Ohio (OH) — Expungement & Record Clearing

Remedy

Sealing or expungement of official records after a not-guilty finding, dismissal, or grand jury no bill (R.C. 2953.33, formerly R.C. 2953.52)

Waiting period

None after a not-guilty finding or dismissal: you may apply any time after it is entered on the court's journal. For a grand jury no bill, 2 years after it is reported to the court.

If you were found not guilty or your case was dismissed, you may apply to the court that handled the case to have the records sealed or expunged. A grand jury "no bill" can also be cleared, but only 2 years after it is reported. This is not automatic for adults. The court must set a hearing 45–90 days after you file, and the prosecutor may object. The judge then weighs your interest against any government need to keep the records.

• ✗Dismissed or no-billed cases involving traffic offenses, including OVI (R.C. Chapters 4506, 4507, 4510, 4511, 4549), can be sealed but not expunged
• ✗Dismissed or no-billed cases involving felony offenses of violence, sex offenses while registration applies, victims under 13, 1st/2nd-degree felonies, or domestic violence/protection-order violations can be sealed but not expunged
• ✗If charges from the same act ended differently (e.g., one conviction, one dismissal), you generally must wait until all of them can be cleared. A narrow exception applies when the only conviction is one non-OVI traffic offense and you do not hold a commercial driver's license

Sources: Ohio Rev. Code § 2953.33 (codes.ohio.gov) (Section heading; (A)(1); (A)(2); (B)(1); +6 more); Ohio Rev. Code § 2953.61 (codes.ohio.gov) ((A); (B)(1); (B)(2))

Remedy

Sealing or expungement of the record of conviction (R.C. 2953.32)

Waiting period

1 year after final discharge for sealing or expungement (6 months for a minor misdemeanor). Sealing takes 7 years if the record includes soliciting improper compensation (R.C. 2921.43).

Most misdemeanor convictions can be sealed or expunged once the waiting period after final discharge has passed. You apply to the sentencing court, or to a common pleas court for an out-of-state or federal conviction. At a hearing, the judge checks that the conviction is eligible and that no criminal case is pending. The judge then decides whether you are rehabilitated and weighs your interest against the government's need to keep the records. The decision is up to the judge. One application can cover more than one case.

• ✗Traffic convictions, including OVI (R.C. Chapters 4506, 4507, 4510, 4511, 4549, or similar municipal ordinances)
• ✗1st- or 2nd-degree misdemeanor domestic violence (R.C. 2919.25)
• ✗3rd/4th-degree misdemeanor domestic violence and violating a protection order (R.C. 2919.27): sealing only, not expungement
• ✗Sexually oriented offenses while the person is subject to sex-offender registration (sealing may be sought 5 years after registration duties end)
• ✗Offenses where the victim was under 13 (except criminal nonsupport, R.C. 2919.21)
• ✗Theft in office (R.C. 2921.41)

Sources: Ohio Rev. Code § 2953.32 (codes.ohio.gov) ((B)(1); (B)(1)(a)(ii); (B)(1)(a)(v); (B)(1)(b)(i)-(ii); +13 more); State v. J.B., Slip Opinion No. 2026-Ohio-1405 (Supreme Court of Ohio) (¶ 1)

Remedy

Sealing or expungement of the record of conviction (R.C. 2953.32)

Waiting period

Sealing: 1 year after final discharge for 4th/5th-degree felonies, and 3 years for one or two 3rd-degree felonies (7 years if the record includes soliciting improper compensation). Expungement: 10 years after the date the felony could first be sealed. For example, that is 11 years after final discharge for a 4th/5th-degree felony and 13 years for a 3rd-degree felony.

Third-, fourth- and fifth-degree felony convictions can be sealed, and later expunged, unless they fall in an excluded category. First- and second-degree felonies cannot be sealed or expunged. Neither can felony offenses of violence (sexually oriented offenses follow a separate rule). Third-degree felonies are capped: you cannot have more than one other felony conviction, or, if you have exactly two 3rd-degree felonies, more than those two plus two misdemeanor convictions. The court holds a hearing and decides in its discretion.

• ✗1st- and 2nd-degree felonies
• ✗Felony offenses of violence that are not sexually oriented offenses
• ✗Sexually oriented offenses while the person is subject to sex-offender registration
• ✗Offenses where the victim was under 13 (except criminal nonsupport, R.C. 2919.21)
• ✗Theft in office (R.C. 2921.41)
• ✗A 3rd-degree felony when the record exceeds the statutory limits on other convictions
• ✗Traffic-chapter felonies such as felony OVI (R.C. Chapter 4511)

Sources: Ohio Rev. Code § 2953.32 (codes.ohio.gov) ((B)(1); (B)(1)(a)(i); (B)(1)(a)(ii); (B)(1)(a)(iii); +10 more); State v. J.B., Slip Opinion No. 2026-Ohio-1405 (Supreme Court of Ohio) (¶ 1)

Remedy

None for OVI convictions. R.C. 2953.32 does not apply to convictions under R.C. Chapter 4511, which includes OVI (R.C. 4511.19). A dismissed or not-guilty OVI charge can be cleared under R.C. 2953.33.

Waiting period

No single period — see the conditions below

Ohio's sealing and expungement law does not apply to any conviction under the traffic chapters of the Revised Code. Those chapters include OVI (Ohio's DUI offense), so an OVI conviction cannot be sealed or expunged, even a first offense. An OVI charge that was dismissed or ended in a not-guilty finding can be sealed, but a dismissed or no-billed OVI case cannot be expunged. Sometimes an OVI charge is dismissed and the only conviction from the same act is one other traffic offense. In that case the court may seal all of the records, unless you hold a commercial driver's license.

• ✗All OVI convictions (first or repeat) and all other convictions under R.C. Chapters 4506, 4507, 4510, 4511 and 4549 or similar municipal ordinances
• ✗Sealing under R.C. 2953.32 does not erase driver's license points assessed under R.C. 4510.036

Sources: Ohio Rev. Code § 2953.32 (codes.ohio.gov) ((A)(1)(a)); Ohio Rev. Code § 2953.33 (codes.ohio.gov) ((A)(1); (C)(1); (C)(1)(a)); Ohio Rev. Code § 2953.61 (codes.ohio.gov) ((B)(1); (B)(2)); Ohio Rev. Code § 2953.34 (codes.ohio.gov) ((G)(2))

Remedy

Sealing or expungement of the record of conviction (R.C. 2953.32). Also: prosecutor-initiated sealing or expungement for low-level drug offenses (R.C. 2953.39), and expungement of older marijuana/hashish possession records (R.C. 2953.321, effective March 20, 2026).

Waiting period

Under R.C. 2953.32, the same as other convictions: 1 year after final discharge for misdemeanors (6 months for a minor misdemeanor) and for 4th/5th-degree felonies, and 3 years for 3rd-degree felonies. Felony expungement takes 10 more years. Marijuana/hashish expungement under R.C. 2953.321 has no waiting period.

Many simple drug possession offenses are misdemeanors or 5th-degree felonies (for example, basic cocaine possession is a 5th-degree felony). Those can be sealed or expunged under the general rules once the waiting period has passed, but possession charged as a 1st- or 2nd-degree felony cannot. For minor-misdemeanor and 4th-degree misdemeanor drug convictions, the prosecutor may also apply for sealing or expungement. Since March 20, 2026, a separate law lets people apply at any time to expunge two kinds of records from before that date: minor-misdemeanor marijuana possession, and certain hashish possession (up to 15 grams). It covers convictions and dismissed charges. Every route requires an application; none is automatic.

• ✗Possession offenses that are 1st- or 2nd-degree felonies
• ✗R.C. 2953.321 marijuana/hashish expungement covers only listed low-level possession offenses (or dismissed charges) from before March 20, 2026

Sources: Ohio Rev. Code § 2925.11 (codes.ohio.gov) ((C)(4)(a); (C)(3)(a)-(b)); Ohio Rev. Code § 2953.32 (codes.ohio.gov) ((B)(1)(a)(ii); (B)(1)(b)(i)-(ii); (A)(1)(e)-(f)); Ohio Rev. Code § 2953.39 (codes.ohio.gov) ((A)(2); (B)(1)); Ohio Rev. Code § 2953.321 (codes.ohio.gov) (Section header (effective date); (B); (B)(2); (C)); Ohio LSC, S.B. 56 (136th GA) Final Analysis (Header, p. 1; Overview, 'Expungement of prior marijuana or hashish possession offenses')

Remedy

Juvenile record sealing (R.C. 2151.356) and expungement (R.C. 2151.358)

Waiting period

Under 18: 6 months after the court's orders end or after unconditional discharge from the Department of Youth Services or a facility. 18 or older: any time after the later of turning 18 or that event.

The juvenile court must promptly seal records when a case was resolved without a complaint being filed. It also seals them when a complaint was dismissed after trial or the child was found not delinquent, but since September 30, 2025 only if it finds that disclosure would do more harm than good. For delinquency, unruly and juvenile-traffic adjudications, the court may seal records on its own motion or on an application, with no filing fee. That happens after a waiting period, if the court finds the person rehabilitated. Sealed juvenile records are then automatically expunged 5 years after the sealing order or at age 23, whichever comes first. After sealing, the person may answer that no record exists.

• ✗Adjudications for aggravated murder (R.C. 2903.01), murder (R.C. 2903.02), or rape (R.C. 2907.02) cannot be sealed
• ✗Not available while the person is under the court's jurisdiction on a pending delinquency complaint

Sources: Ohio Rev. Code § 2151.356 (codes.ohio.gov) (Section header (effective date); (A); (B)(1); (B)(1)(b); +5 more); Ohio Rev. Code § 2151.358 (codes.ohio.gov) ((A); (B)); Ohio Rev. Code § 2151.357 (codes.ohio.gov) ((A))