The new expungement law in Illinois is the Clean Slate Act, House Bill 1836, which the General Assembly passed during the 2025 fall veto session. It will require automatic sealing of a broad range of eligible criminal records, and the state estimates roughly 2.2 million people could benefit. Automatic sealing by the courts is scheduled to begin January 1, 2031. Until then, anyone who wants a record cleared still has to file a petition through the existing circuit court process.
What the Clean Slate Act Does
Under the Clean Slate Act, law enforcement agencies will be required to automatically seal eligible records every six months, with no petition, filing fee, or court appearance required from the person whose record is being cleared.
Not everything qualifies. The law excludes convictions for sexual violence against minors, DUI, reckless driving, animal cruelty, and serious violent crimes, along with any offense that would require sex offender registration. For felony convictions that do qualify, automatic sealing does not kick in until three years after the person finishes their most recent sentence.
The state has allocated funding to be phased in over five years to cover the technology and administrative costs of building the automatic system. Cook County’s costs are handled separately.
Because the automatic process does not start until 2031, the law does not help anyone whose life or job search cannot wait. For that, the petition route is still the only option.
Sealing Is Not the Same as Expungement
The Clean Slate Act uses sealing, not expungement, and the difference matters.
Expungement destroys the record entirely. The arresting agency, the court, and the Illinois State Police are all ordered to delete the file. Once expunged, the case essentially ceases to exist in any government database accessible to the public.
Sealing hides the record from public view but does not destroy it. A sealed record will not appear on standard background checks run by employers or landlords. Certain government agencies, law enforcement, and state’s attorneys can still access sealed records, particularly if you are later charged with a new offense. Some licensing bodies and employers in sensitive fields like healthcare or education can also see sealed records during their vetting process.
Expungement is the stronger remedy, but fewer offenses qualify. Sealing covers a much wider range of cases, including many convictions, which is why the Clean Slate Act is built around it.
Petitioning Before 2031
If you cannot wait until 2031, or your record would not qualify for automatic sealing, you can still petition the circuit court under the existing law.
Who Qualifies for Petition-Based Expungement
Expungement is available when a case ended without a conviction or in certain favorable outcomes:
- Acquittal or dismissal
- Arrest without formal charges being filed
- A conviction that was later vacated or reversed
- Successful completion of court supervision (not probation, not a conviction)
- Successful completion of first-offender probation for a drug offense or another qualifying probation program
Expungement is not available for a standard conviction, even a misdemeanor, unless the conviction was later vacated or reversed. The statute also blocks expungement for DUI supervision, sex offenses against a minor, and minor traffic offenses.1Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 20 ILCS 2630/5.2
Who Qualifies for Petition-Based Sealing
Sealing reaches further because it applies to many convictions. You can petition to seal:
- Arrests that did not lead to charges
- Acquittals, dismissals, and reversed convictions
- Completed supervision, including supervision for municipal ordinance violations
- Most misdemeanor and felony convictions, unless the offense falls into an excluded category
- Completed first-offender probation under the Cannabis Control Act, Controlled Substances Act, or similar programs
You cannot seal DUI convictions, sex offenses against a minor, domestic violence offenses, gun offenses, or crimes of violence.1Illinois General Assembly. Illinois Code 20 ILCS 2630/5.2
How Long You Have to Wait
Illinois does not let you file the moment a case ends. The waiting period depends on how the case was resolved:
- Acquittal, dismissal, or release without charging: no waiting period.
- Completed supervision for most offenses: two years from the end of your sentence.
- Completed supervision for domestic battery, retail theft, criminal sexual abuse, and certain vehicle insurance offenses: five years.
- Completed qualified probation in a drug first-offender program: five years for expungement.
- Convictions eligible for sealing: three years from the end of your most recent sentence.
- Second chance probation: no waiting period for sealing that record.
The end of your sentence is the date you finished everything the court required, including jail time, probation, community service, and payment of restitution. The clock does not start while any part of the sentence remains outstanding.
Filing the Petition
Before filing, gather detailed information about every case you want cleared. Missing information is one of the most common reasons petitions stall. You will need the case number, the date of arrest, the arresting agency, the specific charges filed, and the final outcome for each case.
The petition forms are standardized statewide and available through the Illinois Courts website.2Office of the Illinois Courts. Expungement and Sealing You can also get them from the circuit clerk in the county where your arrest occurred. Fill out the “Petition to Expunge and/or Seal Criminal Records” forms and file them with the Clerk of the Circuit Court in that county.
After filing, you must send copies of the petition and a notice to the State’s Attorney’s office in that county, the Illinois State Police, and the arresting agency. The State’s Attorney can object. If nobody objects, many courts grant the petition without a hearing. If the State’s Attorney objects, the court schedules a hearing.
Most petitions take four to six months from filing to a final order. Errors in paperwork or objections can stretch that considerably.
Filing Costs
Two fees apply. The circuit clerk charges a filing fee that varies by county, and the Illinois State Police charges a processing fee per case. Combined, expect somewhere in the range of $60 to $120 per case depending on the county. If you cannot afford the fees, you can ask the court for a waiver based on financial hardship.3Circuit Court of Cook County. Expungements for Adults
Checking Whether Your Record Was Cleared
The Illinois State Police runs the state’s criminal history database. Their Access and Review process lets you obtain a copy of your own criminal history transcript, which shows what remains and what has been expunged or sealed.4Illinois State Police. Viewing My Record
To request your record, submit a set of fingerprints to the Illinois State Police through a local law enforcement agency, a correctional facility, or a licensed live scan fingerprint vendor during regular business hours.5Illinois State Police. Right of Access and Review Procedure The State Police does not charge a fee, but the agency or vendor taking your fingerprints may charge its own processing fee.4Illinois State Police. Viewing My Record The State Police will then mail you a copy of your transcript.
What Clearing a Record Cannot Fix
Both automatic sealing under the Clean Slate Act and petition-based expungement have hard limits. Missing them can create real problems.
Federal Records and Firearms
Clearing a state record does not automatically erase any federal record tied to the same incident. If a conviction triggered a federal firearms restriction, state expungement alone may not restore the right to possess a firearm. Federal law provides a separate process for restoring firearms rights through the Attorney General under 18 U.S.C. ยง 925(c), and the Department of Justice has been developing a web-based application for these requests.6Department of Justice. Federal Firearm Rights Restoration Anyone in this situation should consult an attorney before assuming state expungement resolves the federal issue.
Immigration Consequences
For noncitizens, this is where things get especially dangerous. Federal immigration law treats cannabis offenses as crimes regardless of whether the state has legalized cannabis or expunged the record. Immigration authorities look at what happened, not whether the state later cleared the paperwork. A cannabis arrest or admission of use can trigger immigration consequences even without a conviction, even in a state where the conduct was legal, and even if the record has been expunged. Noncitizens with any cannabis-related history should speak with an immigration attorney before filing, because the petition itself can draw attention to the record.
Private Background Checks
Under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act, commercial background screening companies must follow reasonable procedures to ensure the maximum possible accuracy of the information they report.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. United States Code Title 15 Section 1681e In practice, a screening company that reports an expunged or sealed record is violating that standard. The industry generally acknowledges that expunged and sealed records should not appear in reports.
Data moves slowly, though. Third-party databases that scraped court records before the clearance may still hold stale information. If an expunged record shows up on a background check, you can dispute the report with the screening company. If they fail to correct it, you may have a claim under the FCRA. Checking your own record periodically after clearance is the best way to catch these errors before a potential employer or landlord does.