Expungement Certification Process

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​Online Requests

  1. Register at the registration site. An email account is required and will be verified during registration.
  2. Complete the online request form.
  3. Submit $40 payment. (Accepted forms of payment: American Express, Discover, MasterCard and Visa credit cards and most debit cards.)
  4. Check your email for notification when the certification packet is available online.
  5. Log in to the registration site to download the certification packet.
  6. File the certification documents and the proper expungement petition with the Office of Circuit Court Clerk in the county where the original charge was filed.

In-Person Requests

You may request an expungement certification in person by drive-thru window at the Administrative Office of the Courts, 1001 Vandalay Drive, Frankfort.

Drive-Thru Hours: Monday - Friday (except state holidays) 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. EST

Mail-Service Requests

  1. Download the Expungement Certification Request Form​.
  2. Complete the form.
  3. Provide the $40 payment by check or money order made payable to Kentucky State Treasurer.
  4. Mail the completed form and payment to:
    Records Unit
    Administrative Office of the Courts
    1001 Vandalay Drive
    Frankfort, KY 40601
  5. You will receive your certification packet by U.S. mail at the address you provided.
  6. File the certification documents and the proper expungement petition with the Office of Circuit Court Clerk in the county where the original charge was filed.

All cases that were dismissed with prejudice/acquitted on or after July 15, 2020, to be automatically expunged after 30 days, excluding traffic cases. No action is required by the defendant.

The distribution of this expungement order includes the following:

  • Defendant/Defendant's Attorney 
  • County Attorney/Commonwealth Attorney
  • Kentucky State Police
  • Arresting Agency
  • Local Jail

Defendants who need this order to be sent to any agency other than those listed above must notify the court within 60 days of expungement. The Kentucky State Police is the agency responsible for notifying any federal agencies of an expungement.

A defendant can object to the expungement by filing a written objection within 30 days of the dismissal/acquittal.

Felony Expungement - KRS 431.073

The Administrative Office of the Courts and circuit court clerks cannot provide legal advice or assistance regarding felony expungements.

Most Class D felony convictions (with limited exceptions) are eligible for expungement. KRS 431.073 outlines the process for a person to file an application to have his or her conviction vacated and expunged. If the court grants the application, the original judgment will be vacated and the charges dismissed. Records in the custody of any other agency or official, including law enforcement records, will be expunged.

Timeline to File for Felony Expungement

An application cannot be filed sooner than five (5) years after the completion of the person's sentence or five (5) years after the successful completion of the person's probation or parole, whichever occurs later.

Process to Obtain a Felony Expungement

  1. Request an expungement certification from the Administrative Office of the Courts. Once the expungement certification is returned:
  2. Complete the AOC legal form Application to Vacate and Expunge Felony Conviction and file the form with the Office of the Circuit Court Clerk in the county where the conviction occurred. Attorneys may also eFile felony expungement motions.
    • Attach the expungement certification to the motion and pay the filing fee.
    • On the application, list any agencies that may have records pertaining to the arrest, charges or conviction.
  3. If the prosecutor objects to the expungement within 60 days, the court will schedule a hearing and the circuit court clerk will send notice of the hearing.
  4. If the prosecutor does not object, the court may issue an order without a hearing.
  5. If the judge grants the application, upon full payment of the filing fee, the court will order expungement of the records. The court and all agencies will expunge their records so that information does not appear on official state-performed background checks.

Filing Fees

The total fee for a felony expungement is $300. A $50 non-refundable filing fee is due at the time the application is filed. If the application is granted, the defendant must pay an expungement fee of $250, which can be made in installment payments. The expungement cannot be completed until the full $250 has been paid.

An expungement certification (a criminal record report to indicate what records are eligible to be expunged) is required to be filed along with the motion. The cost for an expungement certification is $40.

Effect of the Expungement

Upon entry of an order vacating and dismissing charges, the original conviction shall be vacated and dismissed. Upon full payment of the expungement fee, the record shall be expunged.

Upon completion of the expungement, the court and other agencies shall cause records to be deleted or removed from their computer systems so that the matter shall not appear on official state-performed background checks. The court and other agencies shall reply to any inquiry that no record exists on the matter. The person whose record is expunged shall not have to disclose the fact of the record or any matter relating thereto on an application for employment, credit or other type of application. If the person is not prohibited from voting for any other reason, the person's ability to vote shall be restored and the person may register to vote.

An order vacating a conviction under this section shall not extend or revive an expired statute of limitations, shall not constitute a finding of legal error regarding the proceedings leading to or resulting in the conviction, shall not nullify any findings of fact or conclusions of law made by the trial court or any appellate court regarding the conviction and shall not constitute a finding of innocence regarding the conviction. KRS 431.073.

Information regarding the expungement order shall be retained by the Administrative Office of the Courts and will be accessible for the purpose of preparing an expungement eligibility certificate. The prosecutor is permitted to retain a nonpublic record for law enforcement purposes only.

Defendants Charged with a Felony But Not Indicted

KRS 431.076 permits the expungement of felony charges originally filed in District Court that have not resulted in an indictment by the grand jury. The expungement petition, AOC-497.2, may be filed no sooner than six months following the date of the District Court decision to hold the matter to the grand jury. There is no filing fee for a petition to expunge felony charges not resulting in indictment.

Defendants Who Have Been Pardoned

A person who has been granted a full pardon may file to have a felony conviction vacated and expunged. The conviction does not have to be one of the offenses listed on the right.

New Changes to the Law: Effective June 27, 2019, most Class D felony offenses are eligible for expungement pursuant to KRS 431.073.

KRS 431.073(1) lists specific Class D felony charges that are eligible for expungement:

17.175 Unlawful use of DNA database identification system.

186.990 Motor Vehicles, Operators, and Trailers – Theft and Fraud Offenses.

194A.505; 194B.505 - Assistance Program Fraud.

217.181 Theft of a legend drug.

217.207 Theft, criminal possession, trafficking, or unlawful possession of a prescription blank.

217.208 Forgery of a prescription.

218A.140 Prohibited acts relating to controlled substances – Penalties.

218A.1415 Possession of controlled substance in first degree.

218A.1416 Possession of controlled substance in second degree.

218A.1417 Possession of controlled substance in third degree.

218A.1418 Theft of a controlled substance (Repealed in 2013).

218A.1439 Trafficking in or transferring a dietary supplement – Exceptions – Penalties.

218A.282 Forgery of a prescription.

218A.284 Criminal possession of a forged prescription.

218A.286 Theft, criminal possession, trafficking, or unlawful possession of a prescription or blank.

218A.320 Criminal possession of a medical record – Penalties.

218A.322 Theft of a medical record – Penalties.

218A.324 Criminal falsification of a medical record – Penalties.

218A.1423 Marijuana Cultivation – Penalties.

218A.500 Unlawful practices/Drug paraphernalia

244.165 Unlawful sale and shipment by out-of-state seller directly to a Kentucky consumer – Permissible shipments of wine into Kentucky by out-of-state small farm wineries – Penalty.

286.11-057 Penalties under KY Financial Services Code.

304.47-025 Felony offense involving dishonesty or breach of trust – Fraudulent insurance act

324.990 Engaging in real estate brokerage without license – Penalties.

365.241 Counterfeiting intellectual property – Penalties – Disposition of property.

434.155 Filing illegal lien.

434.675 Use of scanning device or reencoder to obtain payment card information prohibited.

434.850 Unlawful access to a computer in the second degree.

434.872 Disclosure of information from financial information repository – Penalties.

511.040 Burglary in the third degree.

512.020 Criminal mischief in the first degree.

514.030 Theft by unlawful taking or disposition – Penalties.

514.040 Theft by deception.

514.050 Theft of property lost, mislaid, or delivered by mistake.

514.060 Theft of services.

514.065 Possession use or transfer of device for theft of telecommunications services.

514.070 Theft by failure to make required disposition of property.

514.080 Theft by extortion.

514.090 Theft of labor already rendered.

514.100 Unauthorized use of automobile or other propelled vehicle.

514.110 Receiving stolen property.

514.120 Obscuring identity of machine or other property.

514.140 Theft of mail matter.

514.150 Possession of stolen mail matter.

514.160 Theft of identity.

516.030 Forgery in the second degree.

516.060 Criminal possession of forged instrument in the second degree.

516.090 Possession of forgery device.

516.108 Criminal simulation in the first degree.

517.120 Operating a sham or front company.

518.040 Sports bribery.

522.040 Misuse of confidential information.

524.100 Tampering with physical evidence.

525.113 Institutional vandalism.

526.020 Eavesdropping.

526.030 Installing eavesdropping device.

528.020 Promoting gambling in the first degree.

528.040 Conspiracy to promote gambling.

528.050 Possession of gambling records in the first degree.

530.010 Bigamy – Defense.

530.050 Nonsupport and flagrant nonsupport.

Additionally, effective June 27, 2019, additional class D felonies may be eligible for expungement, including:

Convictions of a Class D felony, or an offense prior to January 1, 1975 which was punishable by not more than five (5) years incarceration, which was not a violation of KRS 189A.010 (driving under the influence), 508.032 (Assault 4th degree), or 519.055 (impersonating a peace officer), abuse of public office, a sex offense, or an offense committed against a child, and did not result in serious bodily injury or death; or of a series of felony offenses eligible under this paragraph.

Question: What information do I need to provide with the expungement certification request?
Answer: Your name, address, Social Security number and date of birth. An email address is required for online requests.

Question: How do I register to submit an expungement certification request online?
Answer: Registration is quick and easy. Register at the registration site. Shortly after submitting the request, you will receive an email from KYCourts.net asking you to verify your account. Your account will be registered after you click on the link and log in.

Question: Why am I required to register when using the online process?
Answer: By registering, you create an account that allows your certification expungement request to be securely processed online.

Question: What should I do if I didn't receive an email notification after I registered?
Answer: First, see if you entered the correct email address. Second, make sure the email was not delivered to your junk email folder. You might want to add DoNotReply@KYCourts.net to your email contact list to help identify the email as friendly.

Question: How do I determine the status of my expungement certification request?
Answer: Log in to the expungement certification request website using the email address and password created at the time the request was made. Your status will be one of the following:

  • Pay Now. The request was completed and submitted, but payment was not made. Submit payment to proceed with request.
  • Processing. The Administrative Office of the Courts received the request and is processing a criminal record report.
  • Sent to KSP. The Administrative Office of the Courts has completed a criminal record report and the request is being processed by the Kentucky State Police.
  • Complete. The Kentucky State Police has completed the certification. To retrieve the certification package, open the file attached to the request.

Question: Why is an expungement certification necessary?
Answer: The 2013 Kentucky General Assembly passed Senate Bill 78, which requires every expungement petition in Kentucky to include a certificate of eligibility beginning Jan. 1, 2014. This ensures that judges and prosecutors reviewing expungement petitions have accurate, current information regarding the status of petitioners.

Question: Why does the certification of expungement process take up to 60 days?
Answer: This time frame allows the Kentucky State Police and the Administrative Office of the Courts to run criminal record reports on the requestor and thoroughly review the requestor's information.

Question: How will I know when my certification is finished?
Answer: Online Requests: You will be notified by email.
In-Person Requests: You will be notified by U.S. mail.
Mail-Service Requests: You will be notified by U.S. mail.

Question: Once my expungement certification is complete, where do I go to retrieve it?
Answer: Online Requests: Visit this site to retrieve your certification packet.
In-Person Requests: You will receive your certification packet by U.S. mail at the address you provided.
Mail-Service Requests: You will receive your certification packet by U.S. mail at the address you provided.

Question: Is an expungement certification the same thing as an expungement?
Answer: No. Only a judge can grant an expungement. After you receive your certification, you will still need to file a petition for an expungement with the Office of Circuit Court Clerk in the county where the original charge was filed. This action sets the expungement process in motion through the courts.

Question: What do I do after I receive my certification?
Answer: File the appropriate petition for expungement with the Office of Circuit Court Clerk in the county where the original charge was filed. The petition must be filed before the certification expires in 30 days. The Administrative Office of the Courts is prohibited from providing legal advice. If you need help filing an expungement petition, you might want to consult with an attorney.

Question: How do I locate an Office of Circuit Court Clerk?
Answer: Circuit court clerks maintain court records and have offices in every Kentucky county. For a directory of circuit court clerks, click here.

Question: I think there might be a problem with the results of my certification. What do I do?
Answer: If you have questions about the results of your certification, contact the Kentucky State Police at 502-227-8700.

Question: I think the information on my background check is incorrect. What do I do?
Answer: If you have questions about the results of your criminal record report, contact the Records Unit at the Administrative Office of the Courts at 800-928-6381.

Question: Are there benefits to requesting an expungement certification electronically?
Answer: Yes. If you make your request online, you will receive email notifications throughout the process, you can check on the status of your certification online and you can download your certification packet as soon as it becomes available.

Question: My certification says I'm ineligible for an expungement. Can I still file for an expungement?
Answer: Yes, you may still file for an expungement. Only a judge can grant an expungement and you may file a petition for expungement regardless of the eligibility determination by the Kentucky State Police.

Question: What makes a charge eligible for expungement?
Answer: The conditions that make a charge eligible for expungement can be found in these Kentucky Revised Statutes: