Not everyone needs proof of abstinence.
Whether proof is needed, and over what period, depends on the reason for your MPU and on your history. It is usually required in these cases.
Drug incidents
As soon as drugs were involved, proof is almost always part of the order. More about this on the page MPU because of drugs.
High blood alcohol readings
With high readings the authority assumes a developed tolerance. You will find the background under MPU because of alcohol.
Repeat cases
Anyone who has come to attention more than once has to show that their consumption really has changed.
Suspected dependency
Where dependency is a possibility, abstinence is the basis of every further judgement.
The legal basis is §§ 13 and 14 FeV together with the assessment guidelines of the BASt.
Urine screening or hair analysis.
Both procedures are recognised. Which one suits you depends on your timeframe, your daily life and your hair.
Urine screening
- 6 months mean 4 checks, 12 months mean 6 checks.
- You are notified of the appointments without warning.
- Once you are called in you usually have 24 hours to give your sample.
- The sample is given under supervision and the temperature is measured immediately.
- The period counts from registration only.
Hair analysis
- Roughly 1 cm of hair equals one month.
- Alcohol: 3 cm equals 3 months per segment.
- Drugs: up to 6 cm equals 6 months per segment.
- Fewer appointments, but each sample costs more.
- Dyed or bleached hair cannot be used for alcohol analysis. That is the most common reason why someone has to switch to urine.
PEth is a blood marker and a newer form of proof. Not every laboratory offers it.
What the CTU criteria require.
CTU stands for chemical-toxicological examination. Four criteria govern the procedure, sample collection, analysis and documentation. They were fundamentally revised in 2022, so older information online is often out of date.
Accredited laboratory
The laboratory must be accredited to DIN EN ISO/IEC 17025 for forensic toxicology.
Your GP is not enough
Proof from your GP does not count. It lacks accreditation, being called in without warning, supervised sampling and an unbroken chain of custody.
Our recommendation: TÜV or DEKRA
In principle independent laboratories may also provide the proof if they meet the CTU criteria. Even so, we recommend TÜV or DEKRA. There, recognition by the assessment centre is the most reliable, and in the past proof from other providers has been rejected. Proof that is not recognised in the end costs you months and several hundred euros.
This is where most people lose time and money.
Each of these mistakes costs months or several hundred euros. All of them can be avoided if you know about them in advance.
Registered too late
The programme counts from registration. Every month before that is lost, even if you really did live abstinently.
The wrong laboratory
Without accreditation the analysis is worthless. Months and several hundred euros are then wasted.
Missed appointment
If you do not appear within 24 hours, your proof is treated as void. As a rule the programme starts again from the beginning.
Holiday not agreed in advance
You have to report any absence in advance. As a guide: up to 4 weeks in the 6-month programme, up to 8 weeks in the 12-month programme, at most 6 weeks at a stretch.
You are not planning this alone.
The proof itself is always provided by an accredited laboratory, not by us. What we can do: make the decisions easier for you and remind you of the deadlines.
Laboratory recommendation
We recommend an accredited laboratory near you and explain what to watch out for when you register.
Planning the timing
We help you plan the timing so that registration, programme length and MPU date fit together.
Deadlines in view
Your client manager keeps an eye on the deadlines with you and gets in touch before anything gets tight.
Preparation on the content
Alongside the proof you work with your traffic psychologist on the questions the assessment centre will ask. The way in is the free first consultation.
Whether proof is recognised in the end is decided solely by the assessment centre.
What to expect.
The figures below are ranges, not fixed prices. These are external services provided by the laboratories and they vary by scope, laboratory and region.
Questions about proof of abstinence.
The points that come up most often in the first consultation. If your question is still open, just ask us.
Usually 6 or 12 months. Which period applies in your case depends on the reason for your MPU and on your history. What matters is this: the period counts from the day you register with the laboratory, not from the day you stopped.