How long does it take to seal or expunge a record in Florida?

People usually ask this question when something is waiting on the answer: a job offer, a lease, a license application. The honest answer is that only one stage of the process has an official time attached to it, and that stage belongs to FDLE. Everything else depends on how fast the paperwork comes together and how the local court handles its docket. The overall process, and how Mr. Mead handles it, is on our records expungement page.

What follows is the sequence, who acts at each stage, and every time limit the statutes and the agencies actually state. Where no official source states a time, this page says so rather than guessing.

What happens at each step, and who acts?

How long does FDLE take to issue a certificate?

FDLE's seal and expunge page says the processing time to determine eligibility "is typically 10 weeks from the date a completed application packet is received." Its frequently asked questions put the current processing time at "over 10 weeks." Both pages say the same two things about order: applications are handled in the order a full and complete packet arrives, and FDLE does not expedite application packets.

That second point is why the word "completed" matters more than any other in the process. FDLE explains that extensive research is required to determine eligibility. It checks Florida records through the Florida Crime Information Center, national records through the National Crime Information Center, local court databases, and the driving history kept by the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. A packet missing a certified disposition, the proof that probation ended, the fingerprint card or the fee is not a complete packet.

What a complete packet contains is listed in FDLE's instructions: the application signed in front of a notary or deputy clerk, a certified disposition for each charge, documentation of terminated probation if there was probation, a fingerprint card taken by an authorized member of law enforcement or another criminal justice agency, the nonrefundable $75 processing fee by money order, cashier's check or personal check, and, for expunction, the State Attorney's written certified statement. The full list, step by step, is in how to seal or expunge a record, step by step.

If FDLE denies the application, the clock starts over with a corrected or new application. What to do after a denial, including correcting a wrong record, is covered in what you can do if FDLE denies your certificate of eligibility.

How long does the court step take in Palm Beach and Broward?

No official source we checked publishes a number of weeks for the court step. What the local offices do publish is the sequence.

In Palm Beach County, the Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller says petition forms and instructions are available from its Self Service Center for a nominal fee. Once the forms are filed and the fees paid, "the judge reviews the documents filed at a hearing scheduled by the court," and if the judge approves, an order is signed and copies go to the agencies required by s. 943.0585. The Clerk's Criminal Department can be reached at (561) 355-2994. Court locations are described on our Palm Beach County criminal defense page.

In Broward County, the State Attorney's written instructions for applicants (revised August 2023) say that within 12 months of the certificate's issue date the applicant files the petition, a notarized affidavit and a proposed order with the Broward Clerk, and gives the State Attorney's office a copy of each. The clerk processes the papers and forwards them to the judge. Once the judge signs the order, the clerk contacts the applicant, who pays the clerk $42 plus the cost of copies, and the clerk then sends certified copies to the State Attorney, the arresting agency and the other agencies that received the record. The office says it will notarize the affidavit at no cost at any courthouse location, and it offers free help by phone at 954-831-6955. Broward's courthouse is described on our Broward County criminal defense page.

In Martin County, the Clerk says court approval is required, that the packets with the documents and instructions are available in the Criminal Division free of charge, and that a certified disposition costs $1.00 per page plus $2.00 per document for the certification. In Miami-Dade, the Public Defender's office runs a Redemption Hotline at 305.545.1616 to help people find out whether they qualify.

Is there a waiting period after my case ends?

For court-ordered sealing, the statute sets no waiting period measured from the end of the case. The conditions are that the record is not on the ineligible list, you were never adjudicated guilty of a crime in Florida (or adjudicated delinquent for a felony or certain listed misdemeanors), you were not adjudicated guilty in this case, you are no longer under court supervision for it, and you have never had a prior court-ordered sealing or expunction (s. 943.059(1)). The practical wait is probation: until supervision ends, you are not eligible. The other conditions are explained in whether you are eligible to seal or expunge your record.

For expunction, the wait depends on how the case ended. If no charge was filed, or the charges were dismissed before trial, or there was an acquittal, or no plea was entered, the 10-year requirement does not apply (s. 943.0585(1)(h)). If adjudication was withheld, the record must first have been sealed for at least 10 years. The Broward State Attorney's instructions describe it the same way: after 10 years from the date of sealing, you may ask the court to expunge or leave the record sealed.

Many dismissed cases need no wait and no petition at all, because the clerk transmits the disposition and FDLE seals the record when it receives it (s. 943.0595(3)(a)). Records from a filed charge for a forcible felony or certain listed sex offenses are excluded. Whether that has already happened in your case is explained in whether your Florida record is already sealed automatically. FDLE notes that automatic sealing does not seal records at the local level.

What changes the answer?

• An incomplete packet. FDLE processes packets in the order a full and complete application arrives, so a missing document can send an application to the back of the line.
• A record error. If FDLE's record shows a wrong disposition, the error has to be corrected through the reporting agency before a certificate can issue. FDLE's Personal Review is free (s. 943.056; Rule 11C-8.001).
• An expired certificate. A certificate is valid for 12 months; after that you must reapply, and your status and the law at the time of the new application decide eligibility (ss. 943.059(2)(b), 943.0585(2)(b)).
• Juvenile records. FDLE says it expunges a minor's record automatically at 21, or at 26 for someone committed to a juvenile correctional facility, if conditions are met; a person between 18 and 21 may apply for early expunction if not charged with or found to have committed any criminal offense in the preceding 5 years, with the prosecuting attorney's approval (s. 943.0515). The details are in whether a juvenile record can be expunged.
• Special statutes. An arrest made contrary to law or by mistake can be administratively expunged through FDLE without a court petition (s. 943.0581), a route explained in whether an arrest made by mistake can be erased. A case dropped because of lawful self-defense has its own certificate under s. 943.0578.
• More than one arrest. The court may seal or expunge additional arrests in the same order only if they directly relate to the original arrest and the order says so (ss. 943.059(4)(c), 943.0585(4)(c)).

A worked example

For example, take a hypothetical Delray Beach resident whose petit theft case ended two years ago with adjudication withheld and six months of probation, which she finished last spring. She has no other record. She orders the certified disposition and a letter showing her probation was terminated, is fingerprinted at a local agency, signs the application in front of a notary and mails the packet to FDLE with the $75 fee. If her packet is complete, FDLE's main page says eligibility review typically takes 10 weeks, and its FAQ currently says over 10 weeks. With the certificate in hand, she files her petition and sworn statement with the Palm Beach Clerk, and the judge reviews it at a hearing the court schedules. She has 12 months from the certificate date to file. If the order is granted, she would have to wait until the record had been sealed for 10 years before asking to expunge it. This is a hypothetical walk-through of the published steps, not a client's case or a prediction.

Common mistakes that slow things down

• Mailing a packet without the certified disposition or the proof that probation ended.
• Forgetting to sign the application in front of a notary or deputy clerk.
• Applying for expunction of a withheld case before it has been sealed for 10 years.
• Letting the 12-month certificate run out before the petition is filed.
• Not ordering certified copies of the court file before an expunction, after which the Palm Beach Clerk says it cannot provide case information or copies.
• Expecting the order to clear private websites; FDLE says an order cannot remove mugshots and arrest information on privately operated sites.

What to do this week

1. Confirm that every case you want to clear is closed and that any probation has ended.
2. Check whether a dismissed case may already be sealed automatically.
3. Order the certified disposition from the clerk in the county where the case was filed.
4. For expunction, ask the State Attorney's office for its written certified statement.
5. Get fingerprinted and have the application notarized.
6. Mail one complete packet to FDLE, keep copies of everything, and calendar 12 months from the date on any certificate you receive.

Frequently asked questions

Can FDLE speed up my application?

No. FDLE states that it does not expedite application packets and researches them in the order received.

How do I check the status of my application?

FDLE directs status questions to [email protected] and asks that you include a copy of a government-issued photo ID.

When does my record actually count as sealed or expunged?

FDLE says the certificate itself seals nothing. The order is complied with once a court has issued it and FDLE has received a certified copy, and FDLE then sends a notification letter to the arresting agency and the criminal justice agencies involved in the case.

How long is the certificate of eligibility good for?

Twelve months after the date stamped on it. After that you must reapply to FDLE, and the law in effect at that time applies (ss. 943.059(2)(b), 943.0585(2)(b)).

When will the case leave the clerk's website?

That depends on the order and the clerk's handling of the court file, a separate question covered in whether sealing removes a case from the clerk's website.

When can I start telling employers the arrest did not happen?

Only after the order is entered, and only outside the situations the statute lists, such as jobs with criminal justice agencies or applications to The Florida Bar (ss. 943.059(6), 943.0585(6)). Those exceptions are explained in what employers and landlords can see after sealing.

How can Mr. Mead help?

Mr. Mead has more than three decades of criminal defense experience in South Florida and handles record-clearing petitions in Palm Beach, Broward, Miami-Dade and Martin counties. Most delay in this process comes from incomplete paperwork and missed dates, so his review starts with the full record, the certified dispositions and the probation paperwork before anything goes to FDLE. No timeline or result can be promised, and every record is different. The consultation is free, and you can call (561) 362-6677 24 hours a day.

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