Can a DUI be expunged or sealed in Pennsylvania?

Last updated October 4, 2026.

Often, yes. A DUI that ends in ARD, a dismissal or a not guilty verdict can be expunged. A conviction generally cannot be expunged before age 70, but a first DUI is a misdemeanor that Pennsylvania's Clean Slate law seals from most public view automatically after seven years without a new conviction for an offense punishable by a year or more, once restitution is paid. Even an expunged DUI ARD leaves a non-public record that prosecutors can use for 12 years.

The right path depends on how your case ended. For how a first DUI is penalized in the first place, see our page on the first offense DUI. Our main DUI defense page covers the rest of the case.

Which option fits how my DUI case ended?

How does expungement work after DUI ARD?

When you finish ARD, you move the court to dismiss the charges, with your own affidavit and a certification from whoever supervised your program. The prosecutor has 30 days after being served to object; if no objection is filed, the judge dismisses the charges (Pa.R.Crim.P. 319). The rule on expungement then says the judge "also shall order the expungement" of the arrest record when ordering the dismissal, unless the prosecutor objects within the same 30 days, in which case there is a hearing (Pa.R.Crim.P. 320).

Do not assume it happens on its own. Delaware County's ARD application tells participants that expungement "must be initiated by the defendant" after successful completion and "does not automatically occur." In Delaware County, the Office of Judicial Support does the work of the former clerk of courts, and its Criminal Division keeps the criminal case files.

What is kept even after a DUI ARD is expunged?

Since Act 58 of 2025, three records survive an ARD expungement for a limited purpose:

• The clerk of courts keeps a certified copy of the order showing you completed ARD for 12 years. It is not open to public inspection and may be used only for a later prosecution for DUI following diversion under 3802(h). After 12 years the clerk expunges it without a court order (75 Pa.C.S. 3807(f)).
• PennDOT keeps a record of the ARD acceptance and completion, available to prosecutors, courts and police, and expunges it 12 years after completion. It does not have to do so for a commercial driver at the time of the offense, or if your license is revoked as a habitual offender during those 12 years (75 Pa.C.S. 1534).
• The prosecutor and the State Police central repository keep a list of people whose records were expunged after a diversion program, used to decide later eligibility and the grading of later offenses (18 Pa.C.S. 9122(c)).

So an expunged DUI ARD is no longer part of your public criminal record, but it will matter if you are charged with DUI again within 10 years. That is part of the trade-off covered in who is eligible for DUI ARD. Each county's version is compared in DUI ARD in Delaware, Chester and Montgomery counties.

Can a DUI conviction be sealed under Clean Slate?

Often, yes. Clean Slate limited access covers convictions for a second or third-degree misdemeanor, or a misdemeanor punishable by no more than two years, once a person has gone seven years without a conviction for any offense punishable by a year or more and has paid court-ordered restitution (18 Pa.C.S. 9122.2(a)(1)). A first DUI at any tier, and a second DUI at the general impairment or high rate tier, are ungraded misdemeanors with a six-month maximum (75 Pa.C.S. 3803; PennDOT Driver's Manual, ch. 4), so they fit that category. A third DUI at the general impairment tier is a second-degree misdemeanor, which also fits.

The process is automatic: the courts send eligible records to the State Police each month, and each county court issues monthly orders (9122.2(b)). There are exceptions, including anyone ever convicted of a felony that is not a listed qualifying offense, two or more offenses punishable by more than two years, or four or more offenses punishable by a year or more (18 Pa.C.S. 9122.3). Repeat DUI histories can run into those limits.

Limited access is not expungement. The record still exists and stays available to criminal justice agencies, while the State Police and the courts must leave it out of what they release to most individuals, private agencies and websites, subject to narrow exceptions in the law (18 Pa.C.S. 9121(b) and 9122.2(c)). Some records that Clean Slate does not reach automatically can be the subject of a petition for limited access under 18 Pa.C.S. 9122.1, which has its own waiting periods and exclusions. The rules for every kind of record are compared in expungement, limited access and Clean Slate in Pennsylvania.

Can a DUI conviction ever be fully expunged?

Only in narrow cases. A conviction may be expunged when the person reaches 70 and has been free of arrest or prosecution for 10 years after final release from confinement or supervision, or has been dead for three years. Summary offenses, which a DUI is not, can be expunged after five arrest-free years, as explained in what a summary offense is in Pennsylvania. A full and unconditional pardon also leads to expungement (18 Pa.C.S. 9122).

What does a cleared record mean for jobs and housing?

Once a record is expunged or placed under limited access, you generally may not be required or asked to disclose it, and you may answer as if the offense did not occur, unless a criminal justice agency asks or a specific law requires disclosure (18 Pa.C.S. 9122.5(a)). Except where federal law requires it, an individual or private agency may not use that information for employment, housing or school admission (9122.5(a.1)), and it may not be treated as a conviction that bars employment under Pennsylvania law (9122.5(b)).

The protection has limits. A limited access record stays part of your criminal history for courts, including at sentencing on a later case (9122.5(c)), and federal rules can require some employers to consider it. Employers who hire someone with a sealed or expunged record are protected from liability claims tied to that record (18 Pa.C.S. 9122.6).

How do I file for expungement in Delaware County?

Outside the ARD process, Pa.R.Crim.P. 790 sets the steps:

• File a petition with the clerk of courts in the judicial district where the charges were disposed; in Delaware County, that is the Office of Judicial Support at the Government Center, 201 West Front Street, Media.
• Attach a current Pennsylvania State Police criminal history report, obtained within 60 days before filing, unless the prosecutor waives it.
• The prosecutor has 60 days to consent, object or take no action; the judge then rules or schedules a hearing.
• Unless the prosecutor consented, an order granting expungement is stayed for 30 days in case of an appeal.

The Office of Judicial Support sits in the Government Center behind the Courthouse; our guide to what to expect at the Delaware County Courthouse shows how to find it. The statewide court system publishes the petition forms for expungement and limited access on its forms page for the public.

What changes the answer?

• How the case ended. ARD, a dismissal, an acquittal and a conviction each lead to a different tool, as the first table shows.
• The grade of the conviction. Clean Slate reaches second and third-degree misdemeanors and misdemeanors punishable by no more than two years (9122.2(a)(1)). A first-degree misdemeanor or felony DUI, which repeat and refusal cases can be, falls outside it; see whether a third DUI is a felony.
• Your record since. Clean Slate needs seven years without a conviction for an offense punishable by a year or more, and the exceptions in 9122.3 count your whole history.
• Restitution. Unpaid court-ordered restitution holds up Clean Slate (9122.2(a)(1)).
• A commercial license. PennDOT does not have to expunge its ARD record for a person who held a commercial license at the time of the offense (75 Pa.C.S. 1534), which matters for the issues on our commercial driver's license page.
• Who is asking. Courts, police and prosecutors can still see limited access records; most employers and landlords cannot.

For example: two drivers, two outcomes

Here is a hypothetical. Two friends are arrested for a first DUI on the same night in Delaware County. The first is accepted into ARD, finishes the evaluation, classes and 12 months of probation, then files the motion to dismiss. The DA does not object within 30 days, so the judge dismisses the charges and orders the arrest record expunged. For the next 12 years, a non-public copy of the completion order and PennDOT's ARD record still exist for use only if there is a new DUI.

The second friend goes to trial and is convicted of a first DUI, an ungraded misdemeanor. There is no expungement, but after seven years with no new conviction for an offense punishable by a year or more, and with any restitution paid, the record is sealed automatically under Clean Slate. Both can usually answer a private employer's question as if the case did not happen, once the record is cleared. This example is only an illustration; every case depends on its own facts.

What mistakes do people make when clearing a DUI?

• Waiting for ARD expungement to happen on its own. Delaware County says it must be initiated by the defendant.
• Filing without a current State Police report. Rule 790 calls for one obtained within 60 days before filing, unless the prosecutor waives it.
• Thinking Clean Slate erases the record. It limits access; the record still exists for criminal justice agencies.
• Forgetting restitution. An unpaid balance can keep a conviction out of Clean Slate.
• Assuming the record is gone for a new DUI. The 12-year records under 3807(f) and 1534 exist for exactly that case.
• Disclosing more than the law requires. Read 9122.5 before answering an application question about a cleared record.

What should I do this week?

1. Find out exactly how your case ended: ARD, dismissal, acquittal or conviction, and the grade.
2. Get the docket number and the date of the final disposition.
3. If you finished ARD, check whether a dismissal and expungement order was ever entered.
4. For a conviction, count seven years from the end of the case and list any later convictions.
5. Confirm that restitution is paid in full.
6. Talk with a lawyer about whether a petition, Clean Slate or simply waiting is the right path; the decision often starts earlier, as explained in whether to accept ARD or fight a DUI.

Frequently asked questions

Will an expunged DUI ARD show up on a background check?

It should not appear on the public criminal record once the expungement order is carried out. Non-public records kept under 3807(f), 1534 and 9122(c) remain for prosecutors, courts and PennDOT.

How long does ARD expungement take?

The prosecutor has 30 days after being served with the motion to dismiss to object (Pa.R.Crim.P. 319 and 320). If there is no objection, the judge orders dismissal and expungement; an objection leads to a hearing.

Can I seal a DUI conviction sooner than seven years?

Clean Slate's automatic sealing for a misdemeanor conviction runs on the seven-year rule (9122.2(a)(1)). A petition for limited access under 9122.1 has its own waiting periods and exclusions, so check it with a lawyer before assuming either route.

Does sealing my record restore my license?

No. The license is a separate PennDOT matter with its own suspension and restoration rules, and PennDOT keeps its own ARD record for 12 years.

What about other charges from the same arrest?

Each charge is cleared under the rule that fits how it ended. Our guide to expungement, limited access and Clean Slate covers non-DUI charges and summary offenses.

Call Giribaldi Law at (610) 891-8303 or contact us online for a free consultation about clearing a DUI record.