How it works in Alabama

The steps

1. Get fingerprinted

   Visit your local police or sheriff's station. Have your fingerprints taken there.

2. Request your record

   Fill out the application for an official copy of your Alabama criminal history record. Send it in. ALEA accepts only a cashier's check or money order.

   Record request fee: $25 — ALEA's $25.00 administrative fee for a personal review (Form 46); money order or cashier's check only

3. Review your record

   Check your history for anything that would disqualify you. If something is wrong, follow the process to challenge it. If it is all correct, copy it for your file and keep the original somewhere safe.

4. Request certified documents

   Collect certified copies of the key papers. You need the disposition and the case action summary from the clerk of court that handled the case. You also need the arrest record from the arresting agency. Did you have probation, parole, classes, fees, or other duties? Get certified proof that you completed each one.

   Certified copy fee: $5.00 to certify; copies $0.25 a page for the first 20, $0.50 a page after — Rule 30(D) of the Alabama Rules of Judicial Administration lets the courts' administrator set the cost of copies, so a clerk's own schedule can differ.

5. Verify the final documents

   Review each paper for accuracy. Confirm it is certified and clearly shows you completed your duties. Make copies of every original.

6. Prepare your petition

   Complete the petition for your type of charge and outcome. Note the timing rules in Ala. Code §§ 15-27-1 to 15-27-2. Most dismissed, no-billed and not-guilty charges need 90 days. A charge dismissed after a court program needs one year. A charge dismissed without prejudice needs one year for a misdemeanor and five years for a felony. A misdemeanor conviction needs three years. A felony conviction needs a pardon, then 180 days.

7. Finalize your petition

   Build one complete package: the petition from Step 6, the papers from Step 4, and the record from Step 2. Double-check every file in it is the original. Keep a copy of the whole package for your personal file.

8. File your expungement petition

   First confirm you can complete service on each party. Then file the petition with the court that handled the case. Alabama also charges a separate court filing fee. It may vary by county — ask your clerk for the amount. The court can waive the petition fee if you prove substantial hardship. You serve a copy of the petition and your sworn affidavit on the district attorney, the law enforcement agency, and the clerk of court for the place the records are from. Keep one complete package for each. Each process server sets its own per-party fee.

   Petition fee: $500.00 — one fee per arrest (§ 15-27-4(b)); waived on an Affidavit of Substantial Hardship (§ 15-27-4(c))

9. Work with the court

   After the court confirms your filing, watch for the next step. Often that is a hearing notice or a request for more papers. Respond quickly to anything the court asks for. Prepare for the hearing if one is set.

10. Receive the court's order

    Once the judge rules, the court issues a written order that grants or denies your petition. Read its terms with care — they spell out exactly which records it covers. Keep a certified copy for your own files.

11. Verify the record update

    Alabama law directs ALEA and the arresting agency to remove or restrict the records the order covers. A background-check company may later show an outdated report. Your certified copy of the order is your proof. Under Ala. Code § 15-27-6, you do not have to disclose the expunged record on an application for employment, credit, or any other type of application. You must still disclose it to a government regulatory or licensing agency, a utility, or a bank or other financial institution, and they may inspect the expunged records after filing notice with the court.

If you mail anything, keep a copy of what you send. Use a method with a tracking number, like the USPS Flat Rate Envelope.