To get a criminal record expunged, you check whether your offense and waiting period qualify under your state’s law, file a petition with the court that handled the case, notify the prosecutor, and either wait for a paper ruling or attend a short hearing before a judge. The steps are broadly the same across states; the eligibility rules and the fees are where the variation lives.
Expungement typically deletes the record from public view as though the arrest or conviction never happened. Sealing hides the record but keeps it accessible to certain officials by court order. A pardon forgives the offense but leaves the conviction on your record, so if your goal is a clear background check, expungement or sealing is what you want.
Check Whether You Qualify
Eligibility turns on three questions: what was the offense, how much time has passed, and have you stayed out of trouble since?
Offense Type
Misdemeanors and lower-level felonies are eligible in most states. Violent felonies, sex offenses, and crimes involving minors are commonly excluded. Multiple states bar expungement for any sexual offense, and many exclude serious violent crimes like murder, kidnapping, or aggravated assault.1National Conference of State Legislatures. Record Clearing by Offense Drug offenses sit in the middle: simple possession is widely eligible, trafficking convictions less so.
Waiting Period
Nearly every state requires a waiting period after you complete your sentence. Misdemeanors often require one to three years; felonies may require five to ten years or more. Some states start the clock at sentencing, others at release from incarceration, and others when probation or parole ends. You must remain conviction-free throughout the wait.1National Conference of State Legislatures. Record Clearing by Offense
Sentence Completion
You cannot petition while any part of your sentence is outstanding. That includes probation, parole, community service, fines, court costs, and restitution. If you still owe money or have unsatisfied conditions, most courts will reject the petition. A few states have started relaxing the financial-obligation requirement, but that remains the minority position.
Prior Record
Some states cap how many convictions you can expunge, and certain priors can disqualify you from clearing an unrelated later charge. A prior sex offense conviction, for instance, may bar you from expunging something otherwise eligible. Your full history counts, not just the case you want cleared.
Check Whether Your State Clears Records Automatically
Before you draft a petition, find out whether your state has a Clean Slate law. As of 2025, more than a dozen states and Washington, D.C. have enacted some form of automatic record clearing for qualifying offenses.2National Conference of State Legislatures. Automatic Clearing of Records Once a set waiting period passes and no new convictions appear, the state’s system flags the record and seals it without any petition or fee.
Eligible offenses are typically misdemeanors and lower-level felonies; serious violent crimes, sex offenses, and offenses against children are excluded across the board. Waiting periods for automatic clearing tend to run longer than petition-based waits — commonly three years for misdemeanors and seven to ten years for eligible felonies.2National Conference of State Legislatures. Automatic Clearing of Records Call the clerk’s office or check the state court’s website to confirm what applies to you. If your record doesn’t fit the automatic criteria, you’ll file the petition described below.
Pull Your Record and Gather Documents
Request a copy of your criminal record from the state bureau of investigation, local law enforcement, or the clerk of the court where the case was handled. Some states let you pull it online through the state police or public safety department. The record will list case numbers, arrest dates, charges, and dispositions. You need all of it to fill out the petition accurately.
For every conviction or arrest you want to clear, note the exact charges, the court, the sentence, and the dates you finished each piece of it, including probation or parole end dates and the date fines were paid off. Convictions in multiple courts usually require separate petitions in each.
Collect supporting documents: proof you completed probation or parole, receipts showing fines and restitution paid, and completion certificates for any court-ordered programs. Character reference letters help but aren’t always required. Some states require the petition to be notarized, which typically costs $2 to $25.
Fill Out and File the Petition
Most states publish official petition forms through the state court system’s website, the county clerk, or a self-help center. Some use standardized forms; others leave formatting to individual counties. Fill in every field. Small errors like a wrong case number can cause delays or denial.
Many petitions ask for a personal statement explaining why the court should grant the expungement. Keep it concrete: steady employment, education, community involvement, family responsibilities, and the specific barriers the record creates.
File the completed petition with the court where the case was handled — usually the criminal division of the county or circuit court. In-person filing at the clerk’s office is standard; some courts also accept mail or electronic filing. Filing fees range from nothing to roughly $400, though many states keep them under $150 and some have eliminated fees entirely for certain petitions. If you can’t afford the fee, ask the clerk for a fee waiver application. Courts generally must waive fees for petitioners who meet income thresholds, though the standards vary.
After filing, you usually have to serve copies of the petition on specific parties. At a minimum, the prosecuting attorney’s office that handled the original case must receive a copy. Many states also require notice to the arresting agency and the state police. Some courts handle service for you; others don’t. Ask the clerk what your state requires, because failing to serve the right parties can get your petition dismissed.
What Happens After You File
The prosecutor’s office typically has 30 to 60 days to review the petition and decide whether to object. Common grounds are the seriousness of the underlying offense, public safety concerns, or a belief that you haven’t met the statutory requirements. If no one objects, some states allow the judge to rule on the paperwork alone.
If the prosecutor objects, or if state law requires a hearing regardless, the court schedules one. Expungement hearings are usually brief and informal compared to a trial. You’ll tell the judge why the record should be cleared, drawing on the same themes from your written statement. The prosecutor may argue against expungement, and in some states, victims of the original offense can testify. The judge weighs those factors alongside the statutory criteria and issues a written order.
From filing to a final order, expect three to six months, longer in busy courts. The order doesn’t take effect the moment it’s signed. It has to be transmitted to every agency that holds a copy of the record, including the state police and the FBI. The FBI removes federal arrest data from its criminal file only upon receiving a court order or a request from the submitting agency.3Federal Bureau of Investigation. Identity History Summary Checks FAQs Additional weeks or months can pass before every database reflects the change.
If the petition is denied, the reason usually points to what to do next. Common problems are filing before the waiting period runs, unpaid financial obligations, or an incomplete petition. Curable deficiencies can be fixed and re-filed. A denial on the merits can sometimes be appealed, but that generally requires an attorney and reversal is uncommon. For most people, the practical move after a denial is to wait, keep the record clean, and try again.
Federal Convictions Are a Different Story
If your conviction is federal, expungement is almost never available. Federal law offers essentially one route: under 18 U.S.C. § 3607, a first-time offender convicted of simple drug possession who was under 21 at the time of the offense can apply to have the record expunged after successfully completing probation.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 3607 – Special Probation and Expungement Procedures for Drug Possessors The court must have placed the person on probation without entering a conviction, and the person must have been under 21 when the offense occurred. If those conditions are met, the court is required to grant the order.
For almost every other federal offense, expungement isn’t an option. Some federal courts recognize a narrow inherent authority in exceptional circumstances like clerical errors or unlawful arrests, but most decline to extend it to valid convictions. A presidential pardon is typically the only form of relief left.
What Expungement Doesn’t Cover
An expungement clears the record from most public view, but several places still see it.
Federal security clearances. The Standard Form 86, used for every federal security clearance investigation, requires applicants to disclose criminal history “regardless of whether the record in your case has been sealed, expunged, or otherwise stricken from the court record, or the charge was dismissed.” The only exception covers convictions expunged under 18 U.S.C. § 3607 or 21 U.S.C. § 844.5Office of Personnel Management. Standard Form 86 – Questionnaire for National Security Positions Federal investigators reach sealed court files and fingerprint databases that ordinary background checks don’t. Failing to disclose on the SF-86 is treated more seriously than the underlying offense.
Immigration. State-level expungement generally does not eliminate immigration consequences. Federal immigration agencies may still consider an expunged conviction when evaluating visa applications, naturalization, or removal proceedings. If you are not a U.S. citizen and have any criminal record, talk to an immigration attorney before assuming expungement solves the problem.
Law enforcement and courts. Police and courts typically keep access to sealed records for limited purposes like diversion eligibility, bail decisions, and sentencing on later offenses. The Department of Justice also keeps a nonpublic record of dispositions under § 3607 specifically to prevent anyone from using the first-offender provision twice.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 3607 – Special Probation and Expungement Procedures for Drug Possessors
Commercial background checks. Most state expungement laws bar screening companies from reporting sealed or expunged records to private employers, and courts have read the Fair Credit Reporting Act’s accuracy requirements in 15 U.S.C. § 1681e(b) to reach the same result. Database updates lag in practice, so run a background check on yourself after the order is processed to confirm the record has actually dropped off.
What You Can Say on Applications Afterward
In most states, once a record is expunged you can legally deny the arrest or conviction happened on job applications, rental applications, and similar forms, without perjury exposure. That right is one of expungement’s bigger practical payoffs.
It isn’t absolute. Federal security clearance applications override state expungement law. Many states also carve out exceptions for positions in law enforcement, the practice of law, or direct care of children, the elderly, or people with disabilities. If you’re applying in one of those fields, check whether your state’s expungement law includes an exception before answering “no” to a criminal history question.
Getting Help Without Paying a Lawyer
You do not need an attorney to file. Many people complete the process on their own using court forms and self-help resources. Help is easier to find than most people realize.
Many counties hold expungement clinics where volunteer attorneys screen your record, fill out the paperwork with you, and sometimes file on the spot at no charge. Legal aid organizations in most states offer expungement help to people who meet income guidelines. Law school clinics staffed by students under attorney supervision are another option. Your state bar association’s website is the best starting point for finding these locally.
Hiring a criminal defense attorney who handles expungements regularly makes sense for complex situations: multiple felonies, out-of-state convictions, or a prior denial. Fees typically run from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars depending on complexity and location.