Illinois expungement eligibility.

Wait periods by offense category

Years required between completion of all sentence requirements and the earliest date relief is available.

Wait periods are counted from the latest of: release from custody, end of probation/parole, or final restitution payment. Statute citation applies. Confirm with a licensed attorney before relying.

Compute your earliest eligible date

Enter your sentence-completion date and offense category to compute the earliest petition date.

How to file in Illinois

1. Pull a certified copy of your record from Illinois's criminal history repository.
2. Confirm restitution and fines are fully paid. Outstanding obligations block almost every petition.
3. Confirm probation/parole discharge. Get a final discharge letter or a current letter from your supervising officer.
4. Verify the wait period for your offense (table above) is satisfied.
5. File the petition at the Circuit Clerk in the county where you were arrested or charged. Filing fee: $120.
6. Serve the prosecutor with notice of the petition. Most states require this before a judge will rule.
7. Attend the hearing if the court schedules one. Many uncontested petitions are decided on the papers.

Recent amendments

Major statutory changes affecting record relief in Illinois.

• 2019

  Public Act 101-27 (Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act)

  Created automatic expungement of pre-legalization minor cannabis non-conviction records on a phased schedule (2021/2023/2025).

  Primary source: ilga.gov ↗
• 2021

  PA 102-145 / SAFE-T-related amendments

  Expanded sealing eligibility for many felony convictions and standardized waiting periods.

  Primary source: ilga.gov ↗

Illinois-specific carve-outs

Categories the law treats differently in this state.

• Categorically non-sealable offenses

  Sex offenses requiring registration, domestic battery, DUI, and animal-cruelty offenses are excluded from sealing under 20 ILCS 2630/5.2(a)(3).

  Source: ilga.gov ↗

Common mistakes to avoid

Reasons Illinois petitions get bounced or sealings fail to land.

• !Filing in the wrong county (e.g., county of conviction vs. county of arrest) is a common reason petitions get bounced.
• !Outstanding fines/fees on the underlying case will block sealing in many counties.

Excluded categories

These categories are typically excluded from petition relief in Illinois based on our research. An attorney may still see options.

• Sex offenses

  Excluded from automatic and petition relief in nearly every state. A few narrow carve-outs exist for older non-registerable offenses.

  See state-by-state pages

• Violent felonies

  Generally excluded from automatic Clean Slate sealing; some states allow petition relief after long wait periods.

• DUI / DWI

  Treatment varies widely. Some states (e.g. Michigan, Virginia) carve out DUIs entirely; others treat them as standard misdemeanors.

• Pending cases or unpaid restitution

  Most states require all sentence requirements — including restitution to victims — to be fully discharged before the clock starts.

• Federal convictions

  Federal expungement is functionally non-existent. There is no statutory federal expungement remedy for most offenses.

Related reading

• When the eligibility clock starts

  Why the wait period in Illinois runs from the latest of release, end of supervision, or restitution paid.

• What most states leave out

  Categories of offenses excluded from automatic sealing and petition relief.

• Unpaid restitution as a silent block

  How an open balance on the criminal docket blocks an otherwise eligible record.

• Sealing and professional licensing

  Why FBI-fingerprint background checks see records that consumer reports don't.