California’s Clean Slate Act, enacted as Senate Bill 731 and codified at Penal Code section 1203.425, directs the state Department of Justice to automatically seal most eligible criminal convictions from public background checks without any petition, court appearance, or paperwork from the person whose record is being cleared. The department scans its databases every month and grants relief once you meet the waiting period and completion rules. Sealed convictions disappear from the background checks most private employers and landlords run, but they remain visible to law enforcement, courts, and certain regulated employers, and the sealing does not restore firearm rights or protect against federal immigration consequences.
Who Qualifies for Automatic Sealing
Eligibility depends on how your case was resolved. Three tracks cover most people, and all three require that the conviction occurred on or after January 1, 1973.
- If you were placed on probation and finished the full term without revocation, you qualify as soon as probation ends. There is no additional waiting period.
- If you were convicted of an infraction or misdemeanor without probation, you qualify once your sentence is complete and at least one year has passed since the date of judgment.
- If you were convicted of a felony, you qualify four years after completing all incarceration, probation, mandatory supervision, post-release community supervision, and parole, provided you were not convicted of a new felony during those four years.
Across all three tracks, you cannot currently be serving a sentence, have pending charges, or appear in the Supervised Release File. If any of those apply, the system skips your record until the condition no longer applies.1California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1203.425
A companion provision at Penal Code section 851.93 covers arrests that never led to conviction, including dismissed misdemeanors, felony arrests where no charges were filed within three years (six years for offenses carrying eight or more years in prison), and completed diversion programs.2California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 851.93 Arrest-only records often clear faster than convictions under this track.
Which Convictions Are Excluded
Three categories of felonies cannot be cleared through the automatic process. Serious felonies as listed in Penal Code section 1192.7(c), such as robbery and residential burglary with someone home, are excluded. Violent felonies under Penal Code section 667.5(c) are also excluded, a list the legislature described as “extraordinary crimes of violence” that includes murder, voluntary manslaughter, rape, kidnapping, carjacking, and arson.3California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 667.5 Any felony requiring sex offender registration under Chapter 5.5 of the Penal Code is also excluded.
The sex-registration exclusion applies at every level, not just the felony track. Anyone currently required to register is ineligible for automatic relief on any conviction, misdemeanor included.1California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1203.425 If you fall into any of these categories, automatic sealing is off the table, though a traditional petition under Penal Code section 1203.4 may still be available depending on the facts of your case.
How the Automatic Process Works
You do not file anything. The Department of Justice runs monthly scans against its criminal history databases and the Supervised Release File, identifies people who qualify, and grants relief, including dismissal, on its own. Records are processed on a rolling basis, so there is no single clearance date for everyone. If you believe you qualify and your record has not updated, the most common explanation is that the processing cycle has not caught up to your eligibility date.
The system is not unchecked. A prosecuting attorney or probation department can petition the court to block automatic relief in a specific case, but the petition has to be filed at least 90 calendar days before the person becomes eligible, and it must show that granting relief would pose a substantial threat to public safety.1California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1203.425 The seriousness of the original offense alone is not enough. These petitions are uncommon for lower-level cases.
If You Don’t Qualify Automatically
You still have a petition-based path. For probation cases, that is Penal Code section 1203.4; for sentences without probation, it is section 1203.4a. These are the traditional expungement petitions that existed before SB 731, and the Clean Slate Act expressly preserves your right to use them.1California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1203.425 You can file even while waiting for the automated system to catch up.
Before filing, request your California Record of Arrests and Prosecutions from the Department of Justice. You submit Live Scan fingerprints and pay a $25 processing fee.4State of California – Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Criminal Records – Request Your Own The petition itself uses Judicial Council form CR-180, with the order on form CR-181, filed with the superior court clerk in the county of conviction. Filing fees run roughly $60 for a misdemeanor and $120 to $150 for a felony, and a fee waiver is available if you cannot afford the cost. If the prosecutor does not object, many judges sign the order without a hearing; if there is an objection, the court will schedule one.
Who Can Still See a Sealed Record
Sealing does not erase a conviction. The record stays in the state criminal history database. What changes is who can see it.
Criminal justice agencies keep full access. Police, prosecutors, courts, and probation offices can view sealed records as if the relief had never been granted, and if you are later charged with a new crime, the prior conviction still counts at sentencing.1California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1203.425
Education employers retain access as well. The Commission on Teacher Credentialing, school districts, county offices of education, charter schools, and private schools continue to see conviction information after relief is granted. Healthcare and childcare facility background checks also keep access under the Health and Safety Code licensing provisions.
For most other employers, licensing boards, landlords, and the general public, the record will not appear. The Department of Justice does not disclose convictions granted relief under section 1203.425 when responding to non-criminal-justice background inquiries.5California Department of Justice – Office of the Attorney General. Sealing Orders
What Employers Can and Can’t Ask
Labor Code section 432.7 reinforces the sealing with enforcement teeth. No employer, public or private, can ask you to disclose a conviction that has been dismissed or sealed, and the statute specifically names Penal Code section 1203.425. Employers also cannot seek the information from other sources or use it in hiring, promotion, termination, or training decisions.6California Legislative Information. California Labor Code 432.7
If an employer violates these rules, you can sue for actual damages or $200, whichever is greater, plus attorney’s fees and costs. Intentional violations carry treble damages or $500, and expose the employer to a misdemeanor charge with a fine up to $500. One narrow exception: if you are currently out on bail or released on your own recognizance pending trial, an employer can still ask about that pending arrest. The protection covers resolved matters, not active cases.
Immigration: Sealing Doesn’t Reach Federal Law
Federal immigration law does not recognize California’s sealing or dismissal of a conviction. After relief under SB 731, the conviction still exists for immigration purposes and can still support deportation, denial of a green card, or denial of naturalization. If you apply for an immigration benefit or seek relief from removal, you must disclose the prior conviction; failing to do so can result in denial of your application. A record that no longer shows on a California background check can still surface at a naturalization interview or trigger removal proceedings. If you are not a U.S. citizen, talk to an immigration attorney before assuming the Clean Slate Act has solved the problem.
Firearm Rights Are Not Restored
Sealing under the Clean Slate Act does not give back the right to own or possess a firearm. The statute releases you from the penalties and disabilities of the offense with an explicit exception for firearm restrictions. State-level prohibitions survive the sealing, and federal law independently bars firearm possession for anyone convicted of a felony, so a California dismissal has no effect on the federal prohibition.1California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 1203.425 If restoring firearm rights is your goal, a governor’s pardon or a certificate of rehabilitation is the path to look at, depending on your conviction. SB 731 was built to remove barriers to housing and employment, not weapons restrictions.