Section 40-5-61. Surrender and return of license

   (a) The department, upon canceling, suspending, or revoking a license, shall require that such license shall be surrendered to the department and be processed in accordance with the rules and regulations of the department.

(b) Any person whose license has been canceled, suspended, or revoked shall immediately return his license to the department.

(c) It shall be unlawful to refuse to deliver upon a legal demand any driver's license which has been canceled, suspended, or revoked.

(d) Except as provided in Code Section 40-5-62, when the revocation period expires, the department shall reinstate the license to the driver within 30 days.

(e) For the purpose of making any determination under this Code section relating to the return of revoked or suspended licenses to drivers, the period of revocation or suspension shall begin on the date the license is surrendered to the department or a court of competent jurisdiction under any provision of this chapter or on the date that the department processes the citation or conviction, whichever date shall first occur. If the license is lost, or for any other reason surrender to the department is impossible, the period of revocation or suspension may begin on the date set forth in a sworn affidavit setting forth the date and reasons for such impossibility, if the department shall have sufficient evidence to believe that the date set forth in such affidavit is true; in the absence of such evidence, the date of receipt of such affidavit by the department shall be controlling.

Code 1933, § 68B-313, enacted by Ga. L. 1975, p. 1008, § 1; Ga. L. 1976, p. 1668, § 1; Ga. L. 1989, p. 628, § 2; Ga. L. 1990, p. 2048, § 4; Ga. L. 1993, p. 940, § 3; Ga. L. 2000, p. 951, § 5-23; Ga. L. 2004, p. 471, § 4.