States With Automatic Expungement Laws (2026 Update)

One of the most significant developments in criminal justice reform over the past five years has been the rise of automatic expungement and record sealing — laws that clear eligible records without requiring the person to file a petition, hire an attorney, or even know they qualify. As of 2026, more than a dozen states have enacted some form of automatic record clearing.

What Is Automatic Expungement?

Traditional expungement requires the individual to proactively file a petition, pay fees, wait for a court hearing, and navigate a legal process. Automatic expungement flips the model: the state proactively identifies eligible records and seals or expunges them without any action required from the person.

This matters because research consistently shows that only a small fraction of people who are eligible for expungement ever petition for it — typically due to cost, complexity, lack of awareness, or distrust of the legal system. Automatic laws dramatically increase the number of people who actually benefit from record relief.

States With Active Automatic Laws (as of 2026)

California — SB 731 + AB 1076 (Live: July 2024)

DOJ automatically dismisses eligible felony convictions after the waiting period, if the person completed probation and was not incarcerated. Marijuana convictions automatically cleared under separate law. Covers an estimated 1+ million records.

Michigan — Clean Slate Act (Live: April 2023)

Automatic expungement for most misdemeanors after 7 years and most felonies after 10 years of offense-free behavior. Excludes serious offenses. Handled by state police and court systems without individual petition.

Pennsylvania — Clean Slate Act (Live; expanded by Clean Slate 3.0 in 2024)

Automatically seals most misdemeanors after 7 years and lower-level felonies after 10 years of offense-free behavior. Act 36 of 2024 (Clean Slate 3.0) expanded the list of eligible offenses significantly.

New York — Clean Slate Act (Live: November 2024)

CPL § 160.57 automatically seals most misdemeanors after 3 years and most felonies after 8 years. Automated sealing by the court system is rolling out through 2027. Excludes sex offenses and Class A felonies.

New Jersey — Petition-to-Automatic Hybrid

The 2020 Clean Slate Law created a pathway to automatic expungement after 10 crime-free years, and more streamlined petition process for earlier relief. Automatic system is being phased in.

Delaware — Clean Slate Act

Automatic sealing of eligible misdemeanors and some felonies after the waiting period. Implementation ongoing.

Connecticut — Clean Slate Act (Live: January 2023)

Automatically erasures misdemeanors after 7 years and most felonies after 10 years. One of the broader automatic laws in the country — covers Class D felonies.

Utah — Automatic Expungement (Live: May 2021)

Utah's Bureau of Criminal Investigation automatically reviews and expunges eligible records without petition. Covers most misdemeanors and some felonies after waiting periods.

Virginia — Sealing Law (Live: July 2025)

SB 1243 created Virginia's first sealing process for convictions, including automatic sealing of Class 1 misdemeanors after 7 years and Class 6 felonies after 10 years. Major shift — prior to 2025, Virginia only cleared non-convictions.

States With Automatic Laws Coming Soon

Illinois — Clean Slate Act (Live: January 2029)

Illinois passed automatic expungement legislation but the automated system doesn't go live until January 1, 2029. Until then, petition-based expungement remains the route.

What Automatic Laws Usually Don't Cover

Even in states with broad automatic laws, certain offenses are typically excluded:

Sex offenses requiring registration
Murder and other serious violent felonies
Offenses against children
DUI convictions (many states exclude these)
Cases with outstanding fines or restitution (some states)
Federal convictions (automatic laws are state-only)

Even If Your State Has Automatic Laws — Check Your Record

Automatic systems are not perfect. Records can be missed due to data matching errors, incomplete court data, or system delays. If you believe you should have been automatically cleared, you can:

Request a copy of your criminal history from your state's repository
Compare it against your case history
Contact the court or state agency if records that should have been cleared still appear
File a petition as a backup in states that still allow it

Don't Live in an Automatic State?

If your state doesn't have automatic expungement, you'll need to petition. The process is manageable — and for many people, well worth the effort.