Virginia Record Sealing Law: Eligibility, Waiting Periods, and Filing

Virginia’s record sealing law takes effect on July 1, 2026, and it creates two ways for a criminal record to be hidden from public view: automatic sealing for certain non-convictions and a short list of misdemeanor convictions, and petition-based sealing in circuit court for most other misdemeanors and lower-level felonies. The law came in through House Bill 2113 and Senate Bill 1339 and replaces Virginia’s older expungement system, which generally only reached cases that ended without a guilty finding.1Virginia Legislative Information System. SB 1339 Criminal Records; Sealing of Records, Sealing Fee Fund Created, Penalties, Report The Virginia State Crime Commission has confirmed that both tracks are on schedule for the July 2026 launch.2Virginia State Crime Commission. Sealing of Criminal Records Update 2026

What Seals Automatically

Automatic sealing runs on two tracks. If a charge was dismissed, declined for prosecution (nolle prosequi), or ended in an acquittal, the record gets sealed without any action from you. The Central Criminal Records Exchange identifies these entries and coordinates with local court clerks.3Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 19.2-392.6:1 – Automatic Sealing of Certain Charges and Acquittals

The second track covers a narrow set of misdemeanor convictions from January 1, 1986 or later.4Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 19.2-392.6 – Automatic Sealing of Offenses Resulting in Conviction The qualifying offenses are:

  • Petit larceny under § 18.2-96 and concealment of merchandise under § 18.2-103.
  • Trespass after being forbidden to do so (§ 18.2-119), peeping into a dwelling (§ 18.2-120), and trespass on posted property (§ 18.2-134).
  • A misdemeanor-level violation of § 18.2-248.1, covering historical marijuana distribution charges at the lowest level.
  • Disorderly conduct under § 18.2-415.

These seal automatically only after seven years have passed with no new reportable conviction. There is a catch worth flagging: if you were convicted of another offense on the same date that does not qualify for automatic sealing, the eligible conviction will not seal automatically either. You can still pursue it by petition.4Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 19.2-392.6 – Automatic Sealing of Offenses Resulting in Conviction

What You Have to Petition For

Convictions that fall outside the automatic list may still be sealed through a petition filed in circuit court under Virginia Code § 19.2-392.12. This route covers most other misdemeanor convictions and Class 5 and Class 6 felonies that are not on the excluded list.5Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 19.2-392.12 – Sealing of Offenses Resulting in a Deferred and Dismissed Disposition or Conviction by Petition Class 5 and 6 are Virginia’s lowest felony classes, sometimes reducible to misdemeanor-level punishment at sentencing.

A judge cannot grant a petition unless all six statutory findings are met:

  • No conviction for a Class 1 or 2 felony or any crime punishable by life imprisonment; no Class 3 or 4 felony conviction within the past 20 years; and no other felony conviction within the past 10 years.
  • No new convictions requiring a report to the Central Criminal Records Exchange for seven years (misdemeanors) or ten years (felonies), counted from the later of the conviction date, release from incarceration, or a probation or parole violation finding.
  • If the offense involved alcohol or drug use or dependence, evidence of rehabilitation.
  • All court-ordered restitution connected to the conviction fully paid.
  • No more than two prior sealing petitions granted for offenses from different sentencing events.
  • A finding that the continued existence and possible release of the record causes or could cause circumstances amounting to a manifest injustice.
6Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 19.2-392.12 – Sealing of Offenses Resulting in a Deferred and Dismissed Disposition or Conviction by Petition

The manifest injustice finding is where contested petitions are usually won or lost. The statute does not define the term, so judges weigh the facts of each case. Documentation of lost jobs, denied housing, or professional licensing setbacks tied to the record carries more weight than a general preference for a clean history.

A separate petition path in § 19.2-392.12:1 exists for people whose offenses should have sealed automatically but haven’t yet moved through the state’s system. Those petitions carry no filing fee.7Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 19.2-392.12:1 – Sealing of Specific Offenses by Petition

What Cannot Be Sealed

Some offenses stay on your record no matter how much time passes. Under § 19.2-392.12(L), the excluded categories are:5Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 19.2-392.12 – Sealing of Offenses Resulting in a Deferred and Dismissed Disposition or Conviction by Petition

  • Any violent felony listed under § 17.1-805(C), such as murder, robbery, and aggravated assault.
  • Any offense requiring registration on the Sex Offender and Crimes Against Minors Registry.
  • Driving under the influence (§ 18.2-266), refusal of a blood or breath test (§ 18.2-268.3), and related commercial vehicle violations.
  • Any non-violent felony in which a firearm was used, unless firearm rights have been restored.
  • Any violation of an emergency, preliminary, or permanent protective order.
  • Any offense classified as a hate crime under § 52-8.5.
  • Virginia’s animal cruelty offenses.
  • Any election law violation under Title 24.2.

Conspiracy, attempt, solicitation, and accessory charges tied to any of these are excluded on the same terms. Employers, licensing boards, and members of the public keep full access to these records.

Waiting Periods and Conditions

Eligibility is gated by time since your last contact with the justice system. The waiting periods are seven years for misdemeanor convictions and ten years for felony convictions.

The clock does not always start on the conviction date. It starts on whichever of these happened last: the conviction itself, release from incarceration, a finding that you violated probation or parole, or release from incarceration after such a violation.8Virginia State Crime Commission. Criminal Record Sealing Processes in Virginia Someone convicted in 2016 who served jail time through 2018, violated probation in 2019, and finished additional time in 2020 would count the waiting period from 2020.

A new conviction during the waiting period resets things. You have to resolve the new case first, then run a fresh waiting period. Traffic infractions under Title 46.2 are the one exception and do not affect eligibility.6Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 19.2-392.12 – Sealing of Offenses Resulting in a Deferred and Dismissed Disposition or Conviction by Petition

All court-ordered restitution must be paid in full and any term of probation or parole completed. A small outstanding restitution balance will stop a petition.

How to File a Petition

Pull Your Records First

Request a copy of your Virginia criminal history from the Central Criminal Records Exchange, which the State Police manages. The request goes in on an SP-167 form, available through the State Police website.9Virginia State Police. Virginia Criminal History Record Check The report shows arrest dates, the specific charges filed, and the final outcome of each case. The court will compare your petition against these official records, so accuracy matters.

You also want the sentencing order from the court that heard the case, along with the case number, the name of the court, and the arresting agency. Clerical mismatches between your petition and the state’s records can get a filing rejected.

Where to File and What Happens Next

File the petition in the circuit court for the jurisdiction where the original case was heard. A copy must be served on the Commonwealth’s Attorney for that jurisdiction, who then has 30 days from delivery or receipt by mail to file an objection, submit an answer, or notify the court in writing that there is no objection.10Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code Chapter 23.2 – Sealing of Criminal History Record Information and Court Records

If the Commonwealth’s Attorney does not object and stipulates in writing that you are eligible, the court may enter the sealing order without a hearing. If the prosecutor objects, you appear before a judge and argue the case. Once the judge signs the order, the clerk sends a copy to the State Police, who update the Central Criminal Records Exchange and coordinate with other state agencies to restrict access.5Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 19.2-392.12 – Sealing of Offenses Resulting in a Deferred and Dismissed Disposition or Conviction by Petition

The court will request that the Central Criminal Records Exchange electronically forward your Virginia and national criminal history directly to the circuit court. You do not need to submit fingerprints, but the judge sees the full history before ruling.

What Sealing Actually Does for You

Once a sealing order is entered, you have the legal right to deny that the arrest, charge, or conviction ever happened. Under Virginia Code § 19.2-392.5, you can tell any state or local government agency and any private employer in Virginia that no such record exists, and you cannot be prosecuted for perjury or making a false statement for doing so.11Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 19.2-392.5 – Sealing Defined; Effect of Sealing On a job application that asks whether you have ever been convicted of a crime, you can lawfully answer no about a sealed conviction.

Three situations override that right. You cannot deny a sealed record when:

  • Applying for employment or a volunteer position with the State Police, a local police department, or a sheriff’s office.
  • Virginia Code or federal law specifically requires the employer to ask about prior criminal history.
  • The position involves national security requirements under federal law, regulations, or an Executive Order.

Knowingly and willfully failing to disclose in one of these situations can be treated as perjury.11Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 19.2-392.5 – Sealing Defined; Effect of Sealing Courts and law enforcement agencies are also bound: if someone inquires about a sealed record, the court and any law enforcement agency must respond that no record exists, unless the inquiry falls into one of the authorized access categories.

Sealed does not mean erased. Virginia Code § 19.2-392.13 keeps sealed records available for a limited set of uses: firearm eligibility checks through the National Instant Criminal Background Check System; hiring and volunteer screening by the State Police, police departments, and sheriff’s offices; positions where federal law requires a criminal history inquiry or a national security clearance; fingerprint comparison through the Automated Fingerprint Information System; research use by the Virginia Criminal Sentencing Commission, the Virginia State Crime Commission, and the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission; and screening for employees and volunteers with emergency medical services agencies and the Department of Forensic Science.12Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 19.2-392.13 – Disposition of Records When Sealing is Ordered For everyone else, including most private employers and landlords, the sealed record is not accessible.

Private Background Checks After Sealing

Sealing the government record does not instantly clean up commercial background check databases. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued guidance in 2024 interpreting the Fair Credit Reporting Act to address this. Under that reading, a consumer reporting agency that reports a sealed or expunged record is not following reasonable procedures to ensure accuracy, because “there is no longer any public record of the matter.”13Federal Register. Fair Credit Reporting; Background Screening

Background check companies are expected to keep procedures in place that prevent sealed records from appearing in their reports, whether by refreshing government data or requesting updated lists of sealed matters. If a sealed record still turns up on a consumer report about you, dispute it with the reporting agency in writing. Under federal law, the agency must investigate and correct the error.