A criminal record follows you even when the case did not end in a conviction. A dismissed charge, a dropped case, or a plea where the judge withheld adjudication can still surface on a background check and cost you a job, an apartment, a loan, a professional license, or a spot in a program. Florida law gives many folks a way to close that chapter, by sealing or expunging the record, and my office handles that process from the first eligibility check through the final court order.
This is work my office has built into a focused, streamlined service, so you are not trying to navigate the Florida Department of Law Enforcement paperwork and the court filing on your own. Below is how sealing and expunging work in Florida, who qualifies, which cases the law shuts the door on, and what the newer automatic sealing does and does not do.
Florida treats the two differently: sealing keeps the record confidential under section 943.059, expunging destroys it under section 943.0585. Which one fits usually comes down to how the case ended, and eligibility is strict, so the first step is a careful review.
Sealing Versus Expunging: What Is the Difference
People use the two words as if they mean the same thing, and Florida law treats them differently. Section 943.045 defines sealing as keeping a record secure and inaccessible to anyone without a legal right to it, while section 943.045(16) defines expunction as the court-ordered physical destruction of the record. Which one fits your case usually comes down to how the case ended.
| Sealing (s. 943.059) | Expunging (s. 943.0585) | |
|---|---|---|
| What happens to the record | The record is preserved but made confidential and exempt from public disclosure | The record is physically destroyed, with one confidential copy kept by FDLE |
| Who can still see it | Only the agencies listed in section 943.059(4)(a) | Released only by court order |
| Usual disposition | Adjudication was withheld | No charge filed, or charges dropped or dismissed, or an acquittal |
| Later step | A sealed record may be expunged after ten years |
I started out as an Assistant Public Defender in Florida’s Thirteenth Judicial Circuit, in Tampa, and I have worked the criminal side of these cases from every angle. My office has made record sealing and expungement a focused part of what we do, so we run the whole thing for you: the eligibility review, the FDLE certificate, the petition, and the court order. If your case qualifies, we will get it sealed or expunged. If it does not, I will tell you that straight and walk you through the options you do have. Learn more about my background.
Who Qualifies
The court-ordered process is built around a short set of requirements, and missing any one of them ends the application. To be eligible you must meet each of the following.
| Requirement | What it means |
|---|---|
| One in a lifetime | You have never had a Florida record sealed or expunged through the court-ordered process before |
| No prior conviction | You have never been adjudicated guilty, as an adult, of any criminal offense, and have no disqualifying juvenile adjudication under section 943.051(3)(b) |
| Favorable disposition | The case ended in a withhold of adjudication, which can be sealed, or in no charge, a dismissal, or an acquittal, which can be expunged |
| No open supervision or charges | You are not on any form of supervision for this arrest and have no related charges pending |
| An eligible offense | The charge is not one of the offenses the Legislature placed off limits in section 943.0584 |
Offenses That Cannot Be Sealed or Expunged
Section 943.0584 lists the charges that can never be sealed or expunged, even when adjudication was withheld and even after a record has been sealed for ten years. The barred categories include sexual offenses and any offense that requires sex-offender registration, violent felonies such as aggravated assault and aggravated battery, robbery and carjacking, murder and manslaughter, domestic violence assault or battery, child abuse, drug trafficking and manufacturing under section 893.135, stalking, exploitation of an elderly or disabled person, and a range of other serious offenses the statute names. The court also keeps the discretion to deny a petition even when every requirement is met, so eligibility opens the door but does not guarantee the result.
DUI sits in its own category. Florida law does not let a judge withhold adjudication on a DUI, so a DUI conviction is not eligible to be sealed or expunged. The route that helps there is getting the DUI reduced, often to reckless driving with a withhold, which can then qualify, which is one of the collateral consequences worth weighing when a DUI case is resolved.
The Process, Step by Step
The court-ordered process moves through a set order, and each step has to be done correctly before the next one matters.
| Step | What happens |
|---|---|
| 1. Certificate of Eligibility | Apply to FDLE with a seventy-five dollar fee, fingerprints, and a certified disposition; for an expunction the State Attorney certifies eligibility; FDLE review typically takes about twelve weeks |
| 2. The certificate issues | If you qualify, FDLE issues a Certificate of Eligibility that is good for one year |
| 3. The petition | File a petition under Rule 3.692 with a sworn affidavit and a proposed order, and serve the State Attorney |
| 4. The court decides | The State responds, and the judge rules; the court may deny even an eligible petition, so the presentation matters |
| 5. The order is entered | A certified order goes back to FDLE and the agencies holding the record, and the record is sealed or expunged |
Automatic Sealing: What It Does and Does Not Do
Florida added an automatic sealing law, section 943.0595, that applies to many cases resolved on or after mid-2023. Under it, FDLE seals a criminal history record on its own, with no petition, no certificate, no fee, and no attorney required, when the case did not involve a charge for a forcible felony or a sex-offender-registration offense and ended in one of three ways: no charging document was filed, the charge was dropped or dismissed except where the dismissal was for incompetency, or there was an acquittal or judgment of acquittal. There is no limit on how many records can be sealed this way, and prior history is not considered.
There are real limits worth knowing. Automatic sealing does not apply to a withhold of adjudication, it runs on FDLE’s administrative schedule and can take many months, and it is not the same as expungement. The clerk keeps the court record confidential, but the arresting agency’s records, including a booking photo, along with Department of Corrections and State Attorney records, stay public. So if your case was dropped or dismissed and you are eligible, it is usually still worth pursuing an expungement, which destroys the record rather than just hiding it from public view.
After Your Record Is Sealed or Expunged
Once the relief is granted, you may lawfully deny or decline to acknowledge the arrest and the charges in most everyday situations, which is the whole point. Florida law carves out specific exceptions where the record can still be reached and you are expected to disclose it, including applying for employment with a criminal justice or law enforcement agency, seeking admission to The Florida Bar, applying for certain positions that involve direct contact with children, the elderly, or the disabled through agencies the statute names, and standing as a defendant in a later criminal case. Knowing where those lines fall is part of getting honest advice about what sealing or expunging will and will not do for you.
Dig Deeper
Each part of this process has its own page with more detail: who qualifies, withhold of adjudication, sealing versus expunging, the offenses that cannot be sealed, and the process step by step.
Common Questions
What is the difference between sealing and expunging?
Both keep a record out of public view, but they are not the same. Sealing makes the record confidential and exempt from public disclosure while it still exists, with access limited to the agencies the statute lists. Expunging goes further: the record is physically destroyed, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement keeps a single confidential copy that is released only by court order. As a general rule, a case that ended in a withhold of adjudication is sealed, while a case that was never filed, dropped, or dismissed, or that ended in an acquittal, is expunged.
Can I clear my record if my charges were dropped or I was found not guilty?
Often yes, and that is the expungement track. When no charge was filed, or the charge was dismissed or dropped, or you were acquitted, an eligible record can be expunged. Florida also automatically seals many of those records now, but automatic sealing is slower and does not destroy the record the way an expungement does, so when you are eligible to expunge, it is usually worth doing.
How many times can I seal or expunge a record?
For the court-ordered process, once in a lifetime. That makes it worth using on the right case and getting it right the first time. The newer automatic sealing the state does on its own has no limit on the number of records, but it only reaches certain dismissed, dropped, or acquitted cases and does not apply to a withhold of adjudication.
Can a DUI be sealed or expunged in Florida?
A DUI conviction cannot. Florida law does not let a judge withhold adjudication on a DUI, and a DUI that ends in a conviction is not eligible to be sealed or expunged. The path that can help is getting the DUI reduced, often to reckless driving with a withhold, which may then be eligible for sealing. That is part of why how the case is resolved at the front end matters so much.
How long does the whole process take?
Plan on several months. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement typically takes around twelve weeks to review an application and issue a certificate of eligibility, and that certificate is good for one year. After that comes the petition, the state's response, and the judge's order, so the full timeline usually runs a few months, longer if the paperwork has problems, which is one reason it helps to have it handled correctly the first time.
Related: Collateral consequences of a conviction, Criminal defense overview, and About Rory Safir.
This page is general information about Florida law, not legal advice, and it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Eligibility to seal or expunge a record turns on the specific charge, the disposition, and your prior history, and the law can change, so confirm anything here against the current statutes and speak with counsel about your situation. Florida record sealing and expungement run through sections 943.059, 943.0585, 943.0584, and 943.0595, Florida Statutes, Rule 3.692 of the Florida Rules of Criminal Procedure, and Chapter 11C-7 of the Florida Administrative Code. Every case is different, and past results do not guarantee a similar outcome. The hiring of a lawyer is an important decision that should not be based solely on advertisements.
