Expunging a criminal record generally costs between $200 and $2,500, and can run higher for complicated cases. The court filing fee is the one charge almost everyone pays; attorney fees, if you hire one, are the biggest swing in the total. A simple misdemeanor petition you file yourself might come in under a few hundred dollars. A contested felony with a lawyer can reach several thousand. And in more than a dozen states, qualifying records are now cleared automatically at no cost to you. So the real question of how much it costs to expunge a record depends on three things: where you live, what’s on your record, and whether you use an attorney.
Court Filing Fees
The filing fee is the baseline cost of submitting an expungement petition, and it varies enormously by state. Some states charge nothing for certain petition types. Others charge $300 to $450. Most land somewhere in between, with $50 to $200 being common for a standard adult expungement. The fee is set by state law or local court rule, so there’s nothing to negotiate.
A few patterns affect what you’ll pay. Cases that ended in dismissal or acquittal often carry lower fees or no fee at all, on the reasoning that you were never convicted and shouldn’t face a financial barrier to clearing the record. Felony expungements, where available, sometimes cost more than misdemeanor petitions. Some courts split the cost, charging a preliminary application fee and a separate fee once the petition is approved.
To find your exact fee, check the fee schedule on the website of the court where your case was originally filed. Most courts post this under the clerk’s office or criminal division section. A phone call to the clerk works too.
Attorney Fees
Legal representation is the biggest variable in the total, and it’s also the one expense you can choose to skip. Most expungement attorneys charge a flat fee that covers the whole process: reviewing your record, filing the petition, and appearing in court. Flat fees for straightforward cases typically fall between $500 and $2,500. A single old misdemeanor sits at the low end. Multiple charges, felony convictions, or records spanning different counties push the cost higher.
Some attorneys bill hourly instead, with rates roughly $150 to $400 depending on experience and location. Hourly can work in your favor for a simple case that only takes a few hours of work, but it creates risk if complications arise. A prosecutor who objects, or a judge who schedules additional hearings, can add hours you didn’t budget for. If you go hourly, ask for a realistic estimate and what might increase it.
Whether you need a lawyer at all depends on how complicated your situation is. A single charge, clear court instructions, and no likely objections is a realistic self-file. Many people handle their own petitions successfully. But if your record involves multiple charges, offenses in different jurisdictions, or a conviction type on the edge of eligibility, an attorney can keep you from filing a petition that gets denied and burning the filing fee.
Smaller Out-of-Pocket Costs
Several smaller costs stack up alongside the filing fee and any attorney fees. None are huge on their own, but together they can add $50 to $150.
- Criminal history report. Most petitions require an official copy of your record. State agencies typically charge $10 to $30 for a personal criminal history transcript. A federal-level check runs $18 from the FBI for an Identity History Summary, whether requested by mail or electronically.1Federal Bureau of Investigation. Identity History Summary Checks Frequently Asked Questions
- Fingerprinting. Some states require live-scan fingerprints. Fees typically run $25 to $50 depending on the provider and location.
- Certified court documents. Certified copies of dispositions, sentencing orders, or other court records usually cost $5 to $25 per copy.
- Notarization and postage. Affidavits or sworn statements may need notarization, which runs a few dollars per signature. Certified mail to required parties, like the district attorney’s office or the arresting agency, adds another small cost.
Gather these documents before filing. Courts reject incomplete petitions, and in some jurisdictions resubmitting means paying certain fees again.
How to Pay Nothing, or Close to It
Automatic Expungement Under Clean Slate Laws
The cheapest expungement is one you don’t have to apply for. More than a dozen states and Washington, D.C. have passed “Clean Slate” laws that automatically seal or expunge qualifying records after a waiting period, with no petition, no filing fee, and no attorney.2Clean Slate Initiative. Clean Slate in States Michigan, for example, began automatically expunging qualifying convictions in 2023.
Details vary, but automatic expungement typically covers arrests that didn’t result in conviction, misdemeanor convictions after a set number of crime-free years, and in some states at least one felony. If your record falls into an eligible category, the process happens in the background without you spending a dollar. The catch is that automatic systems can be slow, sometimes years behind on backlogs. If you’re in an eligible state but need your record cleared sooner, you can usually still file a petition the traditional way and pay the associated fees.
Check whether your state has a Clean Slate law before spending money on a lawyer or filing fees. This is the single biggest way people overpay: hiring an attorney to petition for something the state would have done for free.
Legal Aid, Clinics, and Public Defenders
If your record doesn’t qualify for automatic expungement and you can’t afford an attorney, several options can bring the legal cost to zero.
- Legal aid organizations. Many legal aid societies handle expungement petitions for free, particularly for people with low incomes. Eligibility varies, but it’s worth calling your local office.
- Expungement clinics. Legal aid groups, law schools, and bar associations hold periodic clinics where volunteer attorneys help people complete and file petitions at no charge. These events have become more common as states expand eligibility.
- Public defender offices. In some jurisdictions, the public defender handles post-conviction relief including expungement, particularly if they originally represented you on the underlying case.
These resources won’t cover court filing fees on their own, but paired with a fee waiver they can reduce your total cost to essentially nothing.
Fee Waivers
If the filing fee itself is the barrier, ask the court to waive it. Approval eliminates the filing fee entirely. Federal courts call this proceeding “in forma pauperis,” and most state courts have a similar mechanism under a different name.3United States Courts. Application to Proceed in District Court Without Prepaying Fees or Costs (Short Form)
Eligibility is almost always income-based. You typically qualify if your household income falls below a certain percentage of the federal poverty level, or if you’re already receiving means-tested public benefits like SNAP, TANF, Medicaid, or SSI. The application asks you to list income, assets, and monthly expenses so the court can assess whether paying the fee would create real hardship.
Be realistic about the scope. A fee waiver covers the court’s filing fee and nothing else. You’re still responsible for attorney fees, the criminal history report, fingerprinting, and certified mail. Even so, cutting out the filing fee makes a real difference when combined with free legal help. To apply, submit the fee waiver request form with your petition. The specific form varies by court, so check with the clerk.
Check Eligibility Before You Pay Anything
Before spending money, make sure your record is actually eligible. Every state limits which offenses can be cleared, and filing for an ineligible conviction means losing your filing fee and any attorney costs with nothing to show for it.
Specifics vary by state, but certain categories are almost universally ineligible. Sex offenses requiring registration, violent felonies like murder or kidnapping, and crimes against children are off the table in virtually every jurisdiction. Most states also impose waiting periods: you must remain crime-free for a set number of years after completing your sentence before petitioning. Filing before your waiting period expires results in an automatic denial.
An attorney can assess your eligibility before you commit to the full cost of filing, and many offer free or low-cost initial consultations for exactly this purpose. Legal aid organizations screen for eligibility as a first step too. Getting this answer before you spend anything is worth the phone call.
Expungement Versus Record Sealing
Depending on your state, you may be offered expungement, record sealing, or both. Fees for the two are usually similar within the same jurisdiction, so the choice is less about cost than about what you get for your money. Expungement typically means the record is destroyed or treated as if it never existed. Sealing means the record still exists but is hidden from public view, though certain government agencies and law enforcement can still access it with a court order. A sealed record can theoretically resurface; an expunged record generally cannot. Not every state offers true expungement for convictions, and some only offer sealing. Clarify your state’s terminology and available remedies before you file, so you know what you’re actually paying for.