Nevada Embezzlement Laws: Penalties, Defenses, and Restitution

Nevada’s embezzlement law, codified at NRS 205.300, punishes the misuse of money or property you were lawfully entrusted with on the same tiered scale as theft: a misdemeanor for amounts under $1,200, up to a category B felony carrying as much as 20 years in prison when the value reaches $100,000 or more. What sets embezzlement apart from ordinary stealing is that you already had permission to handle the asset. That distinction shapes how prosecutors build the case and which defenses are realistically available to you.

What the Statute Actually Prohibits

Under NRS 205.300, embezzlement occurs when someone entrusted with money, goods, or property uses those assets for a purpose other than what the owner intended.¹ The statute reaches a wide range of positions, including agents, managers, clerks, collectors, and anyone who receives goods for delivery or safekeeping.

The core element is conversion. Prosecutors have to show you treated the property as your own or diverted it from its intended use. Nevada law gives them a significant shortcut here: any use of entrusted property outside the purpose for which you received it counts as automatic evidence of both conversion and intent to defraud.¹ The presumption is rebuttable, but it means a defense usually needs to put on affirmative evidence rather than just attacking the state’s proof.

The statute’s language is intentionally broad: “money, goods or property” and “money, property or effects.” Physical items, cash, financial instruments, and digital assets all fall within reach so long as they have measurable value and were entrusted to you.

Penalty Tiers by Dollar Amount

NRS 205.300 does not carry its own sentencing provisions. It directs courts to punish embezzlement “in the manner prescribed by law for the stealing or larceny of property,” which routes sentencing through Nevada’s general theft statute, NRS 205.0835.² The tiers break down by what was taken:

Under $1,200: misdemeanor, punishable by up to 6 months in county jail, a fine up to $1,000, or both.³
$1,200 to $4,999: category D felony, 1 to 4 years in state prison and a possible fine up to $5,000.²
$5,000 to $24,999: category C felony, 1 to 5 years in state prison and a possible fine up to $10,000.²
$25,000 to $99,999: category B felony, 1 to 10 years in state prison and a possible fine up to $10,000.²
$100,000 or more: category B felony, 1 to 20 years in state prison and a possible fine up to $15,000.²

Every theft-related conviction under NRS 205.0835 also carries mandatory restitution on top of whatever prison time or fine the court imposes.²

Small Amounts Can Add Up to a Felony

Embezzlement is usually a drip, not a flood. Nevada’s statute accounts for that pattern. Prosecutors can combine the value of multiple separate acts of embezzlement for sentencing when three conditions are met: the acts targeted the same victim, they occurred within a six-month window, and no single act was already a felony on its own.¹

This aggregation rule catches many defendants off guard. Skimming $200 from the register every week for six months looks like a string of petty offenses, but the combined total crosses the $1,200 line and becomes a felony. If you’re facing allegations of a pattern of small diversions, the total is what determines whether you’re looking at jail months or prison years.

Public Officers Face Lower Thresholds

Nevada applies separate statutes when embezzlement involves public funds. NRS 204.010 targets any public officer or person with custody of state, county, or municipal money who uses it for a personal or unauthorized purpose. NRS 204.030 covers falsifying accounts and refusing to turn over public money.⁴ Under both statutes, the misdemeanor-felony dividing line is $650. At $650 or more, the charge becomes a category D felony.

That lower threshold matters. General theft requires $1,200 to reach felony territory; for public officers handling government money, a felony starts at $650. And any felony conviction by a public officer triggers an additional, permanent consequence under NRS 197.230: forfeiture of the current office and a lifetime ban from holding any public office in Nevada.⁵ The disqualification is automatic and applies no matter how small the dollar amount.

When the Case Goes Federal

Embezzlement can cross into federal jurisdiction when it involves an organization receiving federal funding. Under 18 U.S.C. § 666, anyone acting as an agent of a state or local government, or of an organization receiving more than $10,000 in federal benefits during any one-year period, faces federal charges for embezzling property valued at $5,000 or more from that entity.⁶ The maximum penalty is 10 years in federal prison, a fine, or both.

Nevada has plenty of exposure here. Government agencies, hospitals, universities, and nonprofits across the state regularly receive federal grants or contracts, so an employee who diverts funds from one of them can face both state charges under NRS 205.300 and federal charges under § 666. Federal prosecutors tend to pick these cases up when the amounts are substantial or when the scheme involves multiple victims across state lines.

How Long Prosecutors Have to Charge You

Because embezzlement is punished as theft, felony embezzlement is subject to the four-year limitation period that applies to theft offenses.⁷ Misdemeanor embezzlement must be charged within one year of the offense.⁸

There is an important wrinkle that favors prosecutors. When an offense is committed in a secret manner, the clock does not start running until the crime is discovered.⁸ Embezzlement is almost always a concealment crime. Bookkeepers who alter entries, managers who skim cash, employees who invent fake vendors — all of them operate in secrecy, so the four-year window often doesn’t begin until an audit, a tip, or a flagged transaction surfaces the misconduct. Someone whose scheme ended five years ago may still be well within the window if it was uncovered recently.

Defenses That Actually Work

The elements of NRS 205.300 suggest several realistic defenses, all aimed at undercutting what the prosecution has to prove.

No intent to defraud. If you moved funds for what you believed was a legitimate business purpose, or intended to return the money, the required intent element may not be satisfied. An honest mistake handling someone else’s money is not a crime.
Authorization. If the property owner gave you permission to use the funds the way you did, there was no unauthorized conversion. Written records showing broad discretion over the account can support this.
Good-faith belief of ownership. A genuine belief that you had a right to the property negates fraudulent intent, even if that belief turned out to be wrong.
Insufficient evidence of conversion. The state has to prove you actually diverted the assets. Poor record-keeping by the alleged victim, missing documentation, or ambiguous accounting can make that proof hard to establish.

Remember the statutory presumption: any unauthorized use of entrusted property is already treated as evidence of both conversion and intent.¹ Rebutting it usually requires putting on affirmative proof — documents, communications, testimony — not just arguing reasonable doubt.

Restitution Outlasts the Sentence

Nevada courts are required to order restitution for each victim as part of sentencing.⁹ Restitution covers the full value of what was taken, and it stacks on top of any prison time and any fine. It is not an alternative.

A restitution order functions as an enforceable court judgment. If you don’t pay voluntarily, the victim can pursue wage garnishment or liens against your property. The obligation survives your prison term and probation, and it stays in place until paid in full. For large amounts, restitution can shadow you for years after everything else is done.

Federal convictions add another layer. Under 18 U.S.C. § 3613, federal restitution creates a lien against all of your property that lasts 20 years from the date of judgment, or 20 years after your release from prison, whichever is later. It cannot be discharged in bankruptcy, and if you die with it unpaid, your estate remains liable.¹⁰

Life After a Conviction

A felony embezzlement conviction creates consequences that extend well past the sentence. Federal law prohibits anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year of imprisonment from possessing firearms, and every felony tier of Nevada embezzlement carries at least a one-year minimum. The practical result is a lifetime firearms ban unless rights are restored through a separate legal process.

Employment damage is severe and often underestimated. An embezzlement conviction signals a breach of financial trust, which is uniquely harmful for anyone looking for work in banking, accounting, property management, or any job with access to money. Professional licensing boards in Nevada also weigh felony convictions during application and renewal.

Sealing Your Record

Nevada does allow you to petition to seal an embezzlement conviction, but only after a waiting period. For a category B, C, or D felony, you wait five years from the date you were released from custody or discharged from parole or probation, whichever comes later. For a misdemeanor, the wait is one year.¹¹

Sealing is not automatic. You file a petition in the court where you were convicted, and the judge has discretion to grant or deny it. Outstanding restitution complicates everything — courts are reluctant to seal records while a victim is still owed money. Completing your sentence, paying what you owe, and staying clean through the waiting period are the baseline before a court will take the petition seriously.

1
Nevada Legislature. Nevada Revised Statutes 205.300 – Definition; Punishment
2
Nevada Legislature. Nevada Revised Statutes Chapter 205 – Crimes Against Property
3
Nevada Legislature. Nevada Revised Statutes Chapter 193 – Criminality Generally
4
Nevada Legislature. Nevada Revised Statutes Chapter 204 – Crimes Against the Revenue and Property of This State
5
Nevada Legislature. Nevada Revised Statutes Chapter 197 – Crimes Against the Public Justice
6
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 666 – Theft or Bribery Concerning Programs Receiving Federal Funds
7
Nevada Legislature. Nevada Revised Statutes 171.085 – Limitations for Felonies
8
Nevada Legislature. Nevada Revised Statutes Chapter 171 – Proceedings to Commitment
9
Nevada Legislature. Nevada Revised Statutes 176.033 – Sentence of Imprisonment Required or Permitted by Statute
10
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 3613 – Civil Remedies for Satisfaction of an Unpaid Fine
11
Nevada Legislature. Nevada Revised Statutes 179.245 – Sealing Records After Conviction