court-ordered DWI education in 2021 (Government Code § 171.0055), and a TDLR-licensed provider can hold an online endorsement, an in-person endorsement, or both. That is not a green light for any website selling a "Texas DWI class." Check the provider against the TDLR course search first, then confirm with your court or probation officer that online completion is acceptable in your case.
Check a provider is TDLR-licensed
A certificate only counts if it comes from a currently licensed provider. TDLR publishes a searchable list of approved course providers, filterable by program type and delivery format:
Source & accuracy: program hours and course content are from TDLR's official "Court-Ordered Programs At a Glance" summary and its Court-Ordered Education pages; the 180-day completion requirement is Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Art. 42A.403; online delivery authority is Government Code § 171.0055 (effective September 1, 2021). Rules, provider licences and deadlines change — check the current official pages and confirm the exact program, format and deadline with the court or probation department handling your case before enrolling or paying. We are an independent directory: we do not run classes, we cannot enroll you, and none of these links are affiliate links. This is general information, not legal advice. Sources: tdlr.texas.gov/court-ordered, TDLR drug & alcohol programs, TDLR Court-Ordered Programs At a Glance (PDF), Tex. Code Crim. Proc. ch. 42A.