Indiana Expungement: What Convictions Cannot Be Expunged?
Indiana has no single list of ineligible offenses. The exclusions are spread across four statutes and they stack as the offense gets more serious.
Broadly: sex and violent offenders as statutorily defined, homicide, human trafficking, sex offenses, felonies causing serious bodily injury or death, official misconduct by an elected or judicial officer, and two or more deadly-weapon felonies. And a point almost every article gets wrong — most felony expungements do not seal anything. The records stay public and get marked.
Eligibility turns on the exact offense and the exact date. Not the general category.
Two people with what sounds like the same conviction can land in different categories with different waiting periods, different burdens, and different outcomes. We can look at your actual record and tell you which section applies.
People arrive at this question already suspecting the answer is no. Usually something has happened — a job application, a licensing form, a landlord — and they want to know whether there is any point pursuing this.
Sometimes there isn't. But the ineligibility rules are more particular than most summaries suggest, and the categories are easy to misread. What follows is the actual structure.
How Indiana structures eligibility
Indiana's adult expungement law lives at Ind. Code § 35-38-9. It is often called the "Second Chance Act," but that is a popular nickname attached to 2012 legislation, not a statutory caption — the General Assembly repealed those original provisions in 2013 and replaced them with the current chapter.
The chapter sorts convictions into four tiers, each with its own section, its own waiting period, and its own exclusion list. The exclusions stack: everything barred at the misdemeanor tier is also barred higher up, plus more.
- § 35-38-9-2 — misdemeanors. Five years from conviction, earlier with the prosecutor's written consent. Mandatory — the court "shall order" it if you qualify.
- § 35-38-9-3 — Class D and Level 6 felonies. Eight years from conviction, earlier with written consent. Mandatory.
- § 35-38-9-4 — other felonies. The later of eight years from conviction or three years from completion of sentence. Discretionary — the court "may."
- § 35-38-9-5 — serious felonies. The later of ten years from conviction or five from completion of sentence, and the prosecuting attorney must consent in writing. Discretionary.
What's excluded at each level
Misdemeanors — § 35-38-9-2(b). Two exclusions only: a person with two or more felony convictions involving the unlawful use of a deadly weapon that were not part of the same episode of criminal conduct; and a sex or violent offender as defined in Ind. Code § 11-8-8-5. That cross-reference does real work — it is a defined statutory term, not a description, and it is worth checking against rather than assuming.
Class D / Level 6 felonies — § 35-38-9-3(b). Six exclusions: elected officials and elected or appointed judicial officers convicted while serving a term or as a candidate; sex or violent offenders; felonies resulting in bodily injury; perjury or official misconduct; offenses under Ind. Code § 35-42-1 (homicide), § 35-42-3.5 (human trafficking), or § 35-42-4 (sex offenses); and two or more deadly-weapon felonies.
Other felonies — § 35-38-9-4(b). Eight exclusions. Everything above, plus felonies resulting in serious bodily injury, felonies resulting in death, and unlawful possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon under Ind. Code § 35-47-4-5. The homicide reference expressly includes attempted murder.
§ 35-38-9-5 is not the leftover category. Subsection (a) is an affirmative list, and it exists to rescue three groups that § 4 bars outright: an elected or judicial officer convicted of something other than official misconduct; a person convicted of a felony resulting in serious bodily injury; and a person convicted of official misconduct who is not an elected official or judicial officer.
Note the asymmetry, because it is easy to reverse: serious bodily injury is an inclusion under § 5(a), while a felony resulting in death is an exclusion under § 5(b).
The tier depends on the level as charged, not as it feels.
A Level 6 that was reduced, or a Class D from before the 2014 recodification, can land somewhere you would not expect. It takes a look at the actual judgment.
"Expunged" does not always mean sealed
This is the part that surprises people, and the part that marketing copy across this state routinely gets wrong.
Ind. Code § 35-38-9-6 — the sealing provision — applies to expungements under sections 2 and 3 only. Misdemeanors and Class D / Level 6 felonies. For those, the records of the sentencing court, any collateral action, the juvenile court, the Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court "shall be permanently sealed."
Everything else falls under Ind. Code § 35-38-9-7, which applies to petitions under section 4 or section 5. Its subsection (b) reads:
"The court records and other public records relating to the arrest, conviction, or sentence of a person whose conviction records … have been marked as expunged remain public records. However, the court shall order that the records be clearly and visibly marked or identified as being expunged."
Indiana's own Office of Judicial Administration says the same thing: Category 4 and 5 records remain public, are freely accessible, and must be visibly marked.
So if your conviction is an ordinary felony expunged under § 4, the record does not disappear. Someone searching will still find it — they will find it marked as expunged. That still carries the legal protections in § 35-38-9-10 discussed below, and it is still very much worth doing. But it is a different thing from sealing, and anyone who tells you otherwise has not read § 7.
One further detail in § 7(b): a § 4 or § 5 expungement "does not affect an existing or pending driver's license suspension."
The one-petition rule and how counties interact
Ind. Code § 35-38-9-9(i): a petitioner may file for expungement "only one (1) time during the petitioner's lifetime." But read the rest of the sentence — all petitions filed in separate counties for offenses committed in those counties "count as one (1) petition if they are filed in one (1) three hundred sixty-five (365) day period."
That 365-day window is the practical mechanism for anyone with convictions in more than one county. Get them all filed inside a year and they count once.
§ 35-38-9-9(h) handles the same-county side: you must consolidate all convictions you want expunged from a single county into one petition. Separate counties require separate petitions.
"One per lifetime" stated flatly is an overstatement, though. Subsections (j) and (k) create exceptions — including refiling after a denial and supplemental petitions. Whether either applies to you depends on what happened the first time.
What expungement actually protects
Ind. Code § 35-38-9-10 is the provision with teeth. Subsection (b) makes it "unlawful discrimination" to suspend, expel, refuse to employ, refuse to admit, refuse to grant or renew a licence, permit or certificate, or otherwise discriminate against someone because of an expunged or sealed record.
Subsection (d) limits what an employer may even ask. The permitted question is: "Have you ever been arrested for or convicted of a crime that has not been expunged by a court?"
Subsection (e) says a person whose record is expunged "shall be treated as if the person had never been convicted of the offense."
Subsection (c) restores civil rights in full — the right to vote, to hold public office, to serve as a juror, and to be a "proper person" under Ind. Code § 35-47-1-7(2), which is the firearms qualification.
Domestic violence is carved out. Under § 35-38-9-6(f), expunging a crime of domestic violence under § 2 does not restore the right to possess a firearm. That runs through Ind. Code § 35-47-4-7 instead.
Some employers are exempt. § 35-38-9-10(a) provides that the anti-discrimination subsections do not apply to law enforcement, probation, or community corrections employers — including volunteer positions.
Sentencing still counts it. Under § 10(e), an expunged conviction remains usable at sentencing, counts as a prior unrelated conviction for habitual offender and similar enhancements, and is admissible as evidence.
One protection people rarely know about: Ind. Code § 35-38-9-11 makes any waiver of the right to expungement in a plea agreement "invalid and unenforceable as against public policy." It cannot be bargained away.
What changed in 2025 — and what didn't in 2026
P.L.77-2025 (Senate Enrolled Act 281), effective July 1, 2025, amended §§ 0.6, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 9. Three changes matter for eligibility:
Official misconduct became expungeable under § 5(a)(3) where the petitioner is not an elected official or judicial officer and the prosecutor consents in writing.
The elected-official bar was extended to appointed judicial officers, now appearing in §§ 3(b)(1), 4(b)(1), 5(a)(1) and 5(b)(2).
Unlawful possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon became an express bar at §§ 4(b)(8) and 5(b)(6).
Separately, current law at § 35-38-9-0.6(d) bars a court from ordering the BMV to seal, restrict access to, or expunge a conviction for a person who held a commercial driver's licence at the time of the offense, where the conviction involves violations described in 49 CFR 384.226.
As for this year: House Bill 1118 (2026) would have repealed and replaced the whole adult expungement statute. It passed the House 87–4 on January 22, 2026, was referred to Senate Corrections and Criminal Law on January 26, and died in committee. There is no 2026 change to Ind. Code § 35-38-9.
Eligibility at a glance
| Category | Waiting period | Court's discretion | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Misdemeanor — § 2 | 5 years from conviction | Mandatory — "shall order" | Records sealed |
| Class D / Level 6 — § 3 | 8 years from conviction | Mandatory | Records sealed |
| Other felony — § 4 | Later of 8 years from conviction or 3 from completion | Discretionary — "may" | Stays public, marked expunged |
| Serious felony — § 5 | Later of 10 years from conviction or 5 from completion | Discretionary + prosecutor's written consent | Stays public, marked expunged |
Any of the four can be shortened if the prosecuting attorney consents in writing. That consent is itself something that can be sought and negotiated rather than simply hoped for.
You get one petition. It's worth knowing it's the right one.
Because the lifetime limit is real and the county rules interact, a rushed or incomplete filing can cost you the opportunity. We can look at every conviction on your record, work out which section governs each, and tell you honestly whether it is worth filing.
Frequently asked questions
01Can a felony be expunged in Indiana?
Many can. Class D and Level 6 felonies are mandatory after eight years if no exclusion applies, and are sealed. Other felonies are discretionary and, importantly, are not sealed — they remain public records marked as expunged under Ind. Code § 35-38-9-7.
02What if I have convictions in more than one county?
You file a separate petition in each county, and you must consolidate all convictions from a single county into one petition. Provided every petition is filed inside a 365-day period, Ind. Code § 35-38-9-9(i) counts them together as one lifetime petition.
03Does expungement restore my gun rights?
Generally yes — Ind. Code § 35-38-9-10(c) restores civil rights in full, including being a "proper person" under Ind. Code § 35-47-1-7(2). The exception is a crime of domestic violence expunged under § 2: § 35-38-9-6(f) provides that firearm rights are not restored, and must be pursued under Ind. Code § 35-47-4-7 instead.
04Can I file twice?
The general rule is one petition per lifetime. But subsections (j) and (k) of Ind. Code § 35-38-9-9 create exceptions, including refiling after a denial and supplemental petitions. Whether one applies depends on what happened to the first filing.
05Will an expunged conviction still count against me later?
In one context, yes. Under Ind. Code § 35-38-9-10(e) an expunged conviction may still be considered at sentencing, counts as a prior unrelated conviction for habitual offender and similar enhancements, and is admissible as evidence. For employment, housing and licensing, the anti-discrimination protections in § 10(b) apply.
06I signed a plea agreement waiving expungement. Am I stuck?
No. Ind. Code § 35-38-9-11 provides that a person may not waive the right to expungement as part of a plea agreement, and any purported waiver is "invalid and unenforceable as against public policy."
This article is general information about Indiana law, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney–client relationship. Statutes change and every case turns on its own facts. Reviewed August 2026 against the 2026 edition of the Indiana Code, including P.L.77-2025. Attorney advertising.
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