Quick answer: An expired Maryland license and no license at all are two different charges, and the gap between them is large. An expired license is prohibited by Transp. § 16-115(g): a payable $70 preset fine, zero points, no jail. Driving with no license at all falls under § 16-101 — must appear, five points, up to 60 days in jail. And the MVA will still renew an expired license without a driving test for a full year after it lapsed, so most Catonsville drivers can reach court with the problem already fixed.
I’m David Waranch, and I’ve handled thousands of Maryland traffic cases — including a steady run of Baltimore County drivers who had no idea their license had lapsed until an officer told them.
Expired and Never Licensed Are Two Different Charges
Most pages on this charge say Maryland handles it all under § 16-101. That is half right, and the half it gets wrong is the half with jail in it.
Section 16-101 is the never-licensed statute: no license issued under Title 16, no express exemption, no other authorization. Expired licenses get their own sentence, tucked at the end of the renewal statute:
“An individual may not drive a motor vehicle on any highway in this State if the license issued to him under this title has expired.” — Md. Code, Transp. § 16-115(g)
Section 16-115 has no penalty clause of its own, which sends it to the general rule in § 27-101: a misdemeanor fine not exceeding $500, no jail. In practice you will almost never see $500, because the District Court’s preset fine schedule prices § 16-115(g) at a payable $70. Which subsection the officer wrote on your citation is worth several hundred dollars, a court appearance and your driving record.
| Charge | Preset fine | Maximum jail | Maximum fine | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Expired Maryland license — Transp. § 16-115(g) | $70, payable | None | $500 (via § 27-101(b)) | 0 |
| Attempting to drive on an expired license — § 16-115(h) | $70, payable | None | $500 (via § 27-101(b)) | 0 |
| No license at all — § 16-101, first offense | Must appear | 60 days | $500 | 5 — § 16-402(a)(18) |
| No license at all — § 16-101, second or subsequent | Must appear | 1 year | $500 | 5 — § 16-402(a)(18) |
| Driving while suspended — § 16-303(c) | — | 1 year | $1,000 | 12 — § 16-402(a)(37) |
Preset fines and points from the District Court of Maryland preset fine schedule, DC-CR-090 (Rev. 10/2025). Maximums are the statutory ceilings on conviction at trial.
If your citation says suspended rather than expired, you are in a heavier statute — see driving while suspended in Maryland and the Catonsville page.
How a Catonsville License Expires Without You Noticing
Maryland licenses run long, which is why people lose track of them. Under § 16-115(a)(1), a license issued to a driver at least 21 expires on the licensee’s birth date at the end of a period of up to eight years — long enough to move twice and forget the cycle. Drivers under 21 get the opposite problem: § 16-115(a)(2) expires their license no later than 60 days after their 21st birthday.
The notice you never got is two statutes read together. Section 16-115(b) requires the MVA to mail renewal notice at least 60 days before expiration — but only to the last address in its own records. And § 16-116(a) puts the duty to keep that address current on you: written notice within 30 days of moving. Move from Arbutus to Halethorpe without filing it and the letter goes to a house you left.
The other common lapse is a long absence. Section 16-115(d) keeps a license in full force during active service in the uniformed services, plus 30 days after you return; § 16-115(e) does the same for Foreign Service families; § 16-115(l) lets the MVA extend an expiration date by up to two years for students and residents living outside the state for six months or more. If that is you, the license may not have been expired at all on the date of the stop — a defense, not a mitigation.
Paying the $70 is a guilty plea. Payable does not mean harmless — pay the preset fine and you have convicted yourself, put it on your driving record, and given up any chance at a probation before judgment. Renewing the license does not cancel the charge either; Maryland has no fix-it-ticket statute for licensing offenses. If a conviction would matter to an employer, an insurer or a CDL, fix the license and go to court.
Renewing After It Has Already Expired
One number decides how much work this takes: one year. Section 16-115(c) says the MVA may renew a license within one year after the expiration date without requiring a driving test — inside that window it is a fee, a vision check and a short visit. Past it, the statute no longer authorizes the no-test renewal, so plan on retesting and give yourself weeks, not days.
One trap before you make the trip: § 16-115(k)(1) bars the MVA from renewing for anyone who has not paid all undisputed taxes or unemployment insurance contributions. If your record shows other holds — an unpaid fine, an insurance lapse, an old failure to appear — the MVA hearing side needs attention too.
Does Fixing It Before Court Change the Outcome?
Honestly: it changes what the court can do, not what it must. No Maryland statute entitles you to a dismissal for fixing the problem. What a renewed license does is give the judge somewhere better to land than a conviction.
The mechanism is Md. Code, Crim. Proc. § 6-220. On a guilty finding or plea, the court may stay entry of judgment and place you on probation before judgment if it finds that serves the best interests of the defendant and the public welfare, and you consent in writing. That is not a conviction. A valid license in your hand is direct evidence on the public-welfare prong: the conduct the statute targets has already stopped. The State separately keeps discretion to drop or amend a charge.
It does not work every time — prior record matters, and no one can promise a result. But of the things inside your control before your court date, renewing is the highest-value one. Bring the new license and a current MVA driving record.
Your Case at the District Court in Catonsville
Catonsville citations are heard in the District Court of Maryland for Baltimore County at its Catonsville location — stops on Frederick Road, Rolling Road, Route 40 and the Beltway through Woodlawn and Arbutus all land there. Whether you stand in front of a judge at all depends on the subsection: § 16-115(g) is payable and can be resolved without a trial date, while § 16-101 is marked must appear. Your citation controls, so read it.
The points gap is just as wide. Section 16-402(a)(18) assigns five points to “driving while not licensed,” and five is the threshold at which § 16-404(a)(2) requires the MVA to call you in for a driver improvement program. An expired license carries none — § 16-402 never lists § 16-115, and the schedule prints its point value as zero.
We pull your MVA record, work out whether the license was actually expired on the date of the stop, get the renewal moving, and appear with you in Catonsville. See also our Maryland driving without a license, Baltimore County, Maryland traffic lawyer and Baltimore County traffic pages.
Related Catonsville Traffic Charges
- Driving While Suspended
- Driving While Revoked
- Driving Without Insurance
- Reckless Driving
- Bench Warrants
Unlicensed Driving Defense Elsewhere in Maryland
- Baltimore City
- Annapolis
- Towson
- Essex
- Ellicott City
- Glen Burnie
- Silver Spring
- Hyattsville
- Upper Marlboro
- Frederick
We serve Catonsville, Arbutus, Woodlawn, Halethorpe, Westview, Oella and Relay. More about the firm.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. An expired Maryland license is prohibited by Transportation § 16-115(g), and the District Court preset fine schedule sets it at $70, payable, with zero points. Section 16-115 has no penalty clause of its own, so § 27-101(b) caps the fine at $500 on conviction, with no jail. Driving with no license at all is charged under § 16-101, which is a must-appear charge carrying five points and up to 60 days in jail plus a $500 fine on a first offense.
Usually yes. Section 16-115(c) allows the MVA to renew a license within one year after the expiration date without requiring a driving test. Once you are past that one-year window the statute no longer authorizes the no-test renewal, so expect to retest and allow extra time before your court date.
Not automatically. Maryland has no statute that dismisses a licensing charge once you correct the problem, and simply paying the $70 preset fine is a guilty plea that puts a conviction on your driving record. A renewed license is strong mitigation and often supports a probation before judgment under Criminal Procedure § 6-220 or a decision by the State to drop the charge, but the disposition stays with the court.
Law Offices of David R. Waranch — 301-563-9575 · toll-free 1-877-566-2408. Hablamos Español.
Last updated: August 2026. Statutory references: Md. Code, Transp. §§ 16-101, 16-115, 16-116, 16-303, 16-402, 16-404, 27-101; Md. Code, Crim. Proc. § 6-220. Preset fines and points from the District Court of Maryland preset fine schedule DC-CR-090 (Rev. 10/2025). This page is general information about Maryland law, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.