Guideline G: Alcohol Consumption
Decided hearing cases
2,136
Grant rate
28%
608 granted · 1,528 denied
Specific issues and their outcomes
DUI / DWI (alcohol)
28% granted · 451 granted · 1,132 denied
Binge / intoxication pattern
23% granted · 248 granted · 818 denied
Alcohol incident (unspecified)
32% granted · 311 granted · 675 denied
Alcohol use disorder diagnosed
26% granted · 195 granted · 551 denied
Continued use after treatment
19% granted · 116 granted · 498 denied
Treatment non compliance
21% granted · 110 granted · 419 denied
Mitigations judges credited most
- Documented abstinence period37
- Rehabilitation evidence24
- Substance treatment completed14
- Acknowledgment & remorse8
- Aa / na attendance3
Counted only where the judge expressly credited the mitigation, not merely where it was claimed.
What the reference material says about alcohol cases
- Practitioner sources describe the recognized path as a demonstrated pattern change corroborated by others, with completed treatment plus roughly a year or more of sustained abstinence where a problem was diagnosed. (Practitioner sources)
From our verified reference library: paraphrased from the named sources and reviewed before publication. Descriptive background, not legal advice about any case.
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A contested case follows a published path: a Statement of Reasons, the government's written list of its concerns (an SOR), a written answer, a hearing or a decision on the written record, the judge's decision, and in some cases an appeal.
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For attorneys and firms →Descriptive statistics from decided public DOHA cases. Not legal advice or a prediction. † marks samples under 20 cases.