Am I eligible to seal or expunge my record in Florida?

Florida has two court-ordered remedies. Sealing, under section 943.059, makes a record confidential but keeps it available to certain agencies. Expunction, under section 943.0585, has agencies destroy the record, except that FDLE keeps a confidential copy. Both start with a certificate of eligibility from FDLE, and FDLE states that "you are entitled to one court-ordered sealing or expungement in a lifetime." How Mr. Mead helps with this process is on our records expungement page.

How is eligibility decided, step by step?

1. Check the offense. If the record is a conviction for an offense on the list in s. 943.0584, it can never be sealed or expunged; a plea with adjudication withheld counts as a conviction for that list.
2. Check how this case ended. There must be no adjudication of guilt (or adjudication of delinquency) for any act from this arrest (ss. 943.059(1)(c), 943.0585(1)(e)).
3. Check your whole history. You must never have been adjudicated guilty of a criminal offense in Florida, or adjudicated delinquent for a felony or certain listed misdemeanors (ss. 943.059(1)(b), 943.0585(1)(d)).
4. Check supervision. You must no longer be under court supervision for this case (ss. 943.059(1)(d), 943.0585(1)(f)).
5. Check prior relief. You must never have had a court-ordered sealing or expunction before, with one exception for expunging a record already sealed for 10 years (ss. 943.059(1)(e), 943.0585(1)(g)).
6. Apply to FDLE. Only then does FDLE issue a certificate of eligibility, which is needed before the court can act. The process is described in how to seal or expunge a record in Florida, step by step.

Sealing or expunction: which fits my case?

Many dismissed and acquitted cases are sealed without any petition, a separate process explained in whether your Florida record is already sealed automatically. Automatic sealing does not use up the one court-ordered sealing or expunction, and there is no limit on how many times a person may receive it (s. 943.0595(2)(b)).

Records from cases before age 18 have separate rules, including automatic expunction at 21 or 26, explained in whether a juvenile record can be expunged. Once a record is sealed, what changes on job and housing applications is set out in what employers and landlords can see after sealing. A court order does not reach private websites; booking photos have their own removal law, covered in how to get a mugshot taken down.

Which offenses can never be sealed or expunged?

Section 943.0584 lists the offenses that make a record ineligible if the person was convicted, which for this purpose means a finding of guilt after trial or a guilty or no contest plea, "regardless of whether adjudication is withheld." Among them:

• Assault or battery of a family or household member, and any aggravated assault, felony battery, domestic battery by strangulation or aggravated battery (s. 943.0584(2)(f) to (h)). The domestic rules are explained in what a domestic battery conviction carries.
• Stalking or aggravated stalking, kidnapping, false imprisonment, luring a child and human trafficking (s. 943.0584(2)(i) to (l)).
• Burglary of a dwelling, robbery, carjacking, home-invasion robbery and arson (s. 943.0584(2)(p) to (u)). Why "dwelling" matters is covered in whether burglary is always a felony.
• Manufacturing a controlled substance and drug trafficking (s. 943.0584(2)(ff), (gg)).
• Any offense defined in chapter 794 or s. 847.0135, lewd offenses involving a child under 16, and any predicate offense for sex offender or predator registration (s. 943.0584(2)(m), (o), (cc), (hh)).
• Murder, manslaughter, vehicular homicide, child abuse and aggravated child abuse, elderly abuse, terrorism and others listed in the statute.

DUI is not on this list, but a DUI conviction cannot be sealed for a different reason: a court may not withhold adjudication on a DUI (s. 316.656(1)), so any DUI conviction is an adjudication of guilt. See whether a DUI can be sealed or expunged.

Which prior record blocks eligibility?

The bar looks at your whole history in Florida, not only the case you want to clear. You are not eligible if you have ever been adjudicated guilty of any criminal offense in Florida; FDLE's own guidance reads this more broadly, as noted in the questions below. As a juvenile, you are not eligible if you were adjudicated delinquent for any felony, or for one of 13 listed misdemeanors, including assault, battery, carrying a concealed weapon, open carrying, exposure of sexual organs, petit theft and cruelty to animals, unless that juvenile record was expunged under s. 943.0515 (s. 943.059(1)(b)). A withheld adjudication on an earlier case does not by itself block eligibility, which is one reason the form of a plea matters, as explained in what a withhold of adjudication is.

What changes the answer?

• Adjudication versus withhold. One adjudication of guilt anywhere in your Florida history ends eligibility for both remedies (ss. 943.059(1)(b), 943.0585(1)(d)).
• Supervision. Probation must be finished; FDLE asks for documentation showing termination of probation.
• Diversion. A completed pretrial intervention or diversion program usually ends in a dismissal, and FDLE accepts a completion certificate or letter in place of a certified disposition. The programs are compared in pretrial diversion in Palm Beach and Broward.
• Juvenile records. A minor who completes diversion may expunge the arrest under s. 943.0582, and a juvenile record is generally expunged at 21 unless the minor was classified as a serious or habitual offender (s. 943.0515). The juvenile process is in what happens after a juvenile arrest.
• Arrests made by mistake. An arrest made contrary to law or by mistake can be administratively expunged on application supported by the arresting agency or the State Attorney (s. 943.0581).
• Human trafficking victims. A separate expunction applies to offenses committed while the person was a victim of human trafficking (s. 943.0583).
• The court's discretion. Even an eligible person has no right to sealing; the court may deny it (s. 943.059(4)(e)).

A worked example

For example, take a hypothetical 30-year-old whose only record is a 2019 Palm Beach arrest for third-degree grand theft that ended in a plea with adjudication withheld and 18 months of probation, which she finished. Grand theft is not on the s. 943.0584 list, she was never adjudicated guilty, she is off supervision, and she has never sealed anything, so she could apply to FDLE for a certificate of eligibility to seal. She could not seek expunction yet; after the record had been sealed for 10 years, expunction could become available under s. 943.0585(1)(h). If the same case had involved a burglary of a dwelling instead, the withhold would not help: that offense can never be sealed. This illustration is not a prediction for any case.

Common mistakes people make

• Using the one lifetime sealing on a minor case when a more important one is coming.
• Assuming a dismissed case still needs a petition, when it may already be sealed automatically.
• Forgetting an old adjudication of guilt, even for a misdemeanor, which ends eligibility.
• Applying while still on probation.
• Thinking a withhold on a listed offense, such as domestic battery, can be sealed.
• Not getting certified copies of the file before an expunction makes them unavailable.

What to do this week

1. List every arrest you have had in Florida, with the county and approximate date.
2. Get the certified disposition for each case from the clerk of the county where it was filed.
3. Find proof that any probation was terminated.
4. Check each offense against the s. 943.0584 list.
5. Decide with a lawyer whether sealing or expunction is the right use of your one court-ordered remedy.

Frequently asked questions

How many times can I seal or expunge in Florida?

Court-ordered sealing or expunction is available once in a lifetime, with the exception of expunging a record that was previously sealed for 10 years (s. 943.0585(1)(g), (h)). Automatic sealing has no limit (s. 943.0595(2)(b)).

Can I seal a case if adjudication was withheld?

Yes, if the offense is not on the ineligible list and you meet the other conditions; you were not adjudicated guilty in that case (s. 943.059(1)).

Can I expunge a case that ended with a withhold?

Not right away. Expunction of such a record requires that it first have been sealed for at least 10 years (s. 943.0585(1)(h)).

Does an out-of-state conviction count?

The two official sources differ. The statutes bar a person "adjudicated guilty in this state" (ss. 943.059(1)(b), 943.0585(1)(d)), while FDLE's frequently asked questions say an adult adjudication of guilt "in any jurisdiction" makes the record ineligible and that FDLE runs state, national and criminal traffic record checks. Any out-of-state conviction should be reviewed before applying. A sealing or expunction obtained in another state does not, by itself, disqualify a Florida application, according to FDLE.

What does it cost?

FDLE charges a nonrefundable $75 processing fee by money order, cashier's check or personal check, and the clerk charges filing fees; fingerprinting may also cost money. Details are in the step-by-step guide.

Can a judge refuse even if I am eligible?

Yes. The statute says sealing is not a right and may be denied "at the sole discretion of the court" (s. 943.059(4)(e)).

How can Mr. Mead help?

Mr. Mead's practice is devoted entirely to criminal defense, with more than three decades in South Florida courts. Because the court-ordered remedy can be used only once, the first decision is which record to clear and whether sealing or expunction fits it best. The office is in Boca Raton, Spanish and Portuguese are spoken, and you can call 24 hours.

Every case is different, and no result can be promised. If you want to know whether your record qualifies, a confidential call to (561) 362-6677 is a sound first step.

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