How to Get Your Record Expunged in Washington State

Washington does not use the word “expungement” for adult convictions, so how to get your record expunged in Washington State really means how to get a conviction vacated. When a court vacates a conviction, it withdraws your guilty plea or sets aside the verdict, dismisses the charges, and removes the conviction from the public criminal history maintained by the Washington State Patrol. After that, you can lawfully answer “no” when an employer or landlord asks whether you have been convicted of that crime. The process is spelled out in statute, the paperwork is standardized, and you can do it yourself, but eligibility is strict and some convictions can never be cleared.

Vacation Is Not Record Destruction

True expungement means destroying the record. Vacation is different. The court reverses the conviction and dismisses the underlying charges, but law enforcement agencies may still hold some internal record. For most public and employer background checks the conviction disappears; in a handful of narrow situations covered below, it can still matter.

Misdemeanor Eligibility

Most misdemeanor and gross misdemeanor convictions can be vacated under RCW 9.96.060. Two thresholds have to be cleared: you must have finished every part of the sentence, and enough time must have passed since you finished.

For non-domestic-violence misdemeanors, the wait is three years, counted from whichever came last: the day you completed probation or community supervision, the day you were released from jail, or the sentencing date itself. All court-ordered fines and fees, called legal financial obligations, must be paid in full before the court will consider the petition.¹

For domestic violence misdemeanors, the wait is five years from the date you completed all other sentence conditions, including any required treatment. The statute does not tie the five-year clock to paying off legal financial obligations, though the court still exercises discretion over the request.¹

You also cannot have any criminal charges pending in state, federal, or tribal courts, and you cannot have been convicted of a new crime within the three years before you file.¹

Felony Eligibility

Felony vacation runs under RCW 9.94A.640. Before you can apply, you need a certificate of discharge issued under RCW 9.94A.637, which confirms you completed confinement, supervision, and all financial obligations. If you were never formally discharged, ask the sentencing court to issue the certificate before you file the vacation motion.²

The waiting period runs from the date of discharge and depends on the felony class:

Class C felonies: five years since discharge.
Class B felonies: ten years since discharge.
Class A felonies: no statutory path to vacation exists.

You cannot have any pending charges, and you cannot have picked up any new convictions since your discharge.²

Convictions That Can Never Be Vacated

Some offenses are permanently ineligible no matter how much time passes. Confirming yours is not on these lists is the single most important self-check before you file.

Misdemeanor Bars

DUI (RCW 46.61.502), actual physical control while intoxicated (RCW 46.61.504), and operating a railroad while intoxicated. A related alcohol or drug offense treated as a “prior offense” is also ineligible if you had a later violation within ten years of the arrest, or if fewer than ten years have passed since the original arrest.
Any misdemeanor classified as a violent offense under RCW 9.94A.030.
Sex offenses under chapters 9.68, 9.68A, and 9A.44 RCW, and offenses involving obscenity or sexual exploitation of children, with the single exception of failure to register as a sex offender.li>
Any case in which you are currently subject to a domestic violence protection order, no-contact order, or antiharassment order.

These bars are set out in RCW 9.96.060(2).¹

Felony Bars

Violent offenses and crimes against persons are broadly excluded. Second-degree assault, third-degree assault (not against a law enforcement officer), and second-degree robbery are the exceptions, and only if the original conviction carried no firearm, deadly weapon, or sexual motivation enhancement.
Felony DUI and felony actual physical control cannot be vacated.
Class A felonies have no statutory path.

These come from RCW 9.94A.640(2).²

An Easier Path for Cannabis and Certain Drug Offenses

If you were convicted of a misdemeanor cannabis offense and you were 21 or older at the time, the court must grant your vacation request. There is no discretion. This covers RCW 69.50.4014 and its predecessor statutes going back to 1971, and equivalent municipal ordinances.³

For certain drug possession and paraphernalia convictions, the court also must vacate once you file proof of completing a substance use disorder treatment program, or an assessment through an approved program such as a recovery navigator, arrest-and-jail-alternative, or law enforcement assisted diversion program, along with six months of substantial compliance with the recommended treatment.³

Pulling Your Case Details

Before you touch a form, get the exact charge, case number, conviction date, and the court that handled the case. Run a WATCH (Washington Access to Criminal History) check on yourself through the Washington State Patrol’s online system, which shows conviction information and arrests with pending dispositions less than one year old.⁴ You will pay a small fee by credit card or through a pre-existing account.

Match your case details against the eligibility rules for your offense type. Verify the waiting period has run, confirm you have no pending charges, and rule out the permanent bars. Filing a motion the court has no authority to grant just costs you the filing fee.

Filing the Motion

Washington Courts publishes the forms you need:

Misdemeanors: “Petition and Declaration for Order Vacating Conviction” plus the matching order.
Felonies: “Motion and Declaration for Order Vacating Record of Felony Conviction” plus the matching order.

For felony cases, the courts also offer a guided online interview that generates the documents based on your answers.⁵

Fill in the forms using the exact information from your WATCH report and court records. File the signed originals with the clerk in the court that entered the conviction. Deliver a copy of everything to the county prosecuting attorney’s office, and ask the receptionist to stamp your copy “received” as proof of service.⁶

Check the local rules for your county before you file. Some counties require supplemental forms. Filing fees vary, and some courts waive them based on income.

The Hearing

Once the paperwork is filed and served, the clerk will set a hearing. At the hearing, the judge reviews your filing, confirms the statutory requirements, and considers any objection from the prosecutor.

A hearing is not always necessary. If the prosecutor reviews the filing and agrees you meet the requirements, they may consent to the order without appearing, and in some counties the judge will sign without a formal hearing. Practice varies, so it is worth calling the prosecutor’s office after service to ask.⁷

If a hearing is scheduled, go. Judges can deny motions when the applicant fails to appear. If the prosecutor objects, be ready to walk the judge through each eligibility requirement.

After the Order Is Signed

When the judge signs, the conviction is reversed. The clerk updates the court’s database and forwards the order to the Washington State Patrol, which removes the conviction from the statewide criminal history database and notifies the FBI to update federal records.

You are released from all penalties and disabilities from the conviction, and for purposes including employment and housing you may say you have never been convicted of that crime.² The conviction also drops out of your criminal history for sentencing calculations in any future case.

Give the agencies a few months to process, then run a fresh WATCH check on yourself to confirm the conviction no longer appears.⁸

What Vacation Does Not Do

Vacation is powerful but bounded. A few limits catch people off guard.

Firearm Rights

Vacating a conviction does not restore firearm rights. Both statutes state directly that nothing in the vacation process affects the separate requirements for restoring firearm rights under RCW 9.41.040.⁹ If your conviction triggered a firearms prohibition, that requires its own petition.

Future Prosecutions

Prosecutors may still reference a vacated conviction in a later criminal case. A conviction vacated on or after July 28, 2019, can also count as a prior offense for recidivist charging purposes.²

Immigration

If you are not a U.S. citizen, a vacated state conviction may still count as a conviction for federal immigration purposes. Under USCIS policy, a vacated judgment is disregarded only when the vacation was based on a constitutional defect, statutory defect, or pre-conviction error that affected the finding of guilt. If the vacation was based on rehabilitation, treatment, or avoiding immigration consequences, USCIS still treats it as a conviction.¹⁰ Washington’s standard vacation is discretionary and not based on a defect in the underlying case, so USCIS may not honor it. Talk to an immigration attorney before filing, because the right strategy for a non-citizen can differ from what works for a citizen.

Private Background Check Databases

Government databases update when the vacation order is entered. Private background check companies maintain their own scraped databases and often lag behind. Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, consumer reporting companies must have reasonable procedures to avoid reporting information that has been expunged, sealed, or otherwise restricted from public access, and a 2024 Consumer Financial Protection Bureau advisory opinion reiterated that background check reports must be accurate and free of legally restricted information.¹¹ If a private report still lists the vacated conviction, dispute it directly with the company, send a copy of your signed vacation order, and request removal. The company generally must investigate and correct the error within 30 days. Keep copies of everything. If the company refuses, you can complain to the CFPB or bring an action under the FCRA.

Free and Low-Cost Help

You do not need a lawyer to file. Many people handle vacation motions themselves. If the case is complicated or eligibility is unclear, free help exists. The Northwest Justice Project runs the CLEAR legal hotline at 1-888-201-1014, serving all Washington counties for low-income callers. The King County Bar Association provides free assistance to vacate eligible convictions for people at or below 200% of the federal poverty line. Similar programs run in other counties, including the Center for Justice in Spokane and the Clark County Volunteer Lawyers Program. If you hire a private attorney, flat fees typically run from $1,000 upward depending on complexity and whether the prosecutor contests the motion. The Washington State Bar Association’s lawyer referral service can point you to attorneys who handle these cases.

1
Washington State Legislature. Washington Code 9.96.060 – Vacating Records of Conviction for Misdemeanor and Gross Misdemeanor Offenses
2
Washington State Legislature. Washington Code 9.94A.640 – Vacation of Offender’s Record of Conviction
3
Washington State Legislature. Washington Code 9.96.060 – Vacating Records of Conviction for Misdemeanor and Gross Misdemeanor Offenses
4
Washington State Patrol. Criminal History – Section: Obtaining a Background Check Online (WATCH)
5
Washington State Courts. Court Forms – Vacating/Sealing Records
6
Spokane County, WA. Vacating Conviction Record Steps
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Washington Law Help. Vacate a Misdemeanor Conviction
8
Washington State Patrol. Washington Access to Criminal History
9
Washington State Legislature. Washington Code Chapter 9.96 – Restoration of Civil Rights
10
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Adjudicative Factors
11
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. CFPB Addresses Inaccurate Background Check Reports and Sloppy Credit File Sharing Practices