Texas Expunction Eligibility Checker

What expunction does

Expunction under Tex. Code Crim. Proc. ch. 55 is the complete legal erasure of an arrest from public records. The expunction order directs every named agency to delete or return all records of the arrest. Once expunged, the defendant may legally deny that the arrest occurred in nearly all contexts (the limited exceptions are sworn statements in specific contexts like bar admissions). Expunction is the most powerful record-clearing relief Texas offers.

What non-disclosure does

An order of non-disclosure under Tex. Gov’t Code ch. 411 seals the criminal record from public view but preserves law-enforcement access. After non-disclosure, the record does not appear on most employer background checks, apartment-rental screenings, or general public-records searches. Law enforcement, the prosecuting authority in any future case, state-licensing boards, and certain federal-agency investigations can still see the record. Non-disclosure is less complete than expunction but is available for cases ineligible for expunction.

Eligibility for expunction — the core checklist

Tex. Code Crim. Proc. art. 55.01 makes a case eligible for expunction when ONE of the following applies:

• Acquittal. The defendant was acquitted by jury verdict or directed verdict.
• Pardon. The defendant was convicted and subsequently pardoned by the Governor or U.S. President for actual innocence.
• Dismissal. The case was dismissed and the statute of limitations expired without re-filing, OR the prosecutor recommended dismissal and the court so ordered with prejudice.
• No-bill. The grand jury returned a “no bill” on the felony charge and the statute of limitations expired without re-presentation.
• Class C deferred (completed satisfactorily). The defendant was placed on Class C municipal-court deferred and successfully completed the term.
• Identity-theft “actual offender misidentified”. The defendant’s identity was used by another person who committed the offense.
• Statute-of-limitations expiration. The defendant was arrested but never indicted and the limitations period expired.

Notably ineligible for expunction: any conviction (even minor), successful deferred-adjudication probation on a felony or Class A/B misdemeanor (those go to non-disclosure), and successful straight probation completion.

Eligibility for non-disclosure — the core checklist

Tex. Gov’t Code ch. 411 makes a case eligible for non-disclosure when ALL of the following apply:

• The defendant completed a deferred-adjudication probation satisfactorily and was discharged;
• The waiting period after discharge has elapsed (immediate for most misdemeanors; 2-5 years for various felony categories under § 411.074);
• The offense is not on the § 411.074(b) excluded list (registration-requiring sex offenses, family-violence offenses, most stalking and harassment offenses);
• The defendant has not been convicted of or placed on deferred adjudication for any offense (other than fine-only Class C traffic) during the waiting period;
• The court determines that issuance is not contrary to the interests of justice.

What the checker cannot determine

The checker runs the statutory eligibility analysis but cannot determine three case-specific factors that materially affect actual relief: (1) whether the District Attorney will oppose the petition (the State has discretion to oppose non-disclosure on the “interests of justice” factor); (2) whether all required agencies will be properly served (the petition must name every reporting agency that holds records); (3) whether downstream private-sector background-check companies will actually comply with the order (compliance varies and may require follow-up under the Fair Credit Reporting Act).

If the checker returns “eligible”

The next step is to retain counsel to draft and file the petition. The expunction or non-disclosure petition is a civil filing in the appropriate court with specific procedural requirements: agency identification, service distribution, hearing schedule, court order, and post-order compliance follow-up. Many filings fail because the petitioner missed one of these procedural steps. See our expunction page for the full workflow.

Related resources

• Texas Expunction & Non-Disclosure Master Guide — comprehensive compendium
• Expunction practice page — defense workflow
• Sealing Juvenile Records — related juvenile-court relief