Expungement in California: The Complete PC 1203.4 Guide (2026)

August 18, 2026

Summary 

• Expungement under PC 1203.4 lets you withdraw your guilty plea (or have the verdict set aside) and have the case dismissed after you complete probation. The record then shows a dismissal instead of a conviction. 

• Most misdemeanors and many felonies qualify. Since SB 731, even many people sentenced to state prison have a petition path through related statutes; something older articles still say is impossible. 

• California now grants automatic record relief for many eligible convictions through PC 1203.425, but the automatic system has gaps, and a petition is still the reliable route. 

• There is no longer a statutory filing fee for the petition, and under PC 1203.4(c)(3), unpaid restitution cannot be the reason your petition is denied. 

• An expungement does not restore firearm rights, does not end sex-offender registration, must still be disclosed for state licensing and public office, and does not erase a conviction’s use as a prior. 

Introduction 

A conviction from years ago can still decide whether you got the job, the apartment, or the license. California’s answer is expungement under Penal Code 1203.4, and the law around it has changed more in the last few years than in the previous several decades. This guide reflects the rules as they stand in 2026: who qualifies, what the process involves, what has become automatic, and what an expungement still cannot do. 

What Is Expungement in California? 

Expungement in California is a court order under Penal Code 1203.4 that lets you withdraw your guilty or no-contest plea (or sets aside a guilty verdict), enters a not-guilty plea, and dismisses the case. Your criminal record is not erased, but it is updated to show the conviction was dismissed, and you are released from most penalties and disabilities of the conviction. 

That last sentence is the honest version of “clearing your record.” The case history still exists, and law enforcement can still see it, but for most private employment purposes the conviction is treated as dismissed, and California employers generally cannot use it against you. 

What an Expungement Does, and What It Does Not Do 

A PC 1203.4 dismissal generally does: 

• Change your record to show a dismissal instead of a conviction. 

• Allow you to answer “no” to conviction questions from most private employers, and California law restricts employers from asking about or considering dismissed convictions. 

• Improve how commercial background checks report on the case. 

• Help with housing applications and many certification requirements. 

A PC 1203.4 dismissal does not: 

• Erase or seal the court file from law enforcement or the courts. 

• Restore firearm rights. The statute says so expressly. 

• End a sex-offender registration obligation. 

• Remove the duty to disclose the conviction when applying for public office, a state or local license, or contracting with the California State Lottery. 

• Stop the conviction from being used as a prior to future prosecution. A dismissed DUI still counts within the 10-year lookback, for example. 

• Terminate an active criminal protective order. Under PC 1203.4(a)(4), a protective order issued in the case survives the dismissal until it expires, or the court ends it. 

• Reliably fix immigration consequences. Federal immigration law generally still treats the conviction as a conviction. 

Who Qualifies for Expungement Under PC 1203.4 

The basic requirements 

You are generally eligible to petition once all three are true: 

1. You completed probation (formal or informal), or the court terminated it early, or the court finds relief is in the interest of justice despite imperfections. 
2. You are not currently serving a sentence, on probation for another offense, or facing new charges. 
3. Your conviction is not on the excluded list (below). 

Two points most articles get wrong: 

• A probation violation is not automatically fatal. The court keeps discretion to grant relief in the interest of justice. Judges weigh the violation, what came after it, and your record since. 

• Unpaid restitution cannot be the reason you are denied. Under PC 1203.4(c)(3), a petition shall not be denied due to an unfulfilled restitution order or fine, and unpaid restitution cannot be treated as a failure to complete probation. Restitution remains owed, but it no longer blocks the dismissal. 

Felonies, including prison sentences 

Felonies granted probation are eligible under PC 1203.4 like misdemeanors, and a wobbler felony can often first be reduced to a misdemeanor under PC 17(b), which is usually worth doing before or alongside the dismissal. 

If you were sentenced to county jail under Realignment, or even to state prison, older articles say you are out of luck. That is no longer accurate. Companion statutes (PC 1203.41 and 1203.42, expanded by SB 731 in 2023) create petition-based dismissal paths for many felony sentences after a waiting period following completion of the sentence, generally excluding serious or violent felonies and offenses requiring sex-offender registration. Eligibility here is technical and depends on your sentence type and dates, which is exactly the situation where a records review by an attorney pays for itself. 

Who does not qualify 

PC 1203.4 excludes, among others: specified sex offenses against children (including PC 288 and related statutes), certain statutory rape felonies (PC 261.5(d)), misdemeanors under Vehicle Code 42002.1, and infractions. Certain serious Vehicle Code offenses require the court’s discretionary approval rather than standard relief. Anyone required to register as a sex offender for an excluded offense will need to look at a Certificate of Rehabilitation or pardon instead. 

Is Expungement Automatic Now? PC 1203.425 and SB 731 

Partly, and this is the most misunderstood part of California record relief in 2026. 

Under PC 1203.425 (the Clean Slate laws, AB 1076 and SB 731), the California DOJ reviews its records monthly and grants automatic relief for qualifying convictions: broadly, completed misdemeanor cases and many felonies that did not involve serious or violent offenses or registration, after the required time has passed (for eligible felony convictions, generally four years after the case ends). After budget-related delays, the expanded system implementation date was pushed to October 1, 2024, under AB 168. 

Three reasons a petition still matters: 

1. Coverage gaps. Automatic relief depends on the DOJ’s data being complete and the conviction fitting the statutory criteria; many cases fall through, and older cases are more likely to be missed. 
2. You get no court order to show. With a granted CR-180 petition you hold a signed dismissal order you can hand to any employer or licensing agency. With automatic relief, you may not even know whether it happened until you pull your record. 
3. Timing. A petition can be filed on the day you become eligible; automatic relief happens when the state’s monthly sweep reaches you. 

The practical 2026 approach: pull your California DOJ record (via Live Scan) to see your current status, then petition for anything the automatic system has not cleaned up. 

How to Expunge Your Record: Step by Step 

1. Get your records. You need the case number, conviction date, code section, sentence, and probation completion status. Sources: the Superior Court clerk in the county of conviction and your DOJ record via Live Scan. Filing with wrong details is the most common cause of delay. 
2. Check for a reduction first. If the conviction is a wobbler felony, evaluate a PC 17(b) reduction to a misdemeanor before or with the dismissal petition. The combined result (misdemeanor + dismissed) reads far better than a dismissed felony. 
3. File the petition. Form CR-180 (Petition for Dismissal) with proposed order CR-181, filed in the Superior Court of the county where you were convicted. Include a supporting declaration if there were probation violations or other complications. The prosecutor must receive 15 days’ notice, and if the DA does not appear to object, the granted petition cannot later be appealed by the prosecution. 
4. Hearing, if any. Many clean petitions are granted on the papers. A hearing is more likely where there were violations, multiple cases, or DA opposition. Evidence of what you have done since (work history, treatment, community ties) matters when the court is exercising discretion. 
5. After the order. The court updates its records and notifies the DOJ. Commercial background check databases can take weeks to months to refresh. Keep certified copies of the signed CR-181; they are your proof in the meantime. 

How Much Does Expungement Cost, and How Long Does It Take? 

Cost: There is no longer a statutory filing fee for a PC 1203.4 petition; California repealed the former fee authority as part of its criminal-fee reform legislation. Practical costs are obtaining records (Live Scan runs roughly the cost of a fingerprint service) and attorney fees if you hire counsel. Confirm current practice with the clerk in your county of conviction, as administrative practices vary. 

Timeline: Most straightforward petitions resolve in roughly one to four months from filing to signed order, depending on the county’s calendar and whether a hearing is required. Background-check databases update on their own schedule after that. If you need the dismissal for a job or license application, file early; the court process cannot be meaningfully rushed. 

Special Situations 

DUI. Most DUI convictions can be expunged after probation. Two limits matter: the DMV driving record is untouched (a dismissal does not remove the conviction from it), and the DUI still counts as a prior within the 10-year window. The same applies to a wet reckless. 

Domestic violence. DV convictions granted probation are generally eligible, but the lifetime firearm ban survives, licensing boards still see the conduct, and any active criminal protective order remains in force despite the dismissal. See what a domestic violence conviction means for the full picture. 

Professional licenses. An expunged conviction must still be disclosed on state licensing applications, but boards generally view a dismissal plus rehabilitation far more favorably than an open conviction. Licensed professionals should sequence the expungement before renewal or application cycles. Our guides on convictions and job applications and CPA license reporting duties cover the employment side. 

Non-citizens. Expungement rarely helps for immigration purposes; federal law generally still counts the conviction. Immigration-safe record relief is a specialized analysis. Start with how a conviction can lead to deportation and get case-specific advice before filing anything. 

Drug convictions. Some older drug convictions have their own, stronger relief paths. See our guide to expunging a drug conviction in California. 

If You Don’t Qualify: Other Record Relief 

• PC 17(b) reduction: turns an eligible wobbler felony into a misdemeanor. Often combined with expungement. See our dismissal and reduction services. 

• PC 1203.41 / 1203.42 dismissal: the petition path for many felony sentences that PC 1203.4 does not reach, expanded by SB 731. 

• Arrest sealing (PC 851.91): for arrests that never led to conviction, the arrest record can be sealed, and much of this now happens automatically for recent arrests. 

• Certificate of Rehabilitation: a court finding of rehabilitation for people with felony histories who have lived crime-free for the statutory period; it also serves as an automatic pardon application. See our Certificate of Rehabilitation services. 

• Governor’s Pardon: the broadest relief, capable of restoring firearm rights in some cases. 

Expungement in San Mateo County 

Petitions are filed with the San Mateo County Superior Court in the county where the conviction occurred; criminal matters are handled through the court’s Southern Branch in Redwood City (Hall of Justice) and Northern Branch in South San Francisco. Processing time depends on the court’s calendar and whether the District Attorney objects; outcomes on discretionary petitions vary with the facts, the record since conviction, and the judge. 

Thomas Greenberg’s years as a San Mateo County Deputy Public Defender mean he has seen record relief from both directions: what probation reports flag, what the DA’s office objects to, and what a judge exercising interest-of-justice discretion wants to see in a declaration. That experience shapes how a borderline petition, a violation case, or a stack of old convictions gets presented. 

Ready to Clear Your Record? 

If your case is a single completed misdemeanor probation, you may be able to file yourself, and this guide gives you the map. If your situation involves a felony, a prison or jail sentence, probation violations, multiple cases, a professional license, or immigration exposure, a records review is the right first step: it identifies every form of relief you qualify for and the sequence that gets the best result. The Law Offices of Thomas Greenberg handles record clearance throughout San Mateo County and the surrounding Bay Area.

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