A felony conviction in Pennsylvania costs you several civil rights at once, and the rights felons lose in Pennsylvania include firearm possession, jury service, eligibility to hold public office, and access to certain federal benefits and housing programs. Voting is the notable exception: you lose it only while actually incarcerated. Most of the other losses stay with you after you finish your sentence unless you take a specific legal step, usually a Governor’s pardon, to lift them.
Voting
Pennsylvania does not permanently strip voting rights for a felony. You cannot vote while you are serving time in a correctional facility for a felony, but the moment you are released you can register and vote in the next election, even if you are still on parole or probation.1Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Criminal Status and Voting People held on misdemeanors keep the right to vote throughout, including by absentee ballot from jail if they have not yet been convicted. Standard residency and age rules still apply.2Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code 25-1301 – Qualifications to Register
Firearms
This is the broadest and most lasting loss. Federal law bars anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year of imprisonment from possessing any firearm or ammunition, which sweeps in essentially every felony.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 922 – Unlawful Acts
Pennsylvania adds its own prohibition at 18 Pa.C.S. 6105. It lists specific offenses that trigger a firearms ban regardless of sentence length, among them murder, voluntary manslaughter, aggravated assault, robbery, drug trafficking, corrupt organizations, and weapons offenses on school property. Certain misdemeanors involving domestic violence or drugs are on the list too. The ban reaches handguns, rifles, shotguns, and ammunition.4Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code 18-6105 – Persons Not to Possess, Use, Manufacture, Control, Sell or Transfer Firearms
Restoration is possible but narrow. You can petition the court of common pleas if your conviction was vacated on appeal, you received a full pardon from the Governor, or you obtained federal firearms relief from the U.S. Attorney General and at least ten years have passed since your most recent qualifying conviction, not counting time incarcerated.5Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code 18-6105 – Persons Not to Possess, Use, Manufacture, Control, Sell or Transfer Firearms The Department of Justice is developing a formal application process under 18 U.S.C. 925(c) to restore federal firearm rights, but as of early 2025 no public application is available.6Department of Justice. Federal Firearm Rights Restoration For most people, a Governor’s pardon is the only realistic path.
Jury Service
A felony conviction disqualifies you from serving on a jury in Pennsylvania. The Judicial Code bars anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year of imprisonment unless you have received a pardon or amnesty.7Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code 42-4502 – Qualifications of Jurors Finishing your sentence does not end the disqualification. Parole and probation do not end it either. Without a pardon, it is permanent.
Public Office
The Pennsylvania Constitution permanently bars anyone convicted of embezzlement of public money, bribery, perjury, or another “infamous crime” from serving in the General Assembly or holding any office of trust or profit in the Commonwealth.8Justia. Pennsylvania Constitution – Article II, Section 7 Courts have read “infamous crime” broadly to cover serious felonies involving dishonesty or breach of public trust. Because the rule sits in the state constitution rather than an ordinary statute, no legislative fix can override it. A full pardon from the Governor is the primary way to remove this bar.
Employment and Professional Licensing
A felony record does not make you unemployable, but it narrows your options. Licensing boards for healthcare, law, education, real estate, and finance evaluate applicants for good moral character, and they may deny a license based on a felony conviction, especially one related to the profession. A fraud conviction, for example, is likely to block a financial services license.
Pennsylvania’s Criminal History Record Information Act allows employers to consider felony and misdemeanor convictions only when the offense relates to your suitability for the specific job. Arrests that did not lead to conviction generally cannot be used against you. Federal law layers on more protection: the EEOC requires that any employer policy screening out applicants based on criminal records be job-related and consistent with business necessity, which means weighing the seriousness of the offense, time elapsed, and the nature of the job.9U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Enforcement Guidance on the Consideration of Arrest and Conviction Records in Employment Decisions Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act A flat “no felons” rule is legally suspect, particularly if it disproportionately affects applicants of a particular race or national origin.
Housing
Federal law imposes two absolute bars on admission to public housing and Section 8. You are permanently ineligible if you are subject to a lifetime sex offender registration requirement, or if you were convicted of manufacturing methamphetamine on public housing premises.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 U.S. Code 13661 – Screening of Applicants for Federally Assisted Housing Beyond those two categories, local public housing authorities have broad discretion to deny applicants based on criminal history and set their own lookback periods.
If you were evicted from federally assisted housing for drug-related activity, you face a three-year ban on readmission unless you complete an approved rehabilitation program. Private landlords can also run background checks, and Pennsylvania has no law prohibiting them from considering a criminal record, though blanket refusal policies may be challenged under fair housing law when they create a discriminatory impact.
Federal Benefits
Social Security payments are suspended while you are incarcerated. SSDI stops after 30 continuous days in jail or prison and can be reinstated starting the month after release. SSI is suspended for the duration of your confinement, and if you are locked up for 12 consecutive months or longer, your SSI eligibility is terminated entirely and you must reapply after release. A spouse’s or children’s benefits continue uninterrupted.11Social Security Administration. What Prisoners Need To Know
Federal student aid is less restrictive than many people assume. Drug convictions no longer disqualify you from receiving federal financial aid through FAFSA.12Federal Student Aid. Eligibility for Students With Criminal Convictions
SNAP and TANF work differently. Federal law originally imposed a lifetime ban on these benefits for anyone with a felony drug conviction, with states permitted to opt out or modify. Pennsylvania kept a modified version, so a drug felony may still limit eligibility for food and cash assistance after you have served your time, depending on the specific conviction and any required treatment programs.
Passports and Foreign Travel
Most felony convictions do not block a U.S. passport. Drug felonies are the exception. If you were convicted of a federal or state drug felony and used a passport or crossed an international border in committing the offense, the State Department must deny your application or revoke your existing passport. That restriction runs through imprisonment and through any parole or supervised release that follows.13Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 22 U.S. Code 2714 – Denial of Passports to Certain Convicted Drug Traffickers Once your sentence is fully complete, you are eligible again.
A valid passport is not the end of the story. Foreign countries set their own entry rules. Canada routinely denies entry to people with felony convictions, including DUIs that qualify as felonies under Canadian law. Visa applications for work or study bring your record to light. Trusted traveler programs such as TSA PreCheck and Global Entry also factor in criminal history.
Getting Your Rights Back
Pennsylvania has three main tools for lifting the effects of a felony conviction. A single successful petition can restore jury service, firearm rights, licensing eligibility, and housing access all at once, so the effort can pay off across the board.
Governor’s Pardon
A pardon from the Governor is the strongest remedy. It makes you eligible for full expungement of the pardoned offense and restores rights that are otherwise permanently gone, including jury service and firearm possession.14Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code 18-9122 – Expungement You apply to the Board of Pardons, which reviews cases and makes recommendations to the Governor. Filing costs run under $50 total, but the process is lengthy, typically a year or more, and approval is not guaranteed. You will need to show rehabilitation, community ties, and character support.
Clean Slate Sealing
Pennsylvania’s Clean Slate law lets certain felony convictions be sealed from public view after ten arrest-free years. Eligible categories include drug offenses, theft, retail theft, receiving stolen property, trespass, forgery, fraud, identity theft, and criminal mischief. Sealed records are hidden from most employer and landlord background checks, though law enforcement and some licensing agencies can still see them. Violent offenses and sex offenses are excluded. Felony sealing requires filing a petition with the court; it is not automatic.
Expungement
Full expungement of a felony conviction is available in Pennsylvania only in narrow circumstances: an unconditional pardon, reaching age 70 with ten arrest-free years after completing your sentence, or being deceased for three years.14Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code 18-9122 – Expungement For most people with a felony record, Clean Slate sealing is the more realistic path short of a pardon.