In California, a DUI stays on your DMV driving record for 10 years from the date of the offense, and it stays on your criminal record indefinitely unless a court dismisses it under Penal Code 1203.4. Those are two separate records with two different clocks, and the difference matters: the DMV timeline drives repeat-offense penalties and insurance costs, while the criminal record is what employers, licensing boards, and border officers see.
The 10-Year DMV Clock
The California DMV counts the 10 years from the offense date, not the conviction date.1California DMV. California Driver Handbook – Alcohol and Drugs During that window the conviction cannot be expunged, sealed, or shortened. A court dismissal of your criminal case does not touch it. The DMV record runs its full decade regardless of anything you do.
That 10-year window is also California’s DUI lookback period. A second, third, or fourth DUI picked up inside those 10 years is charged and sentenced as a repeat offense, with penalties climbing sharply each time. Once the decade passes, a new DUI is treated as a first offense for sentencing, though the older conviction remains part of your driving history.
The Criminal Record Has No Expiration
Your criminal record works differently. A DUI conviction sits on your California and FBI rap sheets and in the court file with no automatic end date. It shows up on background checks and stays visible to anyone searching court records until a judge grants a dismissal. There is no year at which it falls off on its own.
Getting the Conviction Dismissed
California’s version of expungement is a dismissal under Penal Code 1203.4. You can petition the court that convicted you if you were granted probation, completed every condition of it, are no longer on probation for any case, and have no open cases.2County of San Diego. Expungement (PC1203.4/1203.4a) The court lets you withdraw your guilty or no-contest plea and dismisses the case.
A dismissal is real relief, but it is narrower than the word “expungement” makes it sound. After a successful petition, you can honestly answer “no” to most private employers asking about criminal convictions, the court file gets a dismissal entry, and the conviction generally cannot be used to attack your credibility if you later testify.2County of San Diego. Expungement (PC1203.4/1203.4a)
What a dismissal does not do:
- It does not touch your DMV record. The 10-year clock keeps running.
- It does not stop the conviction from counting as a prior if you get another DUI inside the lookback period.
- It does not seal anything. Your rap sheets still show the original conviction with a dismissal notation next to it, and the court file remains searchable.
- It does not clear you for government jobs, security clearances, or licensed professions. You must still disclose both the conviction and the dismissal.
The petition is filed in the Superior Court where you were convicted. DUI cases require additional forms beyond the standard petition. Felony petitions always require a written motion and a court hearing; misdemeanor DUI petitions may not require a hearing unless you violated probation during your term.2County of San Diego. Expungement (PC1203.4/1203.4a)
Insurance Follows the DMV Record
After a DUI, the DMV requires you to carry an SR-22 certificate for three years from the date your driving privileges are reinstated. The SR-22 is just proof of state-minimum liability coverage that your insurer files with the DMV. The financial hit comes from the premium itself: drivers with a DUI on their record typically pay 20 to 40 percent above standard rates. Letting the SR-22 lapse during the three-year period triggers another license suspension.
Because the DUI is on your DMV record for a full decade, insurers commonly keep charging elevated premiums well past the SR-22 window. Rates tend not to return to pre-DUI levels until the conviction ages off the driving record.
If You Hold a Commercial Driver’s License
A CDL is treated separately and more harshly. Under federal rules, a first DUI conviction while operating a commercial motor vehicle triggers a one-year CDL disqualification; a second results in a lifetime disqualification.3eCFR. 49 CFR 383.51 – Disqualification of Drivers California adds its own layer: Vehicle Code 15300 disqualifies a commercial driver for one year after a first DUI in any vehicle, and Vehicle Code 15302 imposes a lifetime disqualification for a second. A DUI in your personal car on your day off can end a CDL career.
If You Hold a Professional License
Under Business and Professions Code Section 490, California licensing boards can independently deny, suspend, or revoke a license based on a criminal conviction that is substantially related to the profession, and that authority survives a PC 1203.4 dismissal.4California Legislative Information. California Business and Professions Code 490 Medical professionals, attorneys, real estate agents, nurses, and commercial drivers are among the most commonly affected. Each board defines “substantially related” on its own terms, so the same DUI can produce formal discipline from one and a warning from another.
Travel to Canada
A California DUI can keep you out of Canada. Canadian immigration law treats impaired driving as a criminal offense that makes a person inadmissible, even where the U.S. charge was a misdemeanor.5Government of Canada. Overcome Criminal Convictions Three paths exist:
- Deemed rehabilitation, if at least 10 years have passed since you completed your entire sentence, including probation, and you have no other convictions.6Government of Canada. Rehabilitation for Persons Who Are Inadmissible to Canada Because of Past Criminal Activity
- Individual rehabilitation, if at least five years have passed since you completed your sentence.
- A Temporary Resident Permit for a specific trip if fewer than five years have passed and you have a valid reason to travel.
The 10-year clock for deemed rehabilitation runs from the end of your sentence, not from the offense. Because California DUI probation typically lasts three to five years, the practical wait from arrest to deemed rehabilitation often runs 13 to 15 years.
Employment and Background Checks
California limits when in the hiring process employers can ask about criminal history, and the federal Fair Chance Act applies similar limits to federal agencies and federal contractors.7National Conference of State Legislatures. Ban the Box Those rules delay the background check; they don’t prevent it.
When the check runs, a DUI conviction shows up unless you have a PC 1203.4 dismissal, and even then it appears as “dismissed per PC 1203.4.” Private employers filling non-licensed positions generally cannot hold a dismissed conviction against you, though the record remains visible. Government jobs, security-clearance positions, and licensed professions require disclosure of both the conviction and the dismissal.
The Practical Takeaway
Two dates matter. The DMV’s 10-year mark, counted from the offense, is when your driving record clears and insurance stops treating you as a DUI risk. The criminal record has no such mark; a PC 1203.4 dismissal is the only way to change how it reads, and it changes less than most people expect. If you’re weighing next steps, the dismissal petition is what closes the criminal-record side, and the 10-year DMV window simply has to run.