Sealing and Expunging Criminal and Juvenile Records

To seal or expunge a criminal record requires court approval. The defendant must pay all outstanding fines, fees, and court costs must be paid in full prior to having his record sealed or expunged. 

The necessary documents are available from the Dade County Clerk's Office in the Richard E. Gerstein Justice Building Suite 9000.

The defendant must obtain a certified copy of the final disposition; if you do not know your case number an additional research fee will be assessed.

The defendant will also receive a complete package of instructions:

• Including a fingerprint card which must be completed at a local law enforcement agency, and an application for a certificate of eligibility which must be completed by the State Attorney's Office (for expungements only) and mailed, along with a $75 fee to Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
• The forms for this portion of the process can also be obtained from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement website.
• The Florida Department of Law Enforcement will mail you the Certificate of Eligibility.
• The defendant must then return to the Clerk's Office with the certificate and the completed Petition to Seal or Expunge from your package.  The forms are located in this page, right column, under Criminal Forms.  The defendant will be responsible for payment of the costs of copies and certification in addition to the $42.00 filing fee.  The clerk will then file these documents with the court.